{"id":2863,"date":"2026-05-26T15:09:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T15:09:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/?p=2863"},"modified":"2026-05-26T15:09:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T15:09:08","slug":"read-the-real-finance-bill-not-online-rumours-government-dismisses-fake-tax-claims-as-child-abduction-cases-surge-nationwide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/?p=2863","title":{"rendered":"Read the Real Finance Bill, Not Online Rumours\u201d \u2014 Government Dismisses Fake Tax Claims as Child Abduction Cases Surge Nationwide"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Government has dismissed widespread claims circulating online about the Finance Bill 2026, terming them misleading, inaccurate, and politically motivated misinformation aimed at causing public panic among Kenyans.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

By Jeff Kizzilah\/Digital Editor\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Speaking during a press briefing\u00a0 in Nairobi, Government Spokesman Isaac Mwaura urged Kenyans to personally read and understand the Finance Bill instead of relying on what he described as \u201cnegative energies, misinformation and disinformation\u201d dominating social media platforms and public discussions.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mwaura clarified that several controversial tax proposals that had sparked public outrage were either revised or dropped completely before the publication of the Finance Bill by the National Treasury.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Among the claims dismissed by the Government are reports alleging the introduction of a motor vehicle circulation tax, new taxes on Mitumba clothes, increased taxes on rental income, VAT on bread, and fresh taxation on mobile phones and digital transactions.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

According to the Government Spokesman, the proposal to increase residential rental income tax from 7.5 percent to 10 percent was abandoned, alongside plans to introduce a simplified taxation framework targeting Mitumba traders.<\/p>\n

Mwaura also rejected claims that the Kenya Revenue Authority would gain unrestricted access to personal mobile money transactions, insisting that existing privacy and data protection laws remain fully operational and that no Kenyan\u2019s private financial information would be accessed outside the law.<\/p>\n

On concerns surrounding smartphones and digital services, he explained that the proposed excise duty framework merely seeks to consolidate already existing taxes in order to simplify digital taxation without increasing the burden on ordinary citizens.<\/p>\n

The Government further defended proposed regulations targeting virtual asset service providers, including cryptocurrency operators, saying the measures are intended to improve accountability and transparency within the rapidly expanding digital financial sector.<\/p>\n

According to Mwaura, virtual asset operators will only be required to maintain transaction records similar to those already maintained by banks and other regulated financial institutions.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

At the same time, the Government maintained that the Finance Bill contains several relief measures aimed at lowering the cost of living while supporting critical sectors of the economy.<\/p>\n

Among the proposed exemptions are VAT-free dialysis equipment, tax exemptions on agricultural inputs and animal feed production, incentives for local pharmaceutical manufacturing, and VAT exemptions on transportation of sugarcane from farms to factories.<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The bill also proposes VAT exemptions on solar batteries, electric buses, electric bicycles, and bioethanol vapor stoves as part of efforts to promote clean energy and environmental sustainability.<\/p>\n

Additionally, public-private partnership infrastructure projects are set to benefit from VAT exemptions aimed at attracting investment, creating jobs, and accelerating national<\/strong><\/em> development.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mwaura further highlighted reforms targeting salaried workers, including changes to tax return filing timelines meant to ease compliance requirements. If approved, the deadline for filing individual tax returns will move from June 30th to April 30th, while Kenyans with no taxable income will be required to submit nil returns by January 31st annually.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the Government has also raised alarm over the rising number of child abductions, disappearances, trafficking, and violence against minors across the country.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Addressing the media, Isaac Mwaura described the situation as deeply worrying, revealing that thousands of child protection cases have been reported nationwide within just over one year.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

According to data from the Child Protection Information Management System, a total of 10,581 child protection cases were recorded between January 2025 and March 2026.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The figures include 6,820 cases of child abandonment, 1,952 abductions, 1,636 reports of missing children, and 173 trafficking cases.<\/p>\n

The Government condemned the abduction, abuse, trafficking, and killing of children, terming the incidents hideous crimes that continue to traumatize families and endanger communities across the country.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Mwaura said security agencies and child protection officers have already activated multi-agency interventions aimed at rescuing vulnerable children and prosecuting offenders involved in child-related crimes.<\/p>\n

The interventions include rescue operations, family tracing and reunification programs, alternative family care arrangements, psychosocial support services, and legal action against suspects.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Authorities have also established Children Advisory Committees across counties to strengthen local child protection systems and ensure reported cases are addressed more quickly and effectively.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Government has now urged parents and guardians to heighten vigilance, particularly during school commuting hours which officials say have increasingly become risky for children.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mwaura warned that children travelling to and from school remain among the most vulnerable targets for abductors and traffickers, advising parents to personally pick up their children where possible or ensure they are accompanied by trusted adults.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Parents were also cautioned against leaving children in the care of strangers and urged to educate children on personal safety, including avoiding lifts, gifts, sweets, or conversations from unknown individuals.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Schools have equally been urged to tighten transport and handover procedures to ensure children are released only to authorized guardians.<\/p>\n

The public has now been encouraged to report cases of missing children, trafficking, violence, neglect, abuse, or online exploitation through the national child helpline 116 or WhatsApp number 0722 116116.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Government has dismissed widespread claims circulating online about the Finance Bill 2026, terming them misleading, inaccurate, and politically motivated misinformation aimed at causing public… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2864,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2863","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-updates"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2863","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2863"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2863\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2865,"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2863\/revisions\/2865"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2864"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2863"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2863"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/livenation254.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2863"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}