Tax Truths: Ndii Critiques Gachagua’s One-Man-One-Shilling
More than a week after Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua publicly supported the one-man one-vote one-shilling policy, President William Ruto’s Chief Economic Advisor, David Ndii, has expressed his opposition.
In a series of posts on X on Sunday, Ndii argued that other regions, like the Coast, contribute more taxable revenue to the state than the densely populated Mt Kenya region.
Using Base Titanium as an example, the economic adviser highlighted that the company, based in Kwale County and set to leave the Kenyan market by the end of the year, paid Ksh7 billion in taxes and royalties in the financial year ending June 2023.
“Base Titanium in Kwale paid Ksh7 billion in taxes in 2023. Including taxes paid by hotels in Diani and the Devki Steel Mill, among other major taxpayers in Kwale, I challenge proponents of the one-man one-shilling policy from Mt Kenya to list comparable taxpayers in their region,” Ndii stated.
Last Monday, the deputy president addressed a congregation, claiming that the policy was essential to ensure equitable resource distribution by the government.
Gachagua argued that Mt Kenya is among the country’s most populous regions and has the most votes.
“In terms of revenue sharing, I strongly support the one-man-one-vote-one-shilling principle. It’s a straightforward idea: the more people and taxes in an area, the more funding they should receive,” Gachagua said at the time.
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“The drive for this formula isn’t just about our region’s large population; it’s because it is the right thing to do. We are committed to ensuring fairness in the national revenue sharing.”
However, Ndii countered that the Mt Kenya region primarily consists of agricultural land, which generates minimal tax revenue for the government.
He further noted that in his advisory role, he spent 18 months promoting public-private partnership projects worth billions of shillings, but none of the targeted companies were located in Mt Kenya, making the policy’s effectiveness questionable.
The projects mentioned include a 20,000-megawatt wind power project in Marsabit, the Lamu Port South Sudan Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET) Corridor, the Tana-Galana Kulalu irrigation scheme, and the Turkwel Turkana irrigation scheme.
Public Service CS Moses Kuria also opposed the policy, stating that the Mt Kenya region already has significant representation in the government’s top ranks.
He pointed out that over nine leaders from the region had been appointed to Cabinet and leadership positions in Parliament, putting them in a better position to advocate for the policy’s implementation.
Tax Truths: Ndii Critiques Gachagua’s One-Man-One-Shilling