The Kenya Revenue Authority has put up more than 300 cars and 200 containers on the hammer in one of the biggest auctions in 10 years.
The 314 vehicles and 223 containers with assorted goods will be auctioned on Wednesday, June 23 and Thursday, June 24.
The mega sale is meant to clear goods which remained uncollected in different custom warehouses in Mombasa.
KRA seeks to raise at least Sh200 million from the auction ahead of the end of the June 2020/21 financial year.
One of the importers was able to salvage his goods from the auction as he blamed Covid-19 for the lack of money to clear his container.
“I saw the gazette notice and my container was among the lot identified for the auction. Because of Covid-19, I had no money to pay taxes but luckily I have managed to get enough to save my cargo before the fall of the hammer,” John Waziri said.
Dorcas Mathore, one of the prospective bidders congratulated KRA for the arrangement of the event which will allow bidders to inspect the goods.
KRA staff Joseph Tonui said that the money collected will boost the taxman’s revenue targets in the current financial year.
“We should understand not all cargo is being auctioned because owners have failed to pay taxes but some are unclaimed due to tight security by the government agencies to seal off illegal importation,” he told the media.
Consolidated cargo comprises majority of lots slated for auction, which are linked to small traders who import using proxies posing as clearing agents and either swindle them or take long before paying the requisite fees to clear cargo.
Owners of the goods identified for auction are allowed to take part in the auction process.
Employees and close relatives of the Kenya Revenue Authority are not eligible to take part in the auction process.
Officers from the valuation branch are invited to assess individual values for each of the items on the list.
The full customs value (Cost, Insurance, Freight (CIF) price) is usually taken as the value but if the goods have deteriorated, the value may adjust accordingly. Duty liable for the said item is also taken into consideration.