Ruto Withdraws Finance Bill: Eight Ways His Government Will Raise Money

President Ruto Sacks Entire Cabinet, Except One, as Kenyans continue to demand more

William Ruto, President of Kenya, has withdrawn the controversial Finance Bill that sparked widespread protests, resulting in the deaths of over 20 people, according to local sources.

The bill, which was passed by Parliament last Tuesday, sought to increase taxation in various sectors but met with stiff resistance from the people, particularly the youth.

The President rejected the bill after at least 23 people lost their lives protesting against it.

“Having reflected on the conversation regarding the contents of the Finance Bill and having listened keenly to the people who have spoken loudly that they don’t want anything to do with this Finance Bill, 2024, I concede and I will not sign the bill, and it will be withdrawn,’’ Ruto said on Wednesday.

The Finance Bill was intended to raise funds to account for the deficit in the budget for the financial year 2024–25. The government had presented a budget of Sh3.99 trillion ($33.25 billion), of which a substantial Sh200 billion would be raised through various tax hikes in different sectors.

How The Government Will Raise Money Now The Bill Has Been Withdrawn

With the withdrawal of the bill, the government will seek other ways to raise money.

Last week, the National Treasury had warned of massive budget cuts if the Finance Bill was not enacted. In anticipation of the bill not being enacted, the National Assembly earlier proposed a Sh178 billion cut from the Financial Year 2024/2025 budget as rationalization.

Here’s how the government will cut its expenses:

The budget allocated to the judiciary will be cut by Sh2 billion.
In Parliament, the recurrent budget will be cut by Sh2.7 billion.
For the President’s Operations budget, the failure of the Finance Bill to be enacted into law will result in a budget cut of Sh451 million.
Additionally, the State House Operations and Maintenance budget will be cut by Sh500 million.
Sh450 million will be slashed from Parliament’s development budget.
The budget for the confirmation and hiring of Junior Secondary School (JSS) teachers will be reduced by Sh18.9 billion.
Cash transfers will be cut by Sh5.5 billion.
While the Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) will be cut by Sh15 billion.