Yusuf Hassan, a member of parliament for Kamukunji, has maintained that no member of parliament (MP) should face consequences for opposing laws passed in parliament, even if they have voted in favor of them.
This comes after Gatanga MP Edward Muriiu and Kandara MP Chege Njuguna, who both supported the contentious Finance Act, banded together with local farmers on February 26, 2024, to thwart an awareness campaign by Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) officials.
The KRA officers' visit aimed to educate farmers about the need for businesses to create and send their invoices electronically to KRA via eTIMS.
MP Hassan stated that any legislator is free to modify their stance on a bill if they believe the public will receive it poorly in response to roiling questions about whether or not lawmakers are forced to pass laws.
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He maintained that views can change once signatures are added to a bill and that the people will ultimately determine how a leader represents the people in their area.
"The master is not the President, the Speaker, the majority party it is the people. Taking sides with the people who voted for him is the most important thing and fighting for them," he said.
"There are certain aspects of the registration I support but it doesn't mean that if it is hurting the people who voted for me I will continue supporting that legislation."
Thus, MP Hassan defended the two MPs who were the target, pointing out that they were only following the people's requests.
"What really matters is that they are standing with their people. There is nothing in changing your mind," he added.
After President Ruto signed the controversial bill into law on June 26, Kenyans have taken out larger loans from their savings accounts to pay for the government's first questionable budget.
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