NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 12 – The number of KRA staff dismissed from work for engaging in corrupt activities grew by 111.1 percent to 19 in quarter two (Q2) of the 2024/25 financial year (FY), buoyed by increased anti-graft measures imposed by the authority.
In Q2 of the 2023/24 FY, the agency sent nine of its own employees home for extortion.
“During this period, the number of staff cleared of charges or allegations dropped significantly to eight cases, compared to 23 in the previous financial year,” KRA said.
“This reflects the Authority’s firm stance on addressing integrity-related issues. Additionally, staff warnings saw a sharp decline, from 15 cases in Q2 of FY 2023/2024 to just 2, signaling a shift away from milder corrective actions,” it added.
Likewise, warnings sent to staff increased to seven cases, up from two, highlighting the taxman’s zero-tolerance policy towards corruption.
“The reported cases include dishonesty, lack of integrity, fraud, negligence of duty, absenteeism, conflict of interest, impersonation, and other ethical breaches.”
KRA’s success in tackling corruption is linked to the adoption of iWhistle, a web-based platform that enables the public to report corruption and tax evasion anonymously.
For example, KRA received 246 graft reports through iWhistle in the review period, with tax estimates totalling Sh4.39 billion.
“To encourage the public to report corruption cases, KRA has incentivized the reporting of tax malpractices,” the Agency stated.
“KRA has introduced a reward scheme offering informers 5% of the tax recovered, with a maximum payout of KSh 5 million per case.”
“Additionally, KRA has established an Integrity Award Framework to recognize and celebrate staff who demonstrate exceptional support for promoting integrity within the organization.”
