According to a report published via Business Daily, Kenyan operator Safaricom has rejected the Kenya Revenue Authority’s (KRA) request to gain access to its customers’ mobile money records. This move, according to the report, prevents the KRA from exposing those committing tax frauds. The report further revealed that Safaricom said it will not give the KRA its customer data unless laws regarding confidentiality were changed to allow the mining of such data.
The KRA, according to the report, is seeking to gain unrestricted access to
taxpayer bank and mobile money accounts as part of the efforts to catch tax
cheats and improve revenue collection as its targets continue to rise. Safaricom
corporate affairs director, Stephen Chege said, within the report, that the Constitution
of Kenya restricts access to confidential customer information. Other laws such
as the National Payment Systems Act and the regulations there under, which
govern M-Pesa, also restrict access to such information unless by a court
order.
According to the report the treasury secretary Henry Rotich has, through the Finance Bill 2016, amend The proposed law, as revealed by the report, says: “A person shall, upon being required to do so by the commissioner, furnish the commissioner with returns showing such information, in such form and manner and within such time as the commissioner may prescribe.” Access to Safaricom’s M-Pesa transactions would give the KRA a plethora of financial information for use in tracking tax evaders.
According to the report the treasury secretary Henry Rotich has, through the Finance Bill 2016, amend The proposed law, as revealed by the report, says: “A person shall, upon being required to do so by the commissioner, furnish the commissioner with returns showing such information, in such form and manner and within such time as the commissioner may prescribe.” Access to Safaricom’s M-Pesa transactions would give the KRA a plethora of financial information for use in tracking tax evaders.
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