via Chickens coming home to roost – DailyNews Live 26 MARCH 2014
Zimbabweans have always known that civil servants are the first to get paid in the land, starting with teachers and soldiers followed by other workers.
With salaries staggered from the 16th to the 21st of the month, they have always been the first to carry groceries home and quench their thirst in bars long before private sector and parastatal workers follow suit.
Last week, a small article in a State-run newspaper announced civil servants’ paydays had changed for the bulk of the civil servants, much to their chagrin.
This must be the first time that government has switched pay dates since independence in 1980. And it shows how desperate the Zanu PF government is.
The move has irked the union bosses who feel that they should have been told first, instead of reading about it in a newspaper. This shows a serious cash crisis bedevilling the government and workers doubt whether they will get their meagre salary increment of $79 which they accepted on the grounds government was broke.
President Robert Mugabe’s government has been lying to its servants for a long time.
First, it gave them low salaries and promised to hike them when the situation improved. Well, civil servants naturally thought Chiadzwa diamonds would make the difference. But alas, Tendai Biti, in charge of the Treasury during the unity government era, said he was not getting any proceeds from the companies that were mining the stones and could not afford to increase their salaries.
When Mugabe campaigned in the run-up to last year’s July polls, he promised he would double their salaries.
Seven months into his seventh presidential term, the situation seems to be taking a turn for the worst.
Did the president not know then that his government was going to run into problems?
During negotiations for a pay hike a few months back, the workers were told their employer was broke and could only offer them a pay hike of $79, bringing the lowest paid pay packets $375 from $296. Civil servants had initially hoped to have the lowest paid getting at least $540, which is the current poverty datum line.
It’s not easy to adjust when one is suddenly told to stretch money which was not there in the first place.
To add to their woes, government has failed to meet their part of the bargain and has failed to implement the $79 increment they promised at the end of February.
Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa, has said the increments will be paid at the end of April.
Contributions to the Public Service Medical Aid Society (Psmas) were also hiked at the beginning of the year. Cuthbert Dube, the CEO, had a hefty salary of $500 000 and a monthly medical allowance of $40 000. It must hurt so much for the poorly-paid servants.
They must also be apprehensive because government has not met any of its promises.
Last month, civil servants discovered money owed to various creditors was not being remitted, leaving them in danger of losing property they have bought on hire purchase. Is the government now trying to pay its workers by using money not remitted to creditors?
Chinamasa says civil servants are gobbling up 75percent of the money collected by government every month but has not accepted that there are over 70 000 ghost workers in the 230 000-strong workforce. If these were removed, it would lessen the government’s burden, surely.
Biti warned the Zanu PF government several weeks ago that it had started on the wrong foot by borrowing money to pay its servants. Where will government get the money to pay back whichever bank lent them the money?
The chickens have come home to roost for Mugabe’s administration.
COMMENTS
Well, the Chinese masters funded the fraudulent elections,they must now bail out their ZANU slaves . They have to, if they care about their interests. ZANU is waiting. Hoping its not going to be too late. This is Mgabe’s last card.
Will the Chinese buy into this or count their losses and vamoose,? That is the question.
the chinese are not that stupid. they will not bail out mugabe, but they will continue to loot our diamonds
The price of diamonds to the Chinks just came down.
They are smart, they wait as Zimbabwe falls deeper and deeper
into the quick-sand, and then hand out a pittance for the gems.
That’s their stratagem, give ZANU-PF just enough to keep them
salivating for more, and not a yuan extra.
These idiots dug their own graves, with shovels Made in China!
Ha! ha! ha! ha! The end is nigh!
Can’t borrow what you can’t repay Zimbabwe has failed it’s debt repayment schedule again with the IMF and the system is collapsing. But then King Mugabage has parties while Rome – Zimbabwe burns. Then wants to spend millions overseas at the EU and snivels that he can’t take his graceless. Zimbabwe we are the laughing stock of the world , we are stupid people for letting this happen. What is wrong with us ? If this was a white government we would have mass strikes and stay always. What happened to power of the people?
The people of Zimbabwe are much aware of instigators of instability hence will not listen to negatives coming from the likes of Mlimo.
Folks, we have another comedienne amongst us… Makotsi, did you come up with that line yourself, or get it from one of your comedy writers..? Either way, it’s really funny… good job..! Just imagine someone writing about the instability of the Mugabe government causing instability… that’s really rich, man…!!! You gonna make a fortune on the comedy circuit..!
Vanoziva zvavanoita itai mushe imi
To all and any of the civil servants who read this site, be aware that the money has run out! Regretably unless Mugabe and his boot lickers can pull something out of the hat, in the next month or so there will be NO PAY. Suggest you pass the word to all your compatriots and start making alternative arrangements to put food on the table! At long last ZANU is reaping what it has sowed for 30+_ years, unfortunately you are all are going to be casualties now that the bubble is bursting. The next time around, think before you vote.
I second this
Me too.
Me three
Yup..!
Logic will tell you that moving a pay date from 25 to 27 March can not be attributed to non availability of funds but rather to technical reasons. This in my view is so because if truely government failed to secure funds, during the course of the month surelyit can’t in two days.
@Makotsi: Kikikikikikikikikikiki, kwaaaaaaaaaaaaa, Lolest, hhehehehehehehe. Ndakaseka ndikazvirega.
Another funny line, ay…!!! These comedians are keeping us in stitches…!!!
Such an awesome imagination these guys have… what entertainment..!
kikikikikikikikikikikikikikiki……
What the hell are you saying, your English is atrocious, like your leader!
Your incitement has no takers, I got my salary on 27 March as promised by government. Iam looking forward to getting a salary adjustment soon. Your advice does not have a place in our efforts to rebuilding our Zimbabwean economy.
Makotsi. I take it that your Land Rover Sport given to you, free of charge, by ZANU PF for your many dubious actions against Zimbabwe and its people for your dictator, don’t feel the millions of pot holes on Zimbabwe’s roads. No doubt you don’t have days with no power, like the rest. No doubt, where you live, you have water all the time. No doubt you and your family don’t have to use the local hospitals and clinics. No doubt your children don’t go to rubbish government schools but go to private schools. If none of these things are true? then you don’t live there, or you are deaf, dumb and blind.
Mmmmmmmm! Judgment?
Can’t Mugarbage just take those loans Zimbabwe just received,
and pay his Uncivil Servants?
You know the ones – the Swedish loan for Health, the British loan
for Education and the recent Chink loan for infrastructure.
Who the hell needs to give The People health care, education
or a decent road, railway, airport or power grid?
I say “Let them Eat Cake”, that’s what I say.
Viva la ZANU-PF!
When they can’t pay the police, can’t pay or even feed the army it will be over, be patient a little longer
Zimbabwe is much more important to Zimbabweans and those who ill-wishes it are bound to be perenial losers. We are a proud nation built on the mantra of resistance to miopic foreign ideas. We are masters of our own destiny and no amount of treachery can dismantle us from that morally high chair.
Makotsi you are a fool! Its plain and obvious to all to see that this administration’s days are over. Your government is broke…Fullstop.
You truly sound like an imbecilic well paid fat spin doctor! It doesn’t make sense for a geriatric Bob to act like a child throwing toys all over just because his whore dis-Grace has been denied a visa to transverse streets of Europe shopping whilst he dozes in the summit! Over USD$10million plus would gobbled by the bloated ‘delegation’ to the summit and you still blame the ‘West’ for every wrong with this picture…tch tch tch!
Masters of our own destiny???? That is why we are in trouble. I would want God to be my destiny. And so all the atrocities of the last 34 years are a moral high chair? Actually I thought babies sat in high chairs.
No repentance! no restoration!
Think before you assist them to rig the elections. Unfortunately, your salaries can’t be rigged into your bank accounts.
The government can not tell its workers that they have cashflow problem so they have to stager pay dates it will only vindicate what people have been saying. It can only be a technical problem. Those who want to sweep dirty under the carpet suit yourselves. Those with eyes the writing is on the wall, bold and clear.
Chinyaraizvenyu very soon Zimbabweans will be millionaires again,and they will be paid annually ……thus good news.
Ha ha ha ha ha , I think it’s hilarious
Yeah, especially that Makotsi guy… he’s up at 4:00 AM writing those funny lines… that fellow is awesomely hilarious. Gotta be Jewish……
“President Robert Mugabe’s government has been lying to its servants for a long time.” I think this statement just about sums up where Zimbabwe are right now. In another forum I said that them referring to Government owned entities was wrong. These belong to the people. Have we gone that bad that reporters don’t know what Civil servants means? A civil servant or public servant is a person in the public sector employed for a government department or agency. The word would refer someone who works in these Departments for the good of the people. This means that a civil servant in his or her dealings should be APOLITICAL. If the writer is deliberately referring to them as the Governments servants to make a point, then I can understand why. If he thinks that that’s the true meaning of the phrase then we are headed for doom because every Government that comes in will do like Zanu and HIRE IT’S OWN SERVANTS.
To the idiots here who criticise me here let me explain to you what’s happening. With 70 percent of annual budget being used for salaries and the tax revenues decreasing the 25to 30 percent of the budget is not enough to cover the repairs and maintenance of infrastructure like the grain silos, the kariba dam wall and the money needed to fix roads haha and the rest. Then we have a president who uses the 25 percent for his private birthday parties, trips overseas and his eye operations that could be done at the clinic just down the road from his residence. Yes I know that much. So now the zanupf govt has been borrowing and when you borrow you have to pay interest. The interest on the loans Zimbabwe has is greater than the Capital repayments and interest needed to service the loans so that is why the zanupf reserve bank governor has failed to meet current instalments so when a govt does this NO One wants to lend Zimbabwe money again. So the only way is to push back civil servants pay dates to buy time with the hope of getting some money out of someone. However Zimbabwe has run out of someone’s.
We will see over the next months this spiral out of control. Now your parastatl bosses know this so they are looting the system to provide themselves with a nest egg for when the system fails . It’s only the diasporas who will suffer cos you are all too stupid to see the writing on the wall . But as you voted for mugabage that is your choice.
Sorry the middle part of my reply was that the interest and capital payments would probably take up much of the 25 percent left of the total budget I’f they were made which they aren’t .
The tail is wagging the dog !