Nairobi County Woman Representative, Hon. Esther Passaris, has taken a stand against her fellow legislators and the media, asserting that they have misinterpreted the remarks made by Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
Passaris emphasized the importance of a government fulfilling its obligations to the Kenyan people, which often necessitates the collection of taxes from citizens. She defended the notion that tax revenue is vital for the government to meet its commitments and deliver on the promises made to the people.
Esther Passaris: I support having more money into the Housing project because I hate seeing people living in slums and also because the first slum upgrading project was done by Baba.#MorningPrime @debarlinea pic.twitter.com/rYNmJBfJGQ
— KTN News (@KTNNewsKE) June 6, 2023
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"There is a different way to take English, it is not our mother tongue and it is complex. It is like we need the taxes to be able to build roads, but I did not hear him say specifically that if you don't support this Finance Bill, you will not get any support in terms of infrastructure. We have structures and laws; we've got equalization fund, devolution and there will be counties that will not support the bill but at the end of the day, the MPs have a right of access to funds… That was a misquote," Passaris stated.
Deputy President Hon. Rigathi Gachagua received an unexpected show of support from a member of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party today. Nairobi Woman Representative Hon. Esther Passaris came to his defence following his comments on Sunday, where he stated that Members of Parliament who oppose the controversial Finance Bill of 2023 should not anticipate funds for development projects, such as roads, in their respective constituencies.
Many Kenyans were perplexed by Deputy President Hon. Rigathi Gachagua's comments on the Finance Bill during a church service in Leshuta, Narok County. Rigathi stated that if lawmakers want to receive development funding, they must fully support the Finance bill because it is the government's main source of money.
"Some of you leaders are lying to Kenyans, but know that if your MP is opposed to the Finance Bill, they should not ask for roads," he said.
Rigathi Gachagua's recent statements have been making waves in the headlines since Sunday, drawing criticism from several legislators who are urging the deputy president to retract his remarks.
