INCREASE IN MINIMUM WAGE A MOCKERY – MONDE
….how can you increase the minimum wage at a time when all the factors of the economy are going up?
Lusaka…. Wednesday December 28, 2022 (Smart Eagles)
Patriotic Front (PF) party presidential candidate Greyford Monde has said the increase in minimum wage under the UPND government is a mockery to the Zambians.
Speaking in an interview, Hon Monde said the increase in the minimum wage is not realistic.
He wondered why government would be increasing the minimum wage at a time when all the factors of the economy are going up.
Giving the issue of fuel as an example, he lamented that the commodity has been increasing monthly since the inception of the UPND into power.
“In as much as these minimum wages have been made to move for example on the maids and house keepers from about K900 to about K1,300, I think that it is still a mockery to our people. It’s a mockery in a sense that you know fuel prices every month they have been going up from day one that UPND took over power,” he said.
“They found it at K17, its now K27, almost K28 and now to give people this small salary rise or payment rise, I think for me it’s not being realistic. You need to get a government which is serious to begin to increase not just for the sake of increasing but calculate the cost of living for our people. You know that JCTR for the month of October they were talking of K9,000 as minimum for a household.”
He demanded that the UPND need to be serious and put themselves in the shoes of Zambians.
Hon Monde said government is not helping citizens towards the achievement of living decent lives as seen from the reducing number of beneficiaries in the social cash transfer program and the anomalies around the FISP program, among other vital issues.
The potential party president explained that in as much as one would argue that there is now free education, the cost of taking children to school remains high.
“Now you talk of K1,300. I think this is really a mockery, that will not go anywhere. If I were to advise government, I think the minimum wage for anybody working should be around K3,000, including the housekeepers and the maids,” he said.
“They are renting houses, they have got children who are going to school, I know that some people will be saying there is free education, there is free education but the cost of transport, the cost of buying breakfast for the children going to school every day in their lunch boxes is very high.
“So I think for me that is a mockery. I think the UPND government must be serious and they must put themselves in the shoes of these people. Many other services that the government are supposed to provide, they are not helping them.”