A trader sells bananas at Kangemi market on March 2 /ENOS TECHE

Most Kenyan households have hit rock bottom, pushed by the tough economic times.

The inflation numbers, which the government says are within the target range, recorded at 3.5 per cent in February, do not make sense to many as job losses on continued closure of firms and SMEs as a result of a tough operating environment and the heavy raid on pay slips continue to depress many.

People are actually opting out of formal employment because there is no way one can be working for taxes where the government takes nearly 50 per cent of their earnings.

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People have been complaining there is no money in their pocket, and that is because there is no circulation.

This is because the economy is in ICU, despite the government putting on a brave face as it tells Kenyans all is well.

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All is not well. While the cost of certain commodities may have gone down, for example, unga (flour), transport costs remain and high pegged on fuel prices.

The cost of energy is also high, healthcare is unaffordable, and the cost of education, including public schools, is high; so it is a situation where you give on the right hand and you take away much more on the left.

People and businesses are being auctioned and even auctioneers themselves say they are not selling because there is nobody to buy.

So it tells you the situation is actually dire. There are also high levels of corruption and people getting robbed of their hard-earned money.

We also have a situation where the government is borrowing more than individuals.

The economy cannot get better when the government is heavily borrowing to meet budget deficits.

If you have a budget of Sh4.2 trillion, when you cannot raise even Sh2 trillion from taxation, then all you are saying is that you are going to borrow for that deficit. So the deficit is still increasing, meaning austerity measures are not there.

So until we put money in the pockets of Kenyans, many will remain stuck in a deep hole.

But how do we do that? The government needs to ensure it pays pending bills to its suppliers and contractors to improve money circulation and enable businesses to thrive, which means job.

It’s best to operate on a volume of scale where you reduce the taxation and enhance investments and have more people paying taxes. Secretary General, Consumers Federation of Kenya