Tourism and Wildlife CS, Alfred Mutua has accused the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) officials of harassing tourists who visit the country at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
In a video seen by the Star, the CS who was speaking during a stakeholder meeting at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) alleged that the reported harassment is the reason Kenya continues to drop from the list of top tourist destinations in Africa.
Mutua questioned why the harassment does not happen in other African countries when one visits as a tourist, yet they collect the same taxes KRA officials claim to be after.
“When foreigners arrive in our nation, we treat them rudely, and we then wonder why they leave. When you travel to Rwanda, you are not harassed; does Kwani Rwanda not collect taxes? When you travel to South Africa, do they not take taxes?
“When you travel to Dubai, you are not bothered. Why are they bothering our guests in this place? We wonder why we fell to number four, and they will never return to Kenya. “Why aren’t people traveling to Kenya?” asked the CS.
Mutua maintained that it is past time for Kenya to cease certain customs and let her guests feel at home.
He mentioned that one of the topics he plans to address in his role as CS for Tourism is making Kenya more welcoming to tourists.
“We need to convey the proper message and make them feel good. You travel to Singapore today, and no one bothers you. Because you are a tourist, no one opens your bag when you travel to the Seychelles or the Maldives. These are a few of the issues that need to be fixed, and you now have the capable leader to do so.”
Although KRA employees have poor practices, the Tourism CS pointed out that they are not at fault.
He pledged that the harassment of tourists must end right away if the nation is to profit from tourism.
“We have to present the right optics, people have to get that warm feeling. You go to Singapore today nobody harasses you. You go the the Seychelles, the Maldives, nobody opens your bag because you are a tourist. Those are some of the things that we have to correct and now you have the right leader to correct it.”
The Tourism CS noted that KRA staff are not to blame, but they have bad habits.
He promised that if the country wants to rake in revenue from Tourism, the harassment of visitors must stop immediately.
“We’ll ask them either you tell us to close down the Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife and focus on other things. But if you want us to collect money and get this country to be rich then stop harassing our product. Na watu wa KRA si wabaya, wana tabia mbaya (The people at KRA are not bad, they have bad manners),” Mutua said.
Earlier this week, the taxation of personal goods at points of entry into Kenya upset a section of the public.
However, on seeking clarification about alleged harassment and taxation of personal goods, KRA Deputy Commissioner, Marketing and Communication Grace Wandera referred the Star to the KRA Customs Handbook on arrival and departure information, which details the requirements for travellers.
But there are still concerns over exorbitant taxes, which have forced some individuals to abandon their items.
A clause that gives customs officers the powers to determine the value of goods and their taxable status is seen as a gap to impose taxes where they should not apply, amid cries of harassment by customs officials.