Blow to horticultural sector stakeholders as court rejects suit
DISPUTE: Horticultural sector stakeholders have suffered a blow after the high court dismissed their suit challenging the introduction of a 0.25 percent levy on customs value of the export consignment.
Fresh Produce Exporters, Association of Kenya, Fresh Produce Consortium of Kenya ,Avocado Society of Kenya, Avocado Exporters Association of Kenya and Kenya Flowers Council wanted the court to quash rules issued by Agriculture Cabinet Secretary in 2020.
Justice Antony Mrima, however, dismissed their suit with cost claiming they made blanket averments which were not supported by evidence.
Impugned regulations
“In a nutshell, the Petitioners failed to prove how the impugned regulations infringed Article 201 of the Constitution,” he said in his verdict.
The Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries on 8th July, 2020, published the Crops (Horticultural Crops) Regulations, 2020. The Petitioners were aggrieved by Regulations 32, 33, 34, 35 and 36 of the Regulations together with the Third Schedule claiming they were gazetted by the CS in the absence of stakeholder and public participation.
“The said regulations are aimed at financially frustrating the Petitioners and other stakeholders and also carry draconian consequences for non-compliance…With the impugned regulations came the 0.25 per cent levy on custom value of the export consignment,” they claimed in court documents.
They also contended that the impugned regulations would further burden them and their membership with extra costs and expenses in addition to the already existing taxes which were more than forty in terms of levies, licenses, taxes and permits.
Justice Mrima in his judgement noted that from the evidence and the law, there was adequate public participation and consultation noting that that the CS after undertaking public engagement, the Regulations were gazette and successfully subjected to Parliament under the Statutory Instruments Act.
According to the Judge, the crops destined for export and their customs value as well as those for import and their values are provided for in the Third Schedule to the Regulations.
