Scores of Council workers wives in Mkushi district today besieged Mkushi District Council seeking immediate intervention into the 10 month salary arrears owed to Division 4 council workers.
Spokesperson for the group Albina Mukupa told ZANIS that more than 45 wives of Council workers are demanding immediate intervention from the Local Government Minister to sort out the matter in which their husbands are owed wage arrears.
Mrs Mukupa said that the women were protesting against the Council’s inability to pay their husbands salaries for a long time, charging that this had subjected them to suffering.
She observed that it was even better for the Ministry of Local Government to retrench all Division 4 workers and pay them their dues at once.
She said that the household poverty amongst Division 4 workers families had become unbearable, saying that the workers last received their December 2012 salary in October this year (2013).
Another woman Evelyn Kaoma said that the wives of Council workers could not engage in alternative livelihood such as agriculture as their husbands had not been paid for long time.
Mrs Kaoma said that the women were finding it difficult to cushion the impact of the non-payment of salaries to their husbands, explaining that piece works had become increasingly scarce in the district.
She elaborated that Division 4 Council workers families have been experiencing challenges such as food, children education, as well as assorted debts as a result of the unpaid salary arrears predicament.
Meanwhile, Mkushi Council Secretary Everty Ng’andu acknowledged that the local authority was facing challenges in paying Division 4 salaries via local sources.
Mr Ng’andu said that the Council was hopeful of getting good money from the advertised sale of 59 residential and commercial plots, saying that the issue of salary arrears would be accorded top priority.
He also reiterated the need for Policy Makers to consider the re-introduction of Crop Levy, adding that the Council was likely to continue facing financial problems if Crop Levy was not effected.
More than half of the 111 workers at Mkushi Council are in Division 4 salary scale.
ZANIS
Ministry of Local Government can’t do anything to help because Division 4 salaries don’t come from the Ministry of Local Government but the Council coffers.
And we claim be fighting corruption?
Meant:
And we claim to be fighting corruption?
In their campaign promises, the PF said that such will be a thing of the past. People should know that the councils rely on government grants and therefore should direct their anger against Sata. If there was a bye-election in Mkushi, everybody would have been paid by now. THAT IS YOUR PRESIDENT!
nasla chemical company owner mr.nasir mr.hanif mr.hameed that people very cheater and lie so many worker 1 year salary holding with passport
pleas dont connection and with business
company product soft touch lotion cream jelly
the are just make money no respect for worker
all family guys in the management not zambia people
but government quite
Did you get a 6 in English at grade 12
Are you high on something or you have forgotten to take your medication?
They are busy creating new Districts, yet they can’t even run existing ones…….ba Fulwe No Plan!
10 months without pay mucili muleya kunchito? that’s insane.
What is worse is that they recently voted PF in a Bye Election.Let them suffer they asked for it.
its realy sad for our men en women in council,but i strongly believe there must be a solution to all these problems cos its clear dat not all council workers are in arears instead those with better positions don’t feel de pinch of poverty coz there salaries come right on time.therefore since those suffering are the majority then its the responsibility of both council management en ministry of local govenment to urgently look into the plit of these poor en innocent council workers country wide.i work 4tazara en i know wat it means staying without a salary 4more than a month,thank god that time z gone i salute pf government 4there intervetion longlive pf.
if they knew how much money their husband steal from the council every day they woudnt have gone there.Their husbands are thieves they report for work early despite not getting payments.
They are the thieves, Kawalalaz, bakabwalala. Atase
Just start kunyengesa your problems will be over, naimwe
Let them go on strike.
Why would someone work for a year without pay and not resign?
There may be something we are not seeing here.