As Forum for Democratic Alternatives party (FDA) we wish to respond to media reports that government is preparing to pay Members of the Parliament midterm gratuity amounting to K500,000.00 each which in the previous currency is half a billion kwacha each Member of Parliament. The process of awarding huge salary increments to holders of political office started during president Rupiah Banda’s administration which process was implemented by the Patriotic Front immediately they came into government in 2011.
Our misgiving is not that our Members of Parliament and indeed holders of political offices should not get any form of remuneration, but our considered view is that the increments are too astronomical for a fragile economy such as ours. For instance, why should the President and his Vice President get huge increments in emoluments when they get everything free – be it transport, accommodation, electricity, food and the like? This means that the PF do not mean what they say when they advocate for pro-poor policies and more money in people’s pockets etc.
It is for this reason that our party does not support the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) proposal to increase the number of parliamentary seats from the current 150 to 235, as this will translate into more unnecessary pressure on the public purse.
With our MPs now budgeting for K500,000.00 as midterm gratuity each, it means there is another K500,000.00 or more to be paid to each Member of Parliament at the end of the life of the current parliament. The same MPs draw a sitting allowance for each day of sitting and a monthly salary.
It is for this reason that people are either bewitching or unnecessarily petitioning each other in the courts of law just to get into parliament where easy money is made.
It is therefore for this reason that we are soliciting the Zambian electorate to vote FDA Party into government to turn parliament from being a profit making venture to what it was originally established for, of being the people’s servants.
Dr. Ludwig Sondashi,
PRESIDENT.
stealing from the poor in deed. zambian politics
Let the people get paid! ala!
I understand the jealousy since those MPs don’t nothing but make noise and fart!
That is like £50,000 , for goodness sake that is not a lot of money
When you are as educated as some of us, that is what we would expect to get at the very least for a month.
Stop gasping for air people, and get jobs
Thanks
@Matipa, I don’t understand your contradictory statement. So the poor were rich at some point until govt stole the K500,000 from them?
Gratuity for the MP’s should be performance driven. Please give us a report of each constituency that details the campaign promises, tangible results achieved, CDF disbursed, other donations received and pictures of the constituencies. Close to 100,000 US Dollars must be justified. No performance no gratuity this is tax payers money.
Meant should be performance based.
Inasmuch as K500,000.00 isn’t a lot of money as some have already said on this blog because they are converting the same amount to foreign currency, well our Zambian economy isn’t as strong as other economies. I say K500,000.00 (£50,000.00) is a lot of money to be given to MPs when they already get a monthly salary and sitting allowances.
The money being dished out is taxpayers’ money, it is not as if it is a company dishing out dividends to its shareholders! Next the government will be issuing bonds, but for what? And the story continues…
Spot on FDA.This is too much if true.It is a waste of tax payers money.
How is your Sondashi formula doing by the way bosses ?
Saulosi,
Is this what you meant by “more money in your pocket”? Yaba, it sounds like more money in their suitcases.
Well said Saulosi, I think we need to make our voices heard. K500,000 is just too much money for mid term gratuity and then on top of this they receive allowances and they are also given a very expensive vehicle at the end of their term. If there are any MPs reading this please search your souls regardless of which party you belong to please do the right and moral thing, how are we going to develop if selfishness reigns, after 50 years sure, its not a political thing but a moral thing??? MPs that can do the right and moral thing to forgo their gratuity will receive the blessings and admiration of the country as a whole. That money as a sum for all MPs is a lot which could educate many children, build hospitals, even repair some roads.
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SONDASHI, WHERE DID YOU GET ALL THAT WEALTH IN SOLWEZI ? NOW UPND WHERE ARE YOU SINCE YOU HAVE YOUR MEMBERS WHO ARE GOING TO BENEFIT FROM THIS?. IT IS BETTER FOR YOUR MEMBERS AND THEY ARE QUIET NOW.
These are the type of things you will never hear the opposition or the ruling party who have sits in parliament bring up dispite the talk about government expenditure. thats why you should never take these clowns seriously especially the opposition, cause its just that…talk.. nothing more.
Bewitching each other?This will benefit you through your Sondashi formular.
Dr sondashi, President of what? With Sata’s whereabouts unknown this could breed a lot of confusion.
Hahahahaha! This has really made me laugh. These bazungus here are now wondering why the boss is laughing. Yaba!
It pays to be an MP. I am joining politics. It is for my belly!!!!
Have always said this… people in Zambia talk about how they hate corruption and wastage… but they are not willing to pay the price required to get rid of these vices.. its corruption ngamunobe …its wastage if its not you.. thats the mindset we need to get rid of first. then we can take the talk about development seriously
This is outrageous. Tax payers money gone to waste. We should hold these guys accountable for stealing from the Zambian people. This is daylight robbery.
Even the gross pays for these so called permanent secretaries goes as high as K50,000 . So, how much more does the cabinet minister get?????
Where is this money coming from. ??
Be reminded that Zambians are not fools for you guys to be reaping off public funds from every angle…. CDF funds. Loans , Road works ETC . In this era we hear of children learning under a tree, no clean drinking water , no electricity, and these guys are living in so much luxury , driving posh cars.. Shame
You are just jealous,You were also a beneficiary of the same at one time,Leave us alone to eat ewe atase!
U ARE VERY CHILDISH
This is daylight robbery. All workers in the country should STOP working until this is stopped. Unions don’t just sit there; act!
Dr Sondashi, you may have a point BUT if indeed people are bewitching each other just to get to parliament, then we do have a big problem as a nation. Witchcraft is retrogresive, barbaric, demonic, and evil. It is even more frightening to think that even our lawmakers use such barbaric and *****ic ancient african science to get to parliament. It is also disturbing reading reports coming from the countryside that teachers, especially female teachers, have been victims of witchcraft related sexual abuse. Let us siffen laws against witchcraft to minimum of 15 yrs and where death has occurred as a result of being witchraft victim, such should be taken as murder. Cage also these witches masquerading as “Doctors” in Lusaka.
Mmmmmmmmmm, but politics fintu zooooona. And now you’ll hear no opposition MP wapping. If you want to get rich fast, join politics
That’s alot of cash,k500,000 *158=k79 billion,and in 2016 another k79 billion.zambia is a rich country,only lacks patriotic leadership and most of its citizens don’t care much about public abuse of resources.that’s our money.
MORE MONEY IN THE POCKET AS PROMISED BUT VERY FEW GREED POCKETS
Dr. sondashi sir, with all due respect this is not the time to debate this issue. It’s part of the conditions of service for MPs.
Let’s not be diverted from discussing real issues to Politics of Poverty
Not bad. K500,000 for ‘monkeying around’ in Parliament. Imagine those MPs that have never said anything regarding the plight of their constituents in Parliament will also get this money. Including that bunch that likes walking out of proceedings
K500000 is chum change
Let the opposition Mps object to this K500 000 if they are really patriotic as they claim to be!!!!
Too bad. These guys they have no respect for the poor. Stealing from the disabled people and God is looking at them.
When it comes to individual monetary benefit both the opposition & ruling MPs will speak the same language. The same applies to our churches & pastors they teach differently on baptism, sabbath,dressing ,bear drinking etc but surprisingly they teach the same on tithe & offerings. What a coincidence!
Uraguay president must give them lecture on what it means to be pro poor!
A hallmark of immarturiy symbolic of a one term party. Trouble is where does Zambia go to next. Field Ruwe’s ‘hunt for a Successor’ is coming to roost. Is Zambia still learning or can Zambia ever learn? The biggest test since Chiluba’s third term crusade. Apparently there is a common factor here and that is SATA, IT CAN ONLY END IN TEARS. Zambia can now only be saved by an interim GOVT, if what we are reading is true. The Kwacha is in trouble and SATA has left Zambia in the most divided state ever.
Sondashi was a cabinet minister, when Miyada as VP set the precedent for parliament to discuss their salary and gratuity increments! The biggest mistake was the ruling by the then speaker Amusaa that whatever the house decides, be it , and the greedy chaps have taken this as a green light because for the past 10 years or so, the MP’s introduce a bill almost every year about their salary increments!
What is needed is an independent body with constitutional powers to be setting salaries and allowances for MP’s and Ministers, otherwise the bill will continue rising. The MMD guys like Sondashi and Miyada should start to be brave for once and accept the rot they introduced and accept the responsibility and apologise to the public rather than pass the blame on PF.
@John Bandaj. Money is coming from Bonds. That is why they are in a hurry to acquire more bonds for their benefits. Once out of govt, the new govt will inherit problems. This need to be stopped. That’s why the presido was in a hurry to increase his salary three times in a year. He knew he was leaving us soon and in more problems.
Somebody explain this to me. Are we mathematically illiterate that we can’t write proper figures? Does the writer mean k500,000,000 which is Five hundred million or half a billion kwacha? I have seen the same problem in the post Newspaper when prices of did commodities are shared and am like..what? If it is k500,000.00 let them have it but if is k500,000,000.00 then that money is unjustified in an impoverished country. First of all, I want to ask. What good or bad legislation was passed? In Zambia, the president is king and Parliament is a useless body.The United states senators get a yearly $150;000 which is high but for a big economy I still think it is too enormous but now our members are taking in $95209.06 and I can say that is stupendous!
National Assembly has too much money to waste! They are renting and paying accommodation for former speaker Mwanamwamba who retired more than 2 years ago. National Assembly built him a house but has not moved for reasons best known to himself and for more than two years and government is paying rent. This is abuse of resources!
This is a ridiculous amount of money; it is what contributes to people’s interest to enter politics fro money rather than a desire to serve the people of the cconstituency. Fro one i know my MP does not deserve even the salary he gets, never mind a bonus considering he has not achived even a sle development or created a single real job since 2011.
And what am I doing here, Damn. Let me start campaigning asap.
Lekeni abanenu bafole impiya. if 150 Zambians are empowered with half a million each, it is not only them who will benefit. they wont spend the money at their homes. they will buy from shops, they toll Zambian prostitutes, give to Zambian churches, they will their Zambian relatives and so on and so forth. if you leave that money in the treasury, you have no guarantee that it will be used wisely. may be only one person will put it in his account! basi!
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Now are the opposition MPs on this issue….this is where you should state your position, if you really care about the taxpayer.
*Now where. …..
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The opposition and the PF are equally sefish people. They are all quiet about this issue and yet they say they are there to serve the people.
UPND please where are you. You are really greedy and selfish, you are there for your own pockets… Ba mambala imwe.
Hello, I am well pleased to contact you after viewing your profile i am interested in having communication with you as a genuine friend,please dear write me back using my e-mail address([email protected])
so that i can tell you more about myself and together with my photos,i am waiting to hear from you soon. yours new friend sofia
Hello, I am well pleased to contact you after viewing your profile i am interested in having communication with you as a genuine friend,please dear write me back using my e-mail address([email protected])
so that i can tell you more about myself and together with my photos,i am waiting to hear from you soon. yours new friend sofia