Massive pay hike and cars for MPs

FINANCE Minister Tendai Biti has proposed to buy Members of Parliament an additional car apiece and increase their monthly salaries by between 120 and 200 percent next year.
The latest packages are reportedly meant to pacify restless lawmakers who have gone for three years without being paid their sitting, travel and subsistence allowances though others say the Finance Minister was trying to curry favour with MPs in light of the furore that arose over his Appropriations Bill which was referred back to the Lower House by Senate.
Some MPs close to the matter said Minister Biti would raise their salaries from an average US$400 to between US$900 and US$1 200 with effect from January next year.
After the increase, Zimbabwe's MPs will, however, still remain the lowest paid in the region with their counterparts reportedly earning an average US$5 000 per month with Kenyan MPs being the highest paid at around US$10 000.
The legislators also disclosed that their debts arising from the vehicle loan scheme would be cancelled.
This means Treasury would have to fork out around US$4 million in the acquisition of new cars for about 270 legislators depending on the make.
Government forked out US$6 million last year to buy Mazda BT50 double cab trucks which were going for around US$25 000 each. The move by Minister Biti to give additional cars to legislators would bring to three the number of cars some of the MPs would have acquired during their current tenure.
The legislators bought double cab off road trucks under the parliamentary vehicle loan scheme.
Some of the MPs had initially taken delivery of Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe vehicles after the central bank stopped all quasi-fiscal operations.
The RBZ gave the MPs the cars on the basis that they would return them once they got theirs from the parliamentary vehicle loan scheme.
Minister Biti disclosed to the legislators last week in both the House of Assembly and Senate that he had mooted something that would improve their conditions of service.
He, however, declined to disclose what he had done for them.
This was after portfolio committee chairpersons submitted the inadequacies of the budget and emphasised that the Minister ought to look into their conditions of service.
"I want to thank honourable members who have contributed and I want to say to chairpersons of committees, we have discussed with your whips, they will give you an update on what we have discussed, which I am quite sure will make you smile," Minister Biti said without elaborating.
Minister Biti reiterated this in the Senate last Friday while steering the Finance Bill, saying they should approach their respective Chief Whips for details.
He told the Senate that there was need to have a Parliamentary Service Commission chaired by the Speaker of Parliament that would determine their conditions of service.He said current laws governing legislators were too fragmented and needed to be harmonised.
MDC-T chief whip and Mutare Central Member of House of Assembly, Mr Innocent Gonese, yesterday said there were discussions aimed at improving conditions of service for legislators.
He, however, declined to give details.
"These are matters that are confidential, the discussions are still not yet ripe for public consumption," he said.
Zanu-PF chief whip Cde Jorum Gumbo said the Finance Minister was yet to disclose the package to him.
However, MDC-T MPs spoken to yesterday said they were told at their party caucus of the plans by Minister Biti to improve their conditions of service.
"Minister Biti told us in our party caucus meeting that Treasury will buy additional vehicles for us early next year, this time they will be single cab trucks. He said it would be either in January or February," said an MDC-T MP.
Another MP said: "I think the Minister still wants the matter to remain under wraps at least for now as he is still discussing the issue with his counterparts in Cabinet."
The MPs had threatened not to pass the 2011 National Budget if Minister Biti failed to raise their salaries to US$3 000 per month.
The motion, which was moved by Mwenezi East Member of House of Assembly, Cde Kudakwashe Bhasikiti, was adopted by the House.
During the subsequent debate on the budget, legislators in both Houses lamented their low salaries saying they made them a laughing stock in the Sadc region.
The MPs have not been getting their sitting and travel and subsistence allowances since 2008.
Travel and subsistence allowances are given to legislators who have constituencies outside Harare but opt to live in houses in the capital and not in Parliament booked hotels.