Water and Irrigation Cabinet Secretary who Kenya Revenue Authoritu (KRA) wants the court to compel to pay over Sh6.5 million for unpaid levies.
BY THOMAS KARIUKI.
Kenya Revenue Authority wants the court to compel Water CS Eugene Wamalwa to pay over Sh6.5 million for unpaid levies.
A Range Rover Vogue car the CS says he bought from a business lady is the centre of this dispute which KRA says will follow to the latter to try weed out illegal car importers.
Documents presented before the High Court by KRA indicate that Mr Wamalwa owes KRA a whooping over Sh6.5 million in tax for that high end vehicle.
CS Wamalwa contests that he is a second owner of the motor vehicle having purchased it from business woman Grace Wambui.
Ms Wambui and 10 others have filed a petition at the court following the move by KRA to impound their motor vehicles.
Justice Isaac Lenaola issued orders stopping the seizure of the cars pending the hearing and determination of the suit.
The aggrieved petitioners says that that taxman did not given them time comply with directive to present their vehicles for inspection.
Through the law firm of Mwadumbo and Company Advocates, they told justice Isaac Lenaola that by giving them less than 24 hours to comply with the directive, KRA breached their rights to fair administrative action.
KRA in response says that the application before the court should be dismissed, arguing that their notice was justifiable and was caused by the nature of the goods held by the applicants.
The petitioners, Tripple One Motors say that the actions by Kenya Revenue Authority are repressive and have continued to act discriminatory and in a partial manner singling out certain businesses and leaving out other vehicle importers.
“By purporting to issue an unreasonably short notice for compliance and choosing to deliver the notice through the press as opposed to registered postal mail, KRA have denied the petitioners a reasonable opportunity for hearing hence breached their rights for fair administrative action,” the car owners totaling to about 20 said.
Being a reasonable car trader, Tripple One Motors says that they complied with all legal requirements for importation and registration of motor vehicles in Kenya and duly obtained certificate of registration for motor vehicles for each vehicle the subject of the petition.
Justice Lenaola also extended the temporary orders barring KRA from seizing the motor vehicles pending a hearing tomorrow Thursday May 26 2016.
