Our support for Finance Bill has cost us heavily, leaders confess

Tens of youths invaded Naivas Supermarket in Naivasha on Tuesday evening looting goods worth millions of shillings before torching the office of area MP Jane Kihara. [Antony Gitonga, Standard]

Several MPs whose property was destroyed by protestors on Tuesday as they vented against the Finance Bill 2024 says they have left the attackers to God even as they continue counting losses amounting to millions of shillings.

The protestors who invaded razed down buildings and carried away property belonging to MPs Kimani Kuria (Molo) who is also the Finance and National Planning at the National Assembly, Njoroge Wainaina (Kieni), Muchangi Karemba (Mbeere South), Oscar Sudi (Kapsaret) among others.

The Kieni MP who operates a chain of supermarkets in Mt Kenya region told The Standard that his business premise in Nyeri town which was razed down during the protests had employed over 350 employees. He added that he lost movable stock worth Sh450 million and additional equipment such as bakery shelves, among others, valued at Sh100 million.

“The scrap metal dealers are now scavenging for the metallic stands that remained after the inferno even as the employees have been left jobless,” he told The Standard on phone.

He added that he had paid the ultimate political price on behalf of many other Kenyans for the sake of development.

Wainaina said even after the vandalism and fire that gutted down his property, he did not regret voting for the Finance Bill as he did it for the sake of the Kieni people.

“I voted in support of the Bill because the people of Kieni stood to benefit from it being an agricultural zone where our people farm onions, potatoes, eggs and milk will enjoy all the way to the bank because the competition from outside the country would have been reduced with the passage of the bill,” he said.

He, however, claimed the looting was not done by the youth, but a bunch of criminals and asked the authorities to apprehend the suspects.

Sudi, whose Timber XO club in Eldoret was vandalized and looted, condemned the move and said he has never thought of destroying anyone’s property even as he claimed that politicians from the Rift Valley region planned the vandalism.

“I have never in my life planned to destroy people’s property. My work has always been helping people who don’t have parents, building churches, and other things. We know people who organized it and the leaders are from home,” said the Mp.

At the same time, the Kapseret MP suspended all his planned activities including charity events and fundraising until further notice.

“I will not say anything bad but since it has become something else, let me also rest and suspend everything that I had planned until further notice,” Sudi stated.

He continued “You destroyed the county and where people do plans for development or destroy the business belonging to a person from the area. It’s okay. I wish you well.” 

At the same time Kenya Kwanza MPs who defied their party and opposed the Finance Bill also felt the government’s wrath.

They were blocked from entering State House yesterday and were turned away over claims of going against the President.

They were also removed from their WhatsApp group dubbed Project22 by the group administrator South Mugirango MP Sylvanus Osoro.

The who faced the party’s wrath were  MPs Benjamin Gathiru alias Major Donk (Embakasi Central) Njeri Maina (Kirinyaga) James Gakuya (Embakasi North) and Gitonga Mukunji (Manyatta)

“We were removed from the Whatsapp group and later turned away from the State House gates for allegedly ditching Ruto when he needed us.  They claimed we betrayed him by standing with our electorate and this paints a picture of how undemocratic our party and leader is. Nonetheless I shall always be on the peoples’ side,” an MP who sought anonymity told The Standard.

WhatsApp group

Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua was also reportedly removed from the WhatsApp group as some Ruto allies allegedly accused him of silence and not publicly supporting the Finance Bill. The MP painted a picture of internal turmoil in the ruling party, saying some leaders were fuelling the matter as they were financially benefiting from the issue.

“In the parliamentary group meeting, they claimed that those who voted ‘no’ for the Finance Bill were Gachagua’s foot soldiers but this only meant to solicit some money from the powers that be to allegedly de-popularize us in the ground,” another MP who was also removed from the WhatsApp group said.

But the legislator said despite the embarrassment meted on them at the State House gate, the ‘Yes’ team who were allowed at the State House ended up being a laughing stock to their people because the President who they decided to support also bowed to pressure and returned the bill to Parliament.

“Some of us who refused to betray our people are standing tall while those who nearly fought to have the bill passed to please the President have eggs on their faces,” the MP said.

This comes against the backdrop of bribery claims where Juja MP George Koimburi on Sunday claimed that legislators were offered Sh2 million in exchange for voting yes on the Finance Bill.

“We were offered money... you saw how they carried money in sacks. We were told that for every yes vote, we would receive Sh2 million,” Koimburi told congregants at the AIPCA church in Ndurumo in Juja

He warned that as youth become increasingly disenfranchised and frustrated by the economic hardships imposed by such legislation, they may resort to drastic measures, including widespread unrest. 

“If this bill passes, the youth may burn the country,” he warned, emphasizing the critical need for the government to reconsider its position.