CS Mbadi is out here claiming that the new 25 per cent phone levy is actually a blessing in disguise—saying it'll LOWER what you pay, not spike prices. Kumbe, we went from 55 per cent in taxes to just 25 per cent? Sawa, but ask yourself: does this math actually add up for your wallet?

The Government's "Good News" That Nobody's Buying

Treasury CS John Mbadi rolled up to defend the Finance Bill 2026 with a straight face, telling Kenyans that consolidating multiple levies into a single 25 per cent excise duty on phones is actually a massive W. According to him, the old system had you paying Import Declaration Fee, Railway Development Levy, VAT, and customs duty all stacked on top of each other—totaling around 55 per cent. Now? Just 25 per cent excise duty, bana.

"Phone prices will not go up because we have removed all the other taxes and replaced them with one single tax," Mbadi said, with the confidence of someone who's definitely never felt the pinch of a Safaricom bill. The Treasury is banking on this "simplification" to look like a win. Ndio, technically lower percentage sounds better. But here's the thing—traders and tech heads are asking the real questions: when exactly does this tax kick in, and who's actually paying it?

The Plot Twist: Who's Actually Gonna Pay This Thing?

Here's where it gets spicy. Mbadi says the excise duty will only apply once a phone is activated for use—not when it hits the port or sits in a shop. That means a trader stocking Samsung Galaxy phones won't be hit with the tax immediately. Sounds cool, right? Wrong. Tax experts are already waving red flags, saying this creates a compliance nightmare. Is it the telecom operator's job to collect? The importer's? The distributor's? Lakini, nobody's clear on this, and that's the real problem.

The government claims this approach will seal tax loopholes and make sure every active device gets captured in the system. But ask yourself—when has a "new system" ever rolled out smoothly in Kenya without creating confusion, delays, and somehow making things more expensive for the consumer?

🗣️ What Kenya Is Saying

"This is government double-speak," says tech traders on social media. "They say 25 per cent is lower, but we know how these things work—it'll end up costing more at the shop counter."

"Mbadi wants us to trust math while ignoring reality," another Kenyan pointed out, referencing how previous tax "consolidations" somehow never resulted in lower prices. "Show me a phone that got cheaper after a tax change."

💥 Why This Is Trending

• Kenyans are already broke from M-Pesa charges and inflation—another tax on phones feels like a personal attack
• The confusion about WHO pays WHEN is giving "government didn't think this through" energy
• Trust issues run DEEP after previous tax reforms promised savings but delivered price hikes
• Digital inclusion is supposedly a national priority, but making phones harder to afford contradicts that whole vibe

The Jukwaa Take: Mbadi's math might technically check out on paper, but in real Kenya, we've learned that government tax "consolidations" usually end up being consolidations of pain in your pocket—not savings.

📰 Source: Capital FM Kenya