The number of employees fired by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) in the second quarter ended December 2024 more than doubled to 19 as part of the taxman’s fight against corruption among its staff.
In the same period a year earlier, the KRA axed nine staff in an internal purge on sleaze at Times Tower.
The move comes as the government struggles to raise tax revenues to fund its budget and cut reliance on debt, which has mounted and is consuming over 65 percent of annual revenues.
"We cannot afford to turn a blind eye to those who abuse our systems," said KRA’s Commissioner General Humphrey Wattanga.
In its effort to weed out corrupt employees, the KRA has collaborated with the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).
“We will establish a robust framework that not only deters tax evasion but also imposes strict penalties on those who facilitate such evasion, ensuring accountability for their actions," added Wattanga.
During the period under review, KRA received 246 corruption reports through iWhistle, a web-based platform that enables the public to report corruption and tax evasion anonymously, with tax estimates totaling Sh4.39 billion.
KRA has been under heat from both President William Ruto and the National Treasury to weed out corruption within its ranks amid persistent revenue leaks suspected to be fueled by rogue officials.
For example, President Ruto in 2022 claimed that rampant collusion between some KRA officials and rogue traders resulted in massive revenue leakages of up to Sh400 billion.
Dr Ruto particularly singled out graft in the collection of excise duty on a range of products such as cigarettes, bottled water and spirits.
The Auditor General, in an audit of KRA’s financial statement for the financial year ending June last year, raised a red flag on the possible theft of 9,686,358 excise stamps raising fears of non-payment of tax and sale of fake goods such as alcohol.
Ms Gathungu noted that the KRA officials did not provide evidence on the type of stamps lost, when the stamps were lost and investigations on the circumstances leading to their loss.
