MPs Will Not be Recalled for a Special Sitting on Finance Bill, 2024
The National Assembly will not be recalled for a special session to address President William Ruto’s objections to the contentious Finance Bill 2024, which led to mass protests and a breach of Parliament premises on June 25.
Speaker Moses Wetangula, who received President Ruto’s memorandum on Wednesday evening, will inform all 349 MPs about the implications of the President’s decision to withhold assent to the Finance Bill.
According to House rules, if a message from the President is received while the House is not in session, the Speaker must immediately distribute the message to each Member and report it to the House on the next sitting day.
The earliest date the House can consider the President’s memorandum, which asks MPs to strike out the entire Finance Bill 2024, is July 22, following the House’s recess on Thursday.
Standing Order 42(3) states that when a message from the President is read, it is considered laid before the House, and the Speaker may either direct immediate action, schedule a day for consideration, or refer it to the relevant committee.
Parliament began a month-long recess on Thursday morning after passing a motion to deploy the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) to assist police in quelling unrest following youth-led protests that invaded Parliament.
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On Wednesday, President Ruto, responding to pressure from young protesters and concerns from Kenyans, asked the National Assembly to withdraw the Finance Bill entirely.
President Ruto refused to sign the Finance Bill 2024 and sent a memorandum back to the National Assembly recommending the deletion of all clauses.
Had the President not returned the Bill with recommendations for deletion, it would have automatically become law within 14 days.
The President’s recommendation to return the Bill with deletions means it is effectively dead.
The President’s message, received by Speaker Wetangula on Wednesday evening, has been committed to the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning for consideration.
The committee, chaired by Molo MP Kuria Kimani, will review the President’s memorandum and file a report when the House reconvenes on July 22, 2024.
MPs will vote on the President’s recommendation to delete the Bill entirely, clause by clause.
To retain a clause in the Bill or overturn the President’s memorandum, an MP must gather support from 233 MPs, a two-thirds majority.
Once all clauses of the Bill are deleted, it cannot be reintroduced for six months.
The Bill was intended to become law by June 30 and take effect on July 1, 2024, running until June 30, 2025.
“I decline to assent to the Finance Bill 2024, and refer the Bill for reconsideration by the National Assembly with the recommendation for the deletion of all clauses,” President Ruto stated in his memorandum.
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The government had hoped to raise Sh347 billion in the financial year 2024/25 through the passage of the Bill to address the deficit in President Ruto’s Sh3.92 trillion budget.
Last week, President Ruto accepted the National Assembly’s proposals to delete certain taxes, including the proposed VAT on bread, a 2.5 percent motor vehicle levy, a 25 percent excise duty on edible oil, and an eco levy on plastic packaging materials.
If MPs vote to delete all clauses of the Finance Bill 2024 as proposed by President Ruto, the government will continue with the revenue-raising measures for the 2023/24 financial year.
Kenyan youths have been protesting since last week, urging MPs not to approve the Finance Bill, which proposed additional taxes and levies on individuals and businesses. Despite these protests, MPs passed the Bill on Tuesday amid demonstrations in 35 of the 47 counties.
In Nairobi, the protests culminated in a breach of Parliament Buildings shortly after lawmakers approved the contentious Bill through its Third Reading.
MPs Will Not be Recalled for a Special Sitting on Finance Bill, 2024