Maravi

(LUSAKATIMES) State House comments on Dr.Musokotwane’s double pay

COMMENT - Welcome to the revolving door between the IMF, World Bank, and African finance ministries. Something the Europeans are finding out about too late in their own countries. No wonder that the FM said something different to the people than he said to the IMF. They are working for the IMF/WB. That's why no one objects to austerity, the liquidity gap, currency devaluation, or all the other ways the African economy is being kept down. This is the end stage of globalisation.

State House comments on Dr.Musokotwane’s double pay
TIME PUBLISHED - Sunday, December 18, 2011, 10:06 pm

Following a number of public pronouncements and accusations, and blatant assailing of the integrity of the Republican President, His Excellency Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, and Ministers by ex-finance minister Dr. Situmbeko Musokotwane, State House has decided to reluctantly clarify this matter of public interest.

Dr. Musokotwane was employed by the Bank of Zambia as an Advisor-Research in 1991.

He requested to get leave of absence of two years at the time he was acting—for administrative convenience—as Deputy Governor (Operations) in October 1997 when he took up the post of Economic Advisor to the Minister of Finance.

He further requested for leave of absence to take up a position offered by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as General Advisor to the Governor of the Central Bank of Swaziland in 1998.

On 8th January 1999, Dr Musokotwane applied to go on early retirement through Voluntary Early Separation Scheme (VESS) and was separated from the Bank of Zambia with effect from 11th January, 1999. Payment for his separation package was made to him in December 1999.

In September 2003, he was appointed as Secretary to the Treasury with an arrangement that he be recruited as an ‘ADVISOR’ to the Governor of the Bank of Zambia, for purposes of him accessing a Bank of Zambia salary, and ‘seconded’ to the Ministry of Finance as Secretary to the Treasury for a period of two (2) years to August, 2005.

The public may wish to know that this is a junior position for the Secretary to the Treasury who is the supervisor of the Central Bank as Chief Controlling Officer of the Government.

The position of Advisor is at a level of Director at the Bank of Zambia, a position which is below that of Deputy Governor of the Bank (a position which Dr Musokotwane had served in prior to asking for leave of absence).

He was paid his gratuity by the Bank of Zambia as per the contract he signed with the Bank in August 2005. His contract as Advisor to the Governor was extended for another two years in June 2005 to September, 2007 after which period he was paid his gratuity accordingly.

It was further extended for another two years in August, 2007, when Dr Musokotwane was re-engaged as Special Advisor to the President.

On 14th November, 2008, when he was appointed as Minister of Finance, Dr Musokotwane received two salaries (from the Bank of Zambia and from the Central Government) for the period November 2008 to January 2009.

Dr Musokotwane received a salary of K210,664,558.20, that is K70,221,519.40 per month from the Central Bank , and he further received K40,478,512.10, that is K10,281,069.30 as salary for the month of December 2008 and K30,197,442.80 as salary for the month of January 2009 with arrears of salaries and housing allowance for November 2008, from the Government as Minister of Finance.

Accumulatively, from this arrangement with the Bank of Zambia, from 1st September 2003 to January 2009, Dr Musokotwane collected a total of about K5.5 billion in form of salaries, leave pay, leave commutation, Christmas bonus and gratuity.

This amount is far in excess of the amounts which any officer who has served in the capacity of Secretary to the Treasury in the past and present has ever gotten in a period of 4 years, 3 months.

Although this was approved by the previous Government, this excessive payment raises moral issues in terms of equity with regard to the whole of the public sector remuneration payment.

It is quite evident from the foregoing that Dr Musokotwane has no plausibility to stand on moral high ground.

Issued by:

GEORGE CHELLAH

SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT FOR PRESS AND PUBLIC RELATIONS

Labels: BUDGET, CORRUPTION, GEORGE CHELLAH, MICHAEL SATA, SITUMBEKO MUSOKOTWANE

posted by MrK @ 3:35 AM