The Un-apologetic Kenyan: Getting to an 8am meeting at 11am & Filing Tax Returns at midnight on 30th June!
A few years back, Bob Collymore dropped a descriptive term that aptly captures the typical Kenyans’ habit.
That term was ‘peculiar’. He was right.
Picture this:
“Tupatane Tao saa mbili. Hapo CBD. Hapo Archives ni sawa na mimi.”
That’s a supposed 8am meeting set up with a Kenyan, living at Kasarani – off Thika Road.
A typical Kenyan is an early-riser.
0500 Hrs – Alarm rings. It’s that rooster alarm sound, no less. Snooze button.
0515 Hrs – Second alarm. Reaches out for the alarm, kills the alarm.
0517 Hrs – Logs into Facebook – how’s that late night post doing?
0600 Hrs – Checks personal pages, and think of some updates.
0650 Hrs – What’s trending on Twitter?
0730 Hrs – Who sent me memes on WhatsApp? Ha ha.
0745 Hrs – Jumps up and does a Steeple Chase run to the bathroom.
0755 Hrs – Hastly brews a tepid cup of coffee – pulling on a pair of jeans at the same time.
0810 Hrs – Leaves the house.
0815 Hrs – With the Bus Stop in sight, you remember taps are open – they were dry last night – you turn back and sprint up three flights of stairs to close them. You don’t want to return to a swimming pool.
0830 Hrs – Boards a cheap half-empty, rickety Matatu to town, stops at every bus station along Thika Road. By now, your meeting partner is blazing your phone every three minutes. You mute it.
1003 Hrs – Matatu still at Roasters. Just two passengers. You get ‘sold’ to a Kenya Mpya bus.
1020 Hrs – A text comes in: You ain’t serious for this meeting.
1030 Hrs – You remember the text, oops. You fire back: “Nimekwama kwa jam hapa Ngara”.
1136 Hrs, East Africa Time, a Kenyan arrives for the meeting at Archives.
And, wait for it – acts like the universe owes him an apology!
Why do Kenyans dig the last-minute rush?
That shouldn’t be the scenario playing out come 30th June 2021. That’s the deadline for you to file your 2020 income tax returns. The 2020 tax returns factors in changes in the tax rates last year.
This deadline is just 10 days shy.
The Kenya Revenue Authority appreciates the rigours of a citizenship working hard to earn their livelihood, and has adjusted their working hours to provide some flexibility.
Besides an extra hour every day, KRA offices are also open over the weekend.
There is also a robust team on standby for assistance on every forum: Emails via [email protected], Direct calls via 0711-099-999 or 020 4 999 999, in-person for walk-in clients, a chat portal on the KRA website that is accessed via https://kenya-revenue-authority.custhelp.com/app/home and agents on KRA official pages on every social media platform.
In case a client is unsure of the process, the KRA website has easy-to-access tutorials on how to file returns.
Besides, the KRA YouTube channel has very concise, easy-to-follow step by step clips to assist you hack it.
Do not be a last-minute person.
Let’s build a more appealing Kenyanisque reputation.
