CS Mbadi Hits Back At Gachagua Over Payslips Remarks
Treasury CS John Mbadi has stated that the government has improved Kenyans’ pay stubs. According to the CS, the tax breaks will take effect with the first pay stub in January.
Speaking on Monday, CS Mbadi defined a middle-class earner as someone earning between Sh60,000 and Sh150,000.
“We have improved people’s payslips; it is only that sometimes we overplay this discussion around payslips getting thinner,” Mbadi said during a discussion at NTV.
Mbadi stated that the new tax law provides assistance to Kenyan employees.
“It is now a relief, housing levy is a relief, SHA is now a relief, it is not double taxed,” he said.
Mbadi defended the government’s tax policies, claiming that they are not as burdensome as critics allege, particularly for middle-income workers.
“There is this thing of saying that we are overtaxing. I have looked at the taxes because I was trying to see how I can make the payslips better,” the CS said.
Mbadi provided a lengthy presentation on the tax implications for individuals earning Sh100,000 per month, a pay level commonly associated with Kenya’s middle class.
Salaries are shrinking, deductions are rising—how much is really left after taxes? Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi joins #FixingTheNationNTV to break down what’s happening to Kenyans' payslips and what can be done about it.
— NTV Kenya (@ntvkenya) February 3, 2025
📺 Watch LIVE on NTV Kenya, @NationFmKE & Digital… pic.twitter.com/fKQpXFVMty
A presentation on the state of the economy was given to MPs during the National Assembly Mid-Term Retreat in Naivasha.
Mbadi claims that the establishment of the Housing Levy and the Social Health Insurance Fund has been misrepresented as excessive taxation.
“Let me just take a payslip of someone who is earning Sh100,000 and take SHIF that takes from this person 2.75 per cent that if you calculate from his salary is Sh2,750 that is what used to be deducted before,” Mbadi said.
“With the tax laws we brought in, in December, the effective amount we are taking from you is not Sh2,750, but it is about Sh1,925.
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He continued: “Before in NHIF, you were contributing Sh1,700, remove that amount, and you will realise the extra amount that the government is taking from you for SHA is Sh225.”
“Those who are hurt by the taxes are those that Kenyans may call earn super-salary, but when you start adding it, you don’t see it as super. But the middle class, not so much.”
The Finance Minister’s words come amid growing public dissatisfaction with the rising cost of living and greater deductions from salaries.
Critics accuse the government of burdening citizens with several charges, such as the Housing Levy and SHA.
CS Mbadi Hits Back At Gachagua Over Payslips Remarks
