Content Creators Showing Off Millions Are To Blame For Ruto 15% Tax- Jalang'o

He uncovered the difficulties that he faced while advocating for fellow content creators, citing the lavish lifestyles and opulence of some individuals

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Jun 9, 2023 - 18:12
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Content Creators Showing Off Millions Are To Blame For Ruto 15% Tax- Jalang'o
Lang'ata MP Jalang'o posing for a photo on June 9, 2023. /INSTAGRAM.JALANG'O

Lang'ata Member of Parliament, Phelix Oduwour, popularly known as Jalang'o on Friday, June 9 told off content creators opposing the proposed 15 per cent withholding tax for content monetization in the Finance Bill 2023.

Speaking while attending a Parliamentary Committee Meeting on Media in Kisumu, Jalang'o claimed that content creators shot themselves in the foot while expressing his frustration at persuading the government to drop the tax proposal completely.

He uncovered the difficulties that he faced while advocating for fellow content creators, citing the lavish lifestyles and opulence of some individuals as one that triggered the government to start looking into their businesses.

The former Kiss FM presenter noted that he was looking for a solution that will both protect content creators' interests and address the government's revenue needs while acknowledging the complexity of the situation surrounding the Finance Bill 2023 and the proposal to impose a 15 per cent tax on content creators.

President William Ruto meets Jalang'o at State House on February 7, 2023. /PCS

"I am a content creator and am supposed to fight for fellow content creators to either not pay or they must give a counter offer to the government on what they wish or will to pay," he said.

One of the main challenges he admitted he was facing was convincing the government and those unfamiliar with content creation that many creators do not possess substantial financial resources while trying to open the government's eyes that not every content creator lives a fast-paced life full of fame and fortune.

"You people got yourselves into this mess. How do I convince the government that you don't have money and are unable to pay the tax when you boast of being millionaires?" Jalang'o wondered. 

Jalang'o believed that the 'soft-life' lifestyles have created the perception that content creators have money, which has made elaborating the situation to the government a tougher task.

"I don't know what to tell these people. if it's you, what do you guys think about this 15 per cent? I was one of them and I can tell you, I was making money from content creation.

"You people brought this problem to yourselves. and am not lying to you, the government is not going to relent. We should come up and ask ourselves, what are we willing to pay?" he posed.

The Langata legislator asked the content creators to be honest in their protests against the proposed Finance Bill 2023, singling out specific content creators leading luxurious lives, including owning expensive cars, and claims of spending large sums of money every day.

"Some of the things I was being asked when we were going through the social media pages of different content creators, for example, was, Your very good friend Oga Obinna has turned 33 and he says he has gifted himself a very small gift which is a Volkswagen (VW) Tuareg 2018-2019, which cost him close to Ksh5-Ksh7 million," he continued.

"They came and showed me a video where Amber Ray claims she spends Ksh300,000 every day. They showed me a couple of other content creators such as Eve Mungai, Akothee, Nicholas Kioko, Mulamwah, Vincent Mboya, Abel Mutua, and The WaJesus family, among others and it's so hard," he went on.

Jalang'o further alleged that comedian Eric Omondi "earns around Ksh10 million per month, and all this was made from content creation. Eric has so many advertisement opportunities with so many brands."

He believed that President William Ruto's tax initiatives would benefit the country as well as content creators with flourishing businesses.

"I am confronted with a situation where I don't know what to tell the State in as far tax is concerned, and it's because of what creators have been showing," the Lang'ata MP stated.

On Friday, June 2, President Ruto relaxed his hardline stance on content creators in Kenya by promising to review the 15 per cent tax, expressing his desire to turn around the content creation atmosphere in the country by making it into a space where content creators can earn a living from their craft.

"We are working together towards monetizing the whole space around creatives. I know when I say monetizing, I know the taxman is also listening; whenever they see some people making money in some corner, they arrive. 

Collage image of Njugush, Azziad Nasenya, Eve Mungai and Brian Mutinda. /VIRALTEAKE

“I know there is a proposal in this year’s budget on digital content tax and creators are making a statement, I have told the ICT committee and finance committee to work on it. Let us give them a bit more space to work on it,” he announced.

Finance Bill 2023 defines content creators as individuals or businesses producing content for online platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. The bill would impose a 15 per cent withholding tax on the income of content creators.

Content creators as well as digital media practitioners including Viral Tea's founder and editor-in-chief, Marvin Chege, in their petition before the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning during the public Hearings on the Finance Bill 2023, criticised the proposed tax which put digital content creators in a difficult position.

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