My $4 500 salary is not enough, says Town Clerk

Chitungwiza town clerk George Makunde yesterday told parliamentarians that the $4 500 monthly salary he was receiving from the local authority was not commensurate with the nature of his job.

Presenting oral evidence before the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Makunde said government last year slashed his salary from $10 000 to $4 500, which he described as "not a living salary for a man with so much pressure"".

The town clerk told the committee that his financially-struggling council was sinking in debt and struggling to clear its salary backlog now estimated at $17 million.