See how RUTO blackmailed and threatened MPs before the vote on Finance Bill on Thursday? No wonder many voted YES without thinking

 

Saturday, June 22, 2024 - Starehe MP Amos Mwago has revealed how President William Ruto blackmailed and threatened MPs before voting on the Finance Bill 2024 on Thursday.

Mwago is among the 115 members who voted against the controversial Finance Bill 2024, while 204 members voted in favor of advancing the bill to the next stage.

Speaking during an interview, Mwago said there were tremendous efforts to threaten and hoodwink members of the National Assembly to pass the bill.

He noted that Ruto, through the Treasury, stated that failure to approve or pass the bill would result in Members of Parliament experiencing cuts in the Constituency Development Funds (CDF) and other essential services the government provides.

"There were some elements of trying to blackmail the MPs. 

"The budget-making process is not an event it is a process that entails a lot. 

"It requires coordination between the Treasury, Budget Committee, and the Finance Committee," he said.

"But when these people were trying to draft these bills, they were acting like they were not in tandem with what they were doing, that is why they tried to blackmail us by bringing us Junior Secondary School cuts, medical interns, and Constituency Development Fund cuts."

Treasury warning to legislators of cash cuts cornered MPs to pass the bill to the next stage after an intense debate. This was despite countrywide protests from young people who rejected the bill.

Mwago reiterated that the move to threaten legislators to pass the bill elicited public emotions and public uproar.

The smooth sailing of the bill to the next stage angered many Kenyans, particularly the youth, who have vowed to continue with the peaceful demonstrations in the coming days.