The finance bill of 2023 has faced some controversy from the opposition to the public .There are issues that have arose from the public .

Public participation is very important in a democratic government like Kenya .This is enshrined in the constitution of Kenya which under Article one of the constitution states that all sovereign power belongs to the people of Kenya ,this power is very important and it is important that it should be protected .Furthermore Article 10 of the constitution of Kenya 2010 states public participation as one of the core values of governance that binds a state .

With regards to this ,there have been issues raised by the public that the finance bill of 2023 did not cater for all the needs of the people and it was a bit biased .

To ensure effective public participation before the bill passes,  the ActionAid International Kenya (AAIK) and the National Taxpayers Association (NTA) on Monday 19th ,June 2023 held a capacity building forum at pumwani social hall which engaged members of the public from different parts of Nairobi to share their thoughts on the Finance Bill 2023 .Over 100 people participated in this forum to share their views on the finance bill 2023 .

The participants had the following views on the bill:

I)The bill has not highlighted inclusivity of persons with disabilities in the housing project 

ii)The proposed taxes on the importation of machinery for recycling plants should not be adopted.

iii) The government to address issues of corruption and wastage in government

iv) The taxes on imported cement should not be uniform.

v) Affordability of basic (food) commodity should be addressed through incentivizing farm input.

vi) The tax on fuel should be reduced from 16%

vi) Tax on vaccine and malaria kit should be dropped.