Mombasa traders in Sh1.5b tax dispute : The Standard

Two directors of a rice importing company charged with failing to pay Sh1.5 billion tax have been released on a Sh2 million cash bail. Ibrahim Qasim and Rameez Qulzar were yesterday charged at a Mombasa court together with their company Jhulay Lal Commodities Ltd for failing to pay the tax between January 2015 and December 2019. It is alleged that the two sold rice worth Sh5,159,727,909 but failed to declare the full amount to Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA). Last Friday, the businessmen had been released on a Sh20 million bond and ordered to deposit their passports in court.

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However yesterday, Chief Magistrate Edna Nyaloti reviewed the Friday terms and settled on a cash bill of Sh2 million. Ms Nyaloti decided to review the bail terms after the traders' lawyer Gikandi Ngibuini said they had already paid Sh10 million to KRA. Mr Ngibuini said his clients were ready to conduct an audit with KRA that will reveal how much they owe the taxman.

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“We want an auditor to ascertain the outstanding amount," said Ngibuini. Prosecutor Dennis Shabola said KRA confirmed the two paid the Sh10 million and was not opposed to them being released on a cash bail. 

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Mombasa courtKenya Revenue AuthorityKRAChief Magistrate Edna Nyaloti