Dickson Ng'hily
JF-Expert Member
- Oct 22, 2010
- 451
- 485
This is from Mh. Zitto Kabwe Zitto kwenye mtandao wake wa Twitter…
Just informed that the PM had a meeting with Editors today and confirmed a new rate for sitting allowance to MPs ie 200,000 tshs a day.
The PM says, he was asked by the President to deal with the matter. It is against the law for a PM to approve new rates.
...
National assembly admn act 2008 provides nothing as sitting allowance to MPs. The allowance itself has no legal basis, mazoea tu.
I reiterate my stand that I will not take sitting allowance as I don't deserve it. The Prime Minister is totally out of touch. A backlash.
.......................
My take...
Huyu naye kweli ni mkulima (lugha ya watoto wa mjini kumuelezea mtu asiyejua kitu aka mshamba)....Sasa kama ni kinyume na sheria kwa waziri mkuu kuthibitisha ongezeko jipya la posho, yet jamaa anajiita ni mwanasheria kwa taaluma, hivi kweli tuna watu! Yaani inajua kabisa inaenda kinyume na sheria lakini bado inavunja tu sheria eti kisa mkuu wa kaya kamwambia alifanyie kazi hilo jambo...!!!! Yaani midude mingine bwana!
Mh. Zitto Big Up kaka na songa mbele na ikiwezekana tanzishe move ya kuzipinga hizo posho kwa countrywide strike kaka...Hapo tutajumuisha mambo yote ikiwamo kupanda kwa gharama za maisha......................
New Development.........
The Citizen Reporters
Dar es Salaam. Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda yesterday defended Parliament's decision to raise sitting allowances by 185 per cent - from Sh70,000 to Sh200,000 a day - on the grounds that the package was intended "to help ease the difficulties they (MPs) are facing".
But, in a quick rejoinder, city analysts dismissed the move as unjustified."There is an assumption that MPs are comfortable but the real situation is quite different," Mr Pinda told senior journalists and editors at a press conference. The initial plan, he said, had been to put into effect the proposed sitting allowances after President Jakaya Kikwete had approved a Parliamentary Service Commission application to raise them. But the President had instead delegated the matter and asked him (Mr Pinda) to make a decision.
"The issue is on my desk and I have not yet made any decision," said Mr Pinda who also addressed the economic situation, electricity, the constitutional review process and last month's 50th independence anniversary celebrations.
According to the Prime Minister, MPs have a chain of responsibilities that requires them to spend colossal amounts of money, chief among them attending to the problems of their constituents.
MPs earn Sh2.3 million per month. After deductions of up to Sh800,000, they take home Sh1.5 milion. Mr Pinda added: "These MPs secured bank loans ranging from Sh100million, Sh150million and Sh200million, and these loans have to be repaid. While in Dodoma for parliamentary sessions, they stay in rented houses. They also have to refuel their vehicles."
"They (MPs) have to pay for everything. The question here is not what an MP gets but what an MP does," said Mr Pinda. "Some of the MPs have stopped collecting their salary slips (because they have no more money left after all the salaries have been deducted)."
The PM has some advantage in the fact that all his meals are paid for by the government and he uses an official vehicle that is fuelled by the government.
Sitting allowances also apply in government institutions, with payments ranging from Sh100,000 for junior officers and Sh150,000 for middle cadres to Sh200,000 for senior officers, said the PM.
Mr Pinda's take on the MPs allowances ignited fresh barbed reactions from various quarters, including Mr Zitto Kabwe, the Kigoma North MP on the ticket of Chama Cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema), who said it would be illegal for the government to approve such hefty allowances. Tanzanians have the right to question such decision in court, he added. "I reiterate my stand that I will never pocket the sitting allowance since it's not stated in the National Assembly Administrative Act."
Mr Kabwe wondered why the President had delegated the matter to the Prime Minister when the head of state was responsible for issues relating to remuneration of MPs. "Maybe the President is just running away from his responsibilities because the Prime Minister has no power to act on anything regarding MPs since he is just a minister who deals with government business in the House," Mr Kabwe said. This position was echoed by renowned lawyer Dr Ringo Tenga, who said the higher allowances were evidence of the selfishness of leaders.
These are some of the issues that should be discussed in the constitution review, Dr Tenga said, as MPs salaries and allowances should reflect the state of the country's economy and the living standards of the people. "The PM has failed to justify the allowance increase," he added. "Excuses such as enabling the MPs to repay their loans do not make sense." Tanzanian MPs are the least paid within the East African region, said the lawyer.
A political analyst and lecturer at the University of Dar es Salaam, Dr Benson Bana, said wananchi would start questioning the wisdom of their leaders. "The core duty of an MP is not sitting allowances," he added. "If they need money, they should go into other businesses rather than representing people in Parliament."
There was no such thing as "sitting allowances" in the Commonwealth parliamentary structure, he said, and MPs should concentrate on working for people and not thinking of hefty allowances. "An MP should not enter the House thinking of how to clear debts that enabled them to hold posts they have today and attending meeting is part of their responsibilities, not an extra duty."
According to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Ms Anne Makinda, they put in an application for increased sitting allowances from the current Sh70,000 to Sh200,000 per day owing to hardships in Dodoma, where MPs spend a big part of their time during Parliamentary sessions.
By Lucas Liganga and Mkinga Mkinga
Just informed that the PM had a meeting with Editors today and confirmed a new rate for sitting allowance to MPs ie 200,000 tshs a day.
The PM says, he was asked by the President to deal with the matter. It is against the law for a PM to approve new rates.
...
National assembly admn act 2008 provides nothing as sitting allowance to MPs. The allowance itself has no legal basis, mazoea tu.
I reiterate my stand that I will not take sitting allowance as I don't deserve it. The Prime Minister is totally out of touch. A backlash.
.......................
My take...
Huyu naye kweli ni mkulima (lugha ya watoto wa mjini kumuelezea mtu asiyejua kitu aka mshamba)....Sasa kama ni kinyume na sheria kwa waziri mkuu kuthibitisha ongezeko jipya la posho, yet jamaa anajiita ni mwanasheria kwa taaluma, hivi kweli tuna watu! Yaani inajua kabisa inaenda kinyume na sheria lakini bado inavunja tu sheria eti kisa mkuu wa kaya kamwambia alifanyie kazi hilo jambo...!!!! Yaani midude mingine bwana!
Mh. Zitto Big Up kaka na songa mbele na ikiwezekana tanzishe move ya kuzipinga hizo posho kwa countrywide strike kaka...Hapo tutajumuisha mambo yote ikiwamo kupanda kwa gharama za maisha......................
New Development.........
The Citizen Reporters
Dar es Salaam. Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda yesterday defended Parliament's decision to raise sitting allowances by 185 per cent - from Sh70,000 to Sh200,000 a day - on the grounds that the package was intended "to help ease the difficulties they (MPs) are facing".
But, in a quick rejoinder, city analysts dismissed the move as unjustified."There is an assumption that MPs are comfortable but the real situation is quite different," Mr Pinda told senior journalists and editors at a press conference. The initial plan, he said, had been to put into effect the proposed sitting allowances after President Jakaya Kikwete had approved a Parliamentary Service Commission application to raise them. But the President had instead delegated the matter and asked him (Mr Pinda) to make a decision.
"The issue is on my desk and I have not yet made any decision," said Mr Pinda who also addressed the economic situation, electricity, the constitutional review process and last month's 50th independence anniversary celebrations.
According to the Prime Minister, MPs have a chain of responsibilities that requires them to spend colossal amounts of money, chief among them attending to the problems of their constituents.
MPs earn Sh2.3 million per month. After deductions of up to Sh800,000, they take home Sh1.5 milion. Mr Pinda added: "These MPs secured bank loans ranging from Sh100million, Sh150million and Sh200million, and these loans have to be repaid. While in Dodoma for parliamentary sessions, they stay in rented houses. They also have to refuel their vehicles."
"They (MPs) have to pay for everything. The question here is not what an MP gets but what an MP does," said Mr Pinda. "Some of the MPs have stopped collecting their salary slips (because they have no more money left after all the salaries have been deducted)."
The PM has some advantage in the fact that all his meals are paid for by the government and he uses an official vehicle that is fuelled by the government.
Sitting allowances also apply in government institutions, with payments ranging from Sh100,000 for junior officers and Sh150,000 for middle cadres to Sh200,000 for senior officers, said the PM.
Mr Pinda's take on the MPs allowances ignited fresh barbed reactions from various quarters, including Mr Zitto Kabwe, the Kigoma North MP on the ticket of Chama Cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema), who said it would be illegal for the government to approve such hefty allowances. Tanzanians have the right to question such decision in court, he added. "I reiterate my stand that I will never pocket the sitting allowance since it's not stated in the National Assembly Administrative Act."
Mr Kabwe wondered why the President had delegated the matter to the Prime Minister when the head of state was responsible for issues relating to remuneration of MPs. "Maybe the President is just running away from his responsibilities because the Prime Minister has no power to act on anything regarding MPs since he is just a minister who deals with government business in the House," Mr Kabwe said. This position was echoed by renowned lawyer Dr Ringo Tenga, who said the higher allowances were evidence of the selfishness of leaders.
These are some of the issues that should be discussed in the constitution review, Dr Tenga said, as MPs salaries and allowances should reflect the state of the country's economy and the living standards of the people. "The PM has failed to justify the allowance increase," he added. "Excuses such as enabling the MPs to repay their loans do not make sense." Tanzanian MPs are the least paid within the East African region, said the lawyer.
A political analyst and lecturer at the University of Dar es Salaam, Dr Benson Bana, said wananchi would start questioning the wisdom of their leaders. "The core duty of an MP is not sitting allowances," he added. "If they need money, they should go into other businesses rather than representing people in Parliament."
There was no such thing as "sitting allowances" in the Commonwealth parliamentary structure, he said, and MPs should concentrate on working for people and not thinking of hefty allowances. "An MP should not enter the House thinking of how to clear debts that enabled them to hold posts they have today and attending meeting is part of their responsibilities, not an extra duty."
According to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Ms Anne Makinda, they put in an application for increased sitting allowances from the current Sh70,000 to Sh200,000 per day owing to hardships in Dodoma, where MPs spend a big part of their time during Parliamentary sessions.
By Lucas Liganga and Mkinga Mkinga
