This would not be akin to land rates or stamp duty - this would be a revenue raising exercise where all other things remain as they are (as my econ lecturer used to say ceteris paribas). Land rates and stamp duty would remain as they are, payable annually or on transfer of land respectively.

The amount raised should be massive. The thing about stamp duty is that it's only payable when a property exchanges hands; a very small percentage of the land within the country changes hands at any given time (forget the hype about the so-called property boom resulting in a large exchange of land).

This proposal would be universal, as in it would call on all property owners to pay the levy. Everyone, from Lord Delamare to the guy who buys a flat in Mlolongo, would be required to pay it.

To capture all title holders, it could come in the guise of a (long-overdue) title validation exercise. The exercise would call for each Kenyan title to be entered into an (as yet to be established, computerised) Lands Office database (I'm being hypothetical here - the "dark forces" would never allow Lands Office to establish a computerised database any time soon) and a requirement for doing so would be the payment of the one-time fee.

Misreporting. Reviewing Income Tax law is NOT the same as increasing tax rates! The norm around the world is to decrease Income Tax rates while increasing the VAT rates.

It is not right that the payslip bearing middle class pays 30% of their salaries to run the government while the informal sector (which is thriving) pays nothing!

Some landlords in Kibera earn as much as KShs 300k pm but dont pay tax. An employee of a blue chip earns KShs 300k pm and pays KShs 90k as PAYE tax.

The best way to bring the informal sector to taxation is to tax their consumption through VAT. Yet people oppose the taxation of the products that are consummed by the non-taxpaying Kibera landlord.

People complain thats VAT rates are high yet KE VAT rates are lowest in region KE-16%, - UG, TZ, RW, BR -18%! EU rates average 23%!

The balance lies in reducing the employee PAYE rates and raising VAT rates. In the example above, if the PAYE is reduced to 15% and VAT increased to 20% the employee has an extra 45k in his pocket. He/she can decide to save and invest or to consume the extra 45k.

If he chooses to save and invest, the fruits of investment will be taxed at the 15% income tax rate. If he/she chooses to consume he pays VAT at 20%. It is more attractive to invest!

The current tax regime has turned the Kenya middle class into consumers and rat-racers. They pay high tax on their salaries at 30% but low tax on consumption at 16%. No wonder there is a very low motivation to save and invest.

@Mukiha true but not entirely so. Rates are a form of wealth tax. In Switzerland local govts (cantons) you pay a flat rate of tax depending on the size of your home. That is why rich Germans, French etc retire to Switzerland and buy a little villa.NB I am not supporting @MuchNo's proposal above.

The fact that others are doing it doesn't mean it is right. Taxing wealth is simply wrong... even the church doesn't ask you to tithe from your wealth, it asks for 10% of income... in the old days, it was 10% of your harvest, not 10% of your land!!