Ministers, YBs should take a hefty pay cut

 

I have been waiting for quite a while to touch on this subject and was hoping someone in power would have the right sense and decency (not for political expediency) to make the first move.

So, yesterday’s announcement by Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari that the state has proposed pay cuts for executive council members, assemblypersons and the heads of state GLCs was exactly what I have long been waiting for.

So, kudos to Amirudin and Selangor. Right move.

Truth be told. I was actually waiting for Sarawak ministers to take the pay-cut lead and kick off this pandemic generosity. I am a little disappointed that did not happen.

Why? Sarawak lawmakers had voted for a three-fold hike in their monthly remuneration in 2013. This included the salaries and allowances for the chief minister, his cabinet and all state assemblypersons.

In normal and good times, no one will complain or say anything. Let them enjoy their salaries and perks. But in bad and difficult periods like now, we expect them to do what is decent and necessary – be generous and giving, make an effort to share your humongous income with the suffering public.

Taking a pay cut is a way of showing solidarity with the less fortunate and this would be a significant gesture. It would surely be appreciated by all, including those who do not benefit at all from such acts of generosity.

This message is meant for all elected representatives in the country, not just in Sarawak.

Yes, I am aware that in March last year, the prime minister, ministers and deputy ministers had contributed two months of their salaries to the Covid-19 Fund.

It has been 10 months since and all of them are now enjoying their full salaries. I hope all of them feel good about that, even as thousands of Malaysians, including their constituents, are suffering.

Do not get me wrong. Like many Malaysians, I am grateful for their generosity and sense of obligation. However, I also feel that they should do more than just a one-off act of donating two months of their salaries to the pandemic fund.

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin had stated then that "this step shows the earnestness of the government to assist those who have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic”.

Now, the pandemic has spiralled out of control and our health system has reached a breaking point. The economic downturn has adversely affected all levels of society in varying degrees.

Thousands had lost their jobs, businesses or had their salaries cut. Many have been driven into poverty and this has given rise to mental stress, leading to an increase in suicide cases.

For Muhyiddin and his 32-member cabinet and the 38 deputy ministers (what a bloated cabinet!), this is the opportune time “to show your earnestness to assist those who have been affected by the pandemic”. Donating a two-month salary is just too little. It’s nothing compared to what you guys are taking from the public coffers every month.

I have a suggestion for Muhyiddin and his cabinet. For the next seven months of the Emergency, what about volunteering a 50 percent pay cut?

I don’t think I’m way off to say that many of the ministers and deputy ministers are not actually “working” now - either they are infected, in quarantine or staying home. Civil servants are the ones running the various ministries and the government.

Tell me, what work are the three Special Envoys with ministerial status doing now? Are not all international borders closed? I loathe to use this term, but isn’t this what we call “Gaji buta”?

So, when ordinary workers are laid off or forced to take a pay cut, why must politicians be treated differently? Don’t we all still have to survive and ensure that there is food on the table for our kids? This is not the time to distinguish a VIP from Joe public. A government which claims to be caring and responsible must know what to do and its leaders have to be exemplary.

Have we not heard of a certain minister caught flouting the SOPs upon his return from a trip abroad who ‘donated’ four months of his salary as retribution for his ‘sin’? I doubt he was being generous. I think he could easily forgo his salary for four years, let alone four months.

And didn’t we hear of a former minister, now on corruption trial, who declared nonchalantly that two million ringgit to him is pocket money? Are we surprised that many of our so-called political leaders are just filthy rich?

A minister and a deputy earn between RM40,000 to RM50,000 (or above), including allowances and perks. Take a cut of 50 percent, they still have between RM20,000 to RM25,000 a month. Isn’t that still a lot of money?

Ministers should be honest and come clean. Most of them do not deserve what they are being paid now. There is not much official work to do. Do not think you are paid with taxpayers’ money for politicking.

So, do the right thing. Do not be a burden to the very government that you are part of.

To Menteri Besar Amirudin, why not take another lead and propose the hefty 50 percent pay cut in your Selangor administration?

Surely, you will receive another generous round of applause from Malaysians.

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FRANCIS PAUL SIAH is the author of ‘Hijack in Malaysia: The Fall of Pakatan Harapan’. Obtain autographed copies from sirsiah@gmail.com. - Mkini

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.