Opinion / Columnist
'Grotesque' MDC make a big song and dance about Mugabe's $12K wage but nothing of $2B loot
08 Mar 2015 at 08:16hrs | Views
Zimbabwe is in this mess because of the decades of gross mismanagement and rampant corruption by this Zanu PF regime. But for the last fifteen years MDC should have used their position as the country's main opposition and in 2008 to 2013 they were even in the GNU to highlight these problems so that they are meaningful address. Sadly they have not because they are breathtakingly incompetent. The latest manifestation of MDC incompetence is being penny wise and pound foolish.
MDC spokesperson Obert Gutu said yesterday Mugabe's salary was grotesque as most ordinary Zimbabweans were living on less than a dollar a day.
"In a country where more than 85 percent of the people live on less than $1 per day, it is obscene for the president to be earning a salary of $12 000 plus several other perks," he said.
"We were actually surprised that Robert Mugabe had the audacity to publicly disclose the details about his fat monthly salary plus perks before a group of underpaid and overworked civil servants.
"This just goes to show how much out of touch with reality this old man has become. With a ruler like Robert Mugabe who needs enemies," Gutu said.
No wonder the Western donor have completely deserted MDC as a party that will never ever achieve anything of substance as confirm by a senior researcher with Cato, Washington DC based think tank. If $ 12 000 was indeed all the State was paying Mugabe then what is motor-mouth Obert Gutu complaining about!
We are talking of a country in which CEO of parastatals like Public Service Medical Aid Society (PSMAS) were being paid $ 500 000 a month, Harare's Town Clerk was getting $ 40 000 a month and even Town Clerk of small towns with no more than 50 000 population were taking home $ 15 000 a month. Minister Chinamasa tried to have these packages reduced to $6 000 a month but failed.
So MDC thinks it is ok that PSMAS CEO should be paid $ 500 000 a month but it is "grotesque" for the State president to be paid $12 000 a month! It is the same civil servants whose contribution pay the CEO's staggering pay package and are being forced to cash for all their medical needs out of their merger wages because, after paying the CEO and his fellow equally well paid top managers, the Society has no money left to pay those providing the services to the members.
Mugabe said he was being paid $ 10 000 basic plus $2 000 in allowances one has to be real naïve to belief he was not being very, very economical with the truth. Obert Gutu was a minister in the GNU and so he should know that ministers were paid a generous $1 000 for attending the often weekly cabinet meetings. All government officials get very generous daily allowance for out of the country trips which is why Mugabe's overseas trip cost $3 million. In 2012 Mugabe made no few than 8 trips to Singapore for medical reasons alone.
Without doubt Mugabe's greatest income is from the brown envelops. Zimbabwe is one of the most corrupt nations on earth and all the Zanu PF leaders are involved. In 2012 Partnership Africa Canada said Mugabe earned a staggering $2 billion from his share of the wholesale looting and plunder of Marange diamonds.
Last September Mugabe signed a deal allowing the Russian defence conglomerate Rostec State Corporation, Vi Holding and Vnesheconombank to join in the looting and plunder of Marange diamonds. The Russian local partner is the Zimbabwe military, through its Pen East Mining Company.
All this hive of diamond mining activity has failed to raise even a dollar in tax revenue. Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa last week announced in parliament that there were no alluvial diamonds left. Of course he was lying the Russians, Chinese and all the other operators are still in Marange mining diamonds 24/7 it is just none of them are paying an taxes.
It is typical of MDC to make a mountain out of a mole hill of Mugabe's $12 000 monthly wage and completely ignore the loot and plunder of $800 billion worth of Marange alluvial diamonds happen under their noses.
For all Mugabe's pretext to hate Tsvangirai and MDC, deep down Mugabe loves him because he knows it was thanks to Tsvangirai and his MDC's corruption and incompetence that not even one democratic reform was ever implemented during the GNU. He was only able to rig the July 2013 elections because he was able to have a corrupt ZEC, Police, etc. because these state organs had not been reformed. Mugabe also knows that as long as MDC remain the country's main opposition he will get away with murder literally too!
Mugabe loots $ 2 billion and you say nothing and then made a big song and dance about his $12 000 monthly salary; now that really "grotesque"!
MDC spokesperson Obert Gutu said yesterday Mugabe's salary was grotesque as most ordinary Zimbabweans were living on less than a dollar a day.
"In a country where more than 85 percent of the people live on less than $1 per day, it is obscene for the president to be earning a salary of $12 000 plus several other perks," he said.
"We were actually surprised that Robert Mugabe had the audacity to publicly disclose the details about his fat monthly salary plus perks before a group of underpaid and overworked civil servants.
"This just goes to show how much out of touch with reality this old man has become. With a ruler like Robert Mugabe who needs enemies," Gutu said.
No wonder the Western donor have completely deserted MDC as a party that will never ever achieve anything of substance as confirm by a senior researcher with Cato, Washington DC based think tank. If $ 12 000 was indeed all the State was paying Mugabe then what is motor-mouth Obert Gutu complaining about!
We are talking of a country in which CEO of parastatals like Public Service Medical Aid Society (PSMAS) were being paid $ 500 000 a month, Harare's Town Clerk was getting $ 40 000 a month and even Town Clerk of small towns with no more than 50 000 population were taking home $ 15 000 a month. Minister Chinamasa tried to have these packages reduced to $6 000 a month but failed.
So MDC thinks it is ok that PSMAS CEO should be paid $ 500 000 a month but it is "grotesque" for the State president to be paid $12 000 a month! It is the same civil servants whose contribution pay the CEO's staggering pay package and are being forced to cash for all their medical needs out of their merger wages because, after paying the CEO and his fellow equally well paid top managers, the Society has no money left to pay those providing the services to the members.
Mugabe said he was being paid $ 10 000 basic plus $2 000 in allowances one has to be real naïve to belief he was not being very, very economical with the truth. Obert Gutu was a minister in the GNU and so he should know that ministers were paid a generous $1 000 for attending the often weekly cabinet meetings. All government officials get very generous daily allowance for out of the country trips which is why Mugabe's overseas trip cost $3 million. In 2012 Mugabe made no few than 8 trips to Singapore for medical reasons alone.
Without doubt Mugabe's greatest income is from the brown envelops. Zimbabwe is one of the most corrupt nations on earth and all the Zanu PF leaders are involved. In 2012 Partnership Africa Canada said Mugabe earned a staggering $2 billion from his share of the wholesale looting and plunder of Marange diamonds.
Last September Mugabe signed a deal allowing the Russian defence conglomerate Rostec State Corporation, Vi Holding and Vnesheconombank to join in the looting and plunder of Marange diamonds. The Russian local partner is the Zimbabwe military, through its Pen East Mining Company.
All this hive of diamond mining activity has failed to raise even a dollar in tax revenue. Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa last week announced in parliament that there were no alluvial diamonds left. Of course he was lying the Russians, Chinese and all the other operators are still in Marange mining diamonds 24/7 it is just none of them are paying an taxes.
It is typical of MDC to make a mountain out of a mole hill of Mugabe's $12 000 monthly wage and completely ignore the loot and plunder of $800 billion worth of Marange alluvial diamonds happen under their noses.
For all Mugabe's pretext to hate Tsvangirai and MDC, deep down Mugabe loves him because he knows it was thanks to Tsvangirai and his MDC's corruption and incompetence that not even one democratic reform was ever implemented during the GNU. He was only able to rig the July 2013 elections because he was able to have a corrupt ZEC, Police, etc. because these state organs had not been reformed. Mugabe also knows that as long as MDC remain the country's main opposition he will get away with murder literally too!
Mugabe loots $ 2 billion and you say nothing and then made a big song and dance about his $12 000 monthly salary; now that really "grotesque"!
Source - Wilbert Mukori
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