Musalia tears into Raila, Ruto plans tax burden plans

Amani National Congress party leader Musalia Mudavadi.

Amani National Congress leader Musalia Mudavadi has warned Kenyans against electing some leaders unless they want to pay more taxes.

Mudavadi said Kenyans needed to be careful, as empty promises, including one on social welfare programmes; bribery and handouts had become the rampart in campaigns.

“As we approach the next General Election, we must give this country what is good. We must not be convinced by handouts, bribery or by sweet words from politicians who promise you things that are practically impossible,” he said.

Mudavadi also condemned Deputy President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga’s promised social welfare programmes, terming them impractical.

Welfare programmes

The ANC leader, speaking yesterday at the Quakers Friends International Centre on Ngong Road, Nairobi, said the welfare programmes being sold to Kenyans would increase their burden. 

“I’ve heard some politicians promising a social welfare economy model by getting Sh6,000. My question is; where will they get this money? They are simply lying to voters for the sake of votes. If their programmes were to be implemented, they will force an increase in taxes,” said Mudavadi.

Ruto has promised to allocate Sh150 billion to youth and women’s small businesses as a stimulus package, while Raila has promised Sh6,000 monthly to poor families and youth to bridge the poverty gap.

Raila’s welfare plans to reach at least 8 million people in just one year after its rollout, while of Ruto has not defined the number of people set to benefit from the programme.

In a number of meetings, Raila has said his social welfare stipend for the jobless is feasible and will be funded by cash that has in the past been looted by the corrupt.

In the first public meeting after he was taken ill three weeks ago, Mudavadi asked leaders seeking various political seats to embark on issue-based campaigns rather than engaging in continuous political rhetoric without telling Kenyans how solutions to the problems and challenges facing the country will be found.

Sway by content

“Kenyans must be swayed by the content that comes out of the leaders without being bribed, or given fake promises,” said Mudavadi.

He said there were serious problems and cautioned the electorate against falling prey to the euphoric nature of Kenyan politics, and ending up with wrong leaders.

“We need to start answering crucial questions that relate to how Kenyans will get water, food on the table and how we are going to create jobs and revamp the economy,” Mudavadi said. 

On the Jubilee government, he said President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration should tell Kenyans the truth in relation to the challenges facing the country, especially the economic melt-down.

He said the country needed drastic approaches to the economic issues, including the huge public debt and lack of jobs.

“Salaries are getting delayed and public servants won’t get salary increments in the next three years, since the government has frozen salary increments because the country is broke. These are the issues we need to address ourselves to,” he said.

Mudavadi maintained that no Kenyan should be coerced to support any candidate and that instead, democracy must prevail by people being allowed to decide on the ballot who their leaders should be come August 2022.

He promised to roll out countrywide campaigns to bolster his presidential bid as the ANC party prepares to hold its National Delegates Conference early next year.

Earlier, three ANC legislators hinted at abandoning One Kenya Alliance (OKA) before the end of December.

Titus Khamala (Lurambi), Tindi Mwale (Butere) and Kakamega Senator Cleophas Malala left tongues wagging on Saturday when they disclosed that ANC could be headed out of the alliance.

They spoke in Likuyani Sub-county, where they took their party’s Uchumi Bora campaigns.

Mr Malala set the ball rolling by challenging OKA principals to give Kenyans a Christmas gift by naming their presidential flag bearer. “They have up to December 25 to give us a candidate or else ANC is going to pull out and mount nationwide presidential campaigns to popularise our party leader Musalia Mudavadi and his manifesto,” said Malala.

“We have already embarked on scouting for Mudavadi’s running-mate as a party, and we are not looking back. If they (OKA principals) will not have named a candidate, we shall carry on with our course,” the senator told The Standard on the telephone.

Malala, Mr Khamala and Mr Mwale said they smelt a rat in the delayed naming of the OKA presidential torchbearer.

Committee work

“A committee that was picked to work on technical issues, including party symbol, colours and coalition arrangements, has done its work. The issue of a (presidential) candidate was left to the principals. ANC will not tolerate further delays,” said Malala.

They said the leaders must bite the bullet, and do what is required of them “because we would like to embark on popularising our presidential candidate. The 2022 polls are just nine months away,” said Khamala.

Malala said ANC could start looking for other like-minded partners to form a formidable political force to compete with Ruto’s UDA and Raila’s ODM.

The leaders warned that OKA stood to lose if the alliance decided to support Raila’s presidential bid. 

“Chances of our principal supporters agreeing to back Raila are remote. If Mudavadi decides to go that route, his supporters could take their votes elsewhere. It is not an easy matter,” said Malala.