Tens of employees are expected to lose their employment at Keroche Breweries as a result of the Kenya Revenue Authority’s decision to liquidate the company due to a Sh332 million tax backlog.Â
The closure comes despite the fact that the Naivasha-based brewer had requested a grace period to clear the tax due, claiming that the Covid-19 outbreak had negatively impacted its income flows.
Chief Executive Officer Tabitha Karanja has petitioned President Uhuru Kenyatta to intercede, claiming that efforts to meet with the KRA Commissioner General have been thwarted.
The brewery has been embroiled in a protracted tax battle, with KRA forcing it to close on many times.
Karanja, who spoke to the press on Friday surrounded by workers, vowed to persevere, saying that at its peak, the company was remitting more than Sh200 million to the exchequer every month.
She stated that Sh332 million in tax arrears, the source of the current dilemma, had accrued since February 2021, when the firm reached an agreement with the KRA on how to resolve it.
Karanja said that the factory had been closed down despite the fact that almost two million gallons of beer worth Sh512 million remained in tanks. She predicted that the whiskey would go bad in seven days.
“This has depleted all of our resources, and if nothing is done in the next seven days, we will be obliged to drain all of the beer and lay off almost 250 direct employees,” she explained.
In her letter to the President, Karanja demanded that the factory be reopened and that the KRA grant them a twelve-month grace time to pay their tax arrears.
Karanja, who has indicated interest in the Nakuru County senate seat, has challenged Parliament to draft legislation that will protect and cushion local businesses in the future.
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