Tuesday, May 9, 2023 – Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU) Secretary General Francis Atwoli has betrayed workers.
This is after he sided with President William Ruto to overtax poor workers.
In a statement yesterday, Atwoli hit back at public servants and trade unionists who were protesting the three per cent house levy included in the 2023 Finance Bill.
He stated that issues surrounding the levy had already been discussed in a meeting between the president and union leaders.
Atwoli, a vocal trade unionist, faulted the individuals protesting the levy for missing the meeting and, therefore, failing to raise their concerns when required.
“It’s rather unfortunate that even after COTU (K) Secretary General invited all union leaders and the President of Kenya to have a social dialogue on various issues including the 3% housing fund levy, those who skipped the Labour Day Celebrations are now complaining about the resolution of the meeting,” COTU stated.
In addition, the notice indicated that the levy was a good initiative by the government to build low-cost homes for Kenyans.
COTU stated that in fact, the government had already invested Ksh5 billion as a contribution to the housing fund to provide adequate housing for Kenyans.
At the same time, COTU warned the Union leaders of politicising the matter, asking them to embrace social dialogue.
However, many workers have criticized Atwoli for throwing them under the bus instead of protecting them as their leader.
They accused the COTU Boss of going to bed with Ruto at their expense after he was appointed last week into government.
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