The Bar, Hotels and Liquor Traders Association (BAHLITA) has condemned the government’s move to increase excise duty on alcohol products.
The new proposed taxes will increase the price of beer by ten percent, spirits by twenty percent, while the glass bottles will attract a new excise tax of twenty-five percent.
An additional fifteen per cent tax shall be applied on advertising fees for alcohol products.
Speaking during a press conference at a Nairobi hotel, the lobby group led by BAHLITA national chairman Simon Njoroge noted that the government should be cognizant of the current hard economic times that Kenyans are going through and not burden them further through harsh laws that risk pushing thousands of Kenyans out of jobs.
The proposed excise duty will not only affect manufacturers and farmers but also businesses and consumers.
“We are opposed to the move by the government to increase the Excise Duty on alcohol products as this will put a further strain on the purchasing power of consumers, increase in the cost of doing business as well as encourage uptake of illicit alcohol.
As concerned businesses and citizens, we wish to urge Parliament to reject these proposals in line with the recommendations of the report by the National Assembly’s Committee on Finance and Planning,” Njoroge noted.
As a remedy, the lobby group has asked the government to focus more on working with relevant stakeholders to weed out illicit alcohol trade.
Through collaborative engagement, the government has been able to reduce the level of illicit trade from 56 percent in 2012 to 44 percent (490 million litres) in 2018.
“It is illegal to adjust disputed rates of tax. We urge the MPs to respect the rule of law, through the collaborative effort between government and the alcohol industry, the level of illicit brew between 2012 and 2018 has reduced by 12 per cent (56 per cent to 44 per cent),” he stated.
Nakuru branch chairperson Boniface Gachoka noted it is unfortunate that the government is adhering to pressure to raise tax rates by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) leading to the killing of exportation capacity.
“This is evidenced by the dollars shortage which has sparked illicit foreign exchange activities in Kenya as has been highlighted,” he noted.
He lamented that their businesses have become a target of government oppressive policies even after the industry was negatively impacted by covid-19.
“We are taking note of those committed to protecting the livelihoods in the hospitality industry,” he stated.
Chairperson of Kisumu Daniel Ouma in regards to “mchelle” the association has instructed bar owners to install CCTV cameras to monitor the educated bouncers if one is seen sleeping they will be isolated.
“We are working with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and the police to eradicate this menace,” Ouma said.
They also highlighted they will follow parliamentary debates and would be based on what we will see and adequate representation of their interest.