Raila Odinga, the leader of Azimio, has urged his followers to refuse to pay taxes imposed by the Finance Bill 2023.
On Tuesday, at a protest at the Kamukunji grounds, Raila encouraged Kenyans to walk to work to avoid paying the fuel tax imposed by President William Ruto.
He said that this action would ultimately reduce the amount of fuel and diesel that public transport vehicles use.
“Carpooling is one method to do this. Let’s plan to travel often in a single car, wherever feasible. Swap rides with one another. Eliminate unnecessary travel. When feasible, walk instead of driving,” stated Raila.
He said, “I encourage all companies to give their employees time to walk from their homes to work.”
The leader of the opposing party also urged Matatu drivers to transport more people than necessary to reduce the number of cars used and, therefore, fuel usage.
Even though it is against the law for public transport vehicles to carry too many people, this nonetheless occurs.
“I urge the owners of matatus to support tax boycotts. As a form of civic disobedience, they double the carrying capacity while still adhering to safety precautions,” Raila said.
He suggested that traffic cops help the tax boycott initiative by permitting matatus to carry more passengers than they are licenced to.
The Azimio chief threatened to teach Ruto a lesson by forbidding him from tampering with food and fuel.
He said that Ruto will be aware of Kenyans’ frustration but not their helplessness.
Ruto and everyone else who shares his views will learn the hard way that they should never meddle with the people’s access to food, fuel, and freedom.
“Kenyans must not put their faith in Ruto’s sneaky grin; it is a betrayer’s kiss. If Ruto had good intentions, he would have paid attention to the crowd. He didn’t, so now we have to fight.”
An administration that has shamelessly neglected and deceived Kenyans, according to Raila, is unworthy of having power granted to it.
Raila said that they will engage in civil disobedience to prevent Ruto from obtaining the taxes he believes he can compel Kenyans to pay.