The implementation of digital revenue collection in Homa Bay has been halted by the county’s high court after a resident challenged the system’s effectiveness.
Evans Oloo, a businessman in Homa Bay town, filed a petition against the new system, claiming that it is discriminatory because all eligible tax payers have not embraced it.
The Homa Bay government implemented a cashless method of collecting revenue two months ago, replacing the manual system in which taxmen would walk from one business to another collecting money.
The county government, led by Governor Gladys Wanga, implemented radical measures to help the county meet its own-sourced revenue targets.
According to his petition, using mobile phones to pay taxes is inconvenient for those who have mobile loans. Furthermore, not all traders have phones that can be used to pay taxes,” Oloo explained.
The court ordered the method to be suspended and issued stop orders to the county (first respondent), the county secretary (second respondent), and Safaricom Limited (third respondent).
The order prohibits Safaricom from providing MPESA pay bill numbers for tax payment until November 29, when an inter-parties hearing will be held.
