MPs want action against PSMAS board

via MPs want action against Psmas board – DailyNews Live by Chengetai Zvauya 6 FEBRUARY 2014

Members of Parliament yesterday took a government minister to task over the ongoing salary saga at the Premier Service Medical Aid Society (Psmas), demanding that action be taken against some errant board members.

Ruth Labode, an MDC MP, set the ball rolling during the minister’s question time, questioning whether government was going to move in and address the crises at Psmas.

She made reference to a story broken by the Daily News yesterday, that presidential spokesperson George Charamba was sitting on at least eight of the 13 committees, where members awarded themselves hefty sitting allowances.

“We are reading in the Daily News that there is a board member who also benefited, sitting in many board meetings and he is now saying his hands were tied.  We have Luxon Zembe,  Psmas new chairman who was also in the board that was approving salaries of Psmas managers. Was there no crime committed at Psmas?”

Tapiwa Matangaidze, Zanu PF MP for Shurugwi South, asked what course of action was going to be taken by government in addressing the problems affecting Psmas.

But Fortune Chasi, deputy minister of Justice, said the matter did not fall under his portfolio, saying the ministry of Health would be the appropriate portfolio to answer that answer.

“I am not able to comment on these issues as they fall within the ministry of Health,” Chasi said.

“However, I know that government is looking at that issue and at the relevant time we shall know what action is being taken.”

Meanwhile, the Senate yesterday approved the 2014 Finance Bill but MDC legislators withheld support from the Appropriation Bill, arguing that allocations made by minister of Finance Patrick Chinamasa to various ministries were not enough and the budget was not pro-poor.