Maravi

Letters - Cabinet Pay II

Economy, Cabinet pay
By Dr Henry lunga Kasongo, Mongu
Wednesday August 06, 2008 [04:00]

It is common knowledge that due to the rising price of fuel on the world’s market, the economic progress of many countries in the world has been seriously shaken. On the Zambian market, this situation is reflected in the prices of basic commodities such as mealie-meal, sugar, soap which have increased.

In Zambia, a country where majority of the people live on less than a dollar per day, one needs not to be a genius to understand that the cost of living is too high for many ordinary citizens to afford. Despite the hardship many Zambians are facing, there has not been pronouncement from the government on measures or strategies it intends to put in place to cushion the suffering of the people of Zambia vis-ã-vis the unbearable cost of living.

There are indications that Zambia’s economy is not performing well since his Excellency Dr Levy Mwanawasa was admitted ill abroad. The poor performance of the economy can be seen through kwacha/US dollar exchange rate (K3,300 for USD 1 before his admission to K3,550 for USD1).

What will be the fate of the kwacha if our beloved President remains sick for the next 2 months? Some economic analysts will rightly argue that the economic malaise the country has started going through is due to the situation of uncertainty investors are facing due to the President’s illness, as they invested because they trusted his leadership and his way of managing our country’s affairs.

Because leadership and trust are some of the spices of good economic performance, I was personally expecting the government to work hard so that the economic gains we achieved before his Excellency’s sickness are maintained.

Our honourable ministers were supposed to concentrate on working hard so that they are trusted by the people of Zambia and foreign investors. Instead of concentrating on their duties, our honourable ministers are shockingly and selfishly talking about increment of salaries and allowances, talk time and fuel allocation.

It is understandable that our ministers deserve better conditions of service, but at the moment there is no moral justification for such increment. Are our ministers aware that nurses get K200,000 and doctors are paid K500,000 as housing allowances? Which type of house can a doctor rent at K500,000? The majority of our ministers live in Lusaka, where have they seen houses for rental at K200,000 for our hard working nurses?

Instead of comparing their salaries and allowances to highly-paid people such as the governor of the Bank of Zambia, our ministers should compare their salaries to lowly-paid teachers, nurses, doctors so that whenever they think of an increment, they should also increase for those who are poorly and ridiculously paid as well.

As for now, it is immoral, indecent and fraudulent to talk of increment when our beloved President is on the hospital bed. Our ministers should forget about their wallets and bellies at this critical moment. Let us concentrate on praying for his Excellency’s speedy recovery.



http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=44671

Unjustifiable pay rise for Cabinet
By Concerned Citizen
Wednesday August 06, 2008 [04:00]

Your revelation of Cabinet’s approval of hefty pay rise on July 24, 2008 for ministers and some other constitutional office holders is such an example of your excellent work. It is sad to see that instead of listening to people’s views, there are even such office holders as Teta, who are defending such an action by making invidious comparisons as broadcast on the 19:00 hours main news on Monday August 4, 2008.

If there have been consultations on this issue as being claimed, then such consultations were poorly conducted. The timing itself for such outrageous increments is simply horrible!

Why would anybody compare salaries drawn directly from the taxpayers’ account with those drawn from private accounts, from wealth created either through production or through membership contributions? Surely, the secretary general of ZCTU, an example Tentamashimba picked on, is not paid by the Zambian taxpayer.

Even going by the Cabinet justification as quoted by your paper makes very little sense! Why would a minister or worse still, a deputy minister want to equate their salary to that of a chief executive of a company or the Governor of the Bank of Zambia, even if it is a parastatal company?

These companies are supposed to run like any other company; they are supposed to create wealth from which such payments as salaries ought to be made. If not, they should be scrapped or liquidated, unless they are of vital value to the society like Zesco or the Bank of Zambia.

A politician holding office is basically unproductive, he does not create wealth as such. They are even countries in this world where politician’s role in national affairs is so insignificant that it really does not matter who holds political office. Such countries are doing very well economically, socially and in other areas.

Personally, I feel we would be better off as a nation if politicians did not have their fingers on every pie in this country. I would sympathise with a civil servant like permanent secretary or chief justice. Some of these people are very productive. Not a political office holder. He even relies on the civil servant for most of his work.

Besides, a politician is supposed to be a volunteer in service provision to his society. Making conditions of service for political office ultra attractive has already, in many cases, attracted the wrong type of politicians, the selfish type, the conman type. So why make the situation worse?

We have long outstanding serious problems in education. UNZA was going on unscheduled recess due to problems relating to inadequate funding from the government at the time Cabinet was approving its salary increments. In health, public health institutions are poorly funded and some political leaders prefer having their BP checked outside the country to parading themselves at these institutions.

In agriculture, fertiliser is now at K210,000 per 50kg and one wonders how a peasant farmer will afford this. The roads all over the country are in shambles save for a few along the line of rail, water blues have continued despite the country being blessed with abundant water resources which we have failed to harness successfully while arid countries like Botswana, Namibia have no water problems, townships are littered with uncollected garbage, the list is endless.

Timing is one of the cardinal factors to contend with in decision-making, especially on issues of public concern. For Cabinet to make such a decision as reported against this backdrop, clearly appears indecent and smacks of lack of concern for the general welfare of ordinary Zambians.

If you add this to the fact that this decision was made while the Republican President is still critically ill outside the country makes the whole thing stink. Several members of Cabinet have given such an impression over Dr Mwanawasa’s illness that it would not even cross their mind to think about increasing their salaries at this point in time!

This decision by Cabinet when critically analysed appear to speak volumes about the seriousness of the illness of our President despite the assurances we are receiving from the Vice-President, information minister and others.

If what Mr Sata has stated is true that President Mwanawasa was against implementing these increments, then who dares to give approval to this and more importantly why? Timing is extremely important. A fair decision would appear a bad one if poorly timed!

Cabinet should consider rescinding their decision on this one.


http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=44673

The President's illness
By Lupenga
Wednesday August 06, 2008 [04:00]

Being president of a country does not exempt one from falling ill. And when one is ill, recovery can take a long time or a short time or one cannot recover at all! Such is the situation that we cannot avoid to find ourselves in because we all fall ill. This

includes all those ‘fit looking’ presidential aspirants hovering around to chance the presidency. They are all prone to get ill, even die.

What is paramount though is how a country pulls itself together and preserves whatever necessary achievements and strides it may have made.

Zambia has so far shown that ability and no doubt the constitution can write itself in this nature, vis-à-vis how long should be a recovery period for an ill president, who takes over the affairs of the sate in the interim, what should be the boundary powers of an ‘acting president’ and so on.

The current constitution does not anticipate for a sitting president to be ill and when he is ill whether his capacity to perform state functions should be a subject of discussion.

At present, the President is recovering, so we are told. Some quarters are looking for more information? For instance, they want to know how he is looking as he recovers. The President is ill and the government has not hidden this matter. We are all hoping he gets well and soon.

Certainly, the President was extremely ill when he was flown to a military hospital in France. But that’s no level of problem God can fail to overcome. Didn’t he hand Lazarus back to Martha? God willing, President Mwanawasa will be handed back to Mother Zambia.


http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=44672

Levy's return
By PNL, Kabwe
Wednesday August 06, 2008 [04:00]

While many quarters are skeptical about the President’s recovery, Sata sounds optimistic the President will return.

This is why he warned the ministers that they will be too fat to welcome President Mwanawasa at the airport, according to Saturday Post, August 2, 2008.

Sata is known to have the ability to get underground information. He easily gets connected to the information systems of whatever situation prevailing.

To all those that are skeptical, let them read between the lines especially when senior citizens like Sata speaks.

Sata is getting ready to confront the President over the Cabinet pay increment, 'when he returns'. At least Sata can’t lie this time around.

Labels: CABINET, CORRUPTION

posted by MrK @ 9:35 PM