If there is something President Uhuru Kenyatta must do to cement his legacy, it should be to bring down the prices of electricity and petroleum products. These two sources of energy have become an albatross around the necks of Kenyans, and a potentially volatile political problem for those in power.
There are no cogent reasons why Kenyans should be paying more than fellow Africans for petrol, diesel, paraffin and liquefied gas, except that our tax load is getting heavier so that we can repay loans meant for infrastructure projects that have proved to be lucrative hunting grounds for rent-seekers. At this rate, we may eventually have the best roads in Africa, but very few of the “beneficiaries” will drive on them because they can’t afford it.
While it is gratifying that our members of Parliament have taken up the issue of high energy costs after an extraordinary uproar from ordinary Kenyans, it should not be forgotten that they are the primary authors of these problems for neglecting their oversight role.
Given a chance, governments everywhere would be delighted to collect as much tax as possible for important development projects. The role of MPs is to keep that appetite in check. This did not happen because they were armtwisted by the Executive to pass an omnibus Finance Bill that included heavy Value Added Tax (VAT) on petroleum products.
On the whole, it is easy to understand why the government would want to lay its hands on as much tax revenue as possible, which is why the 16 per cent VAT for each litre of petrol you buy was restored.
However, the Petroleum Development Levy, which rose from 40 cents per litre to Sh5.40 since July, is less easy to understand. It is tax money that is, ostensibly, meant to be kept aside so that it can, in the future, help cushion Kenyans from the effects of fluctuations in the world market.
Reduce huge margin
Unless there is more about this charge than we are being told, such speculative justifications for raising tax to unconscionable levels are not convincing. So, why are the consumers so tongue-tied when it comes to wanting to know just what happens to this money? Why were the MPs, until now, so quiet when they should have been raising such issues? Because they are living the life of clover, that’s why.
Luckily for the long-suffering Kenyans, an election year urgently beckons and the legislators know that angry voters cannot be reasoned with.
As a result, the National Assembly’s Finance and National Planning committee wants those two taxes halved, and the huge margin earned by oil marketers reduced from Sh12 per litre to Sh9.
Obviously, what the MPs wish may not be what they will get. It can be expected that the marketers and the cash-pressed Treasury will put up a stiff fight against such reductions but those who believe that Parliament has the power to do good can only keep their fingers crossed.
The reason is simple; if a solution is not found soon, any form of motorised transport will only be available to a few while the average Kenyan will suddenly find it healthier to walk to work because fare is bound to go up.
Indeed, my heart goes out to those who are forced by circumstances to drive to work daily, either to the office or for business. It is true they are a minority, but if, from personal experience, the work-horse that I occasionally use to fetch a banana or two from the shamba to market in town is anything to go by, then motorists are really in trouble. In the very recent past, Sh3,000 used to be enough for a trip to Gatundu; today, Sh5,000 is required for the same trip. Yet the market price for those two bananas remains static.
Lopsided contracts
As for electricity charges, there is no need to harp on the issue of a utility firm that is a prime candidate for liquidation.
A four-piece series of powerfully comprehensive articles by two senior Daily Nation editors and their boss explained in great detail how the firm entered into contractual agreements which were so lopsided that one wonders whether those who signed them really knew what they were doing.
That is, until it emerged that the power monopoly has been nothing but a feeding trough for the Independent Power Producers (IPPs), who have been supplying Kenya Power with electricity the country doesn’t really need.
As both the Executive and the Legislature come into grips with those anomalies that have crippled the energy sector, one expects that the matter will not fizzle out since too many Kenyans are hurting.
It is also time those in the Energy ministry who have been watching things go haywire were held accountable and if, indeed, it is established that they have been making millions through corruption, they shouldn’t get away with it.
It is not enough to say that they did anything with the best of intentions. They stole or abetted thievery on a grand scale for too long and they should pay for the mischief. BY DAILY NATION