Minister of Rural Development and Local Government Khadijah Ameen, is clarifying what she calls a misunderstanding surrounding a Cabinet decision to increase the stipends for Councillors' Clerks and the stipends of Councillors, as well as the maximum rent for office accommodation. She is assuring that the increases will be honoured. Rynessa Cutting has more.
00:00Minister of Rural Development and Local Government Khadija Amin says government will deliver on its agreement to increase the maximum rent for office accommodation for councillors from 2,500 to 3,500 monthly, as well as increase the incidental allowance for councillors from $1,000 to $2,000.
00:21Office clerks are not to be left out, with their stipends to be increased from 3,000 to 3,900, all changes effective October 1st.
00:32The provision of offices for councillors was established under the Kamala Fasad-Bissessa government in the 2010 period, since that neither the office rent nor the councillor's secretary's salary nor the incidental allowances was ever increased.
00:53It reached to the point where the secretaries were working for below minimum wage. Those councillors, secretaries, who for months under the former administration got less than minimum wage, had nowhere to turn while an illegal act was being committed, while they were being severely underpaid.
01:14And I'm happy, as Minister of Local Government, to be part of a cabinet that has corrected that.
01:19The information comes amid claims on social media that the government attempted to backtrack on the cabinet note.
01:27It is my understanding that subsequent to the municipal corporations being notified of a cabinet note to increase the councillor's salaries, the rent and incidentals, there was a memo sent to the CEOs reminding them to be mindful of existing employment contracts
01:48and existing rent arrangements. And it seems as though there are persons in the regional corporation who got the impression that the current employment contract of the secretaries and the current rental agreement for the offices must expire before the new rates take effect.
02:07So we have corrected this, we have provided legal guidance, this is not so.
02:12The minister says at this time, contracts are being revised in accordance with the cabinet note.
02:19We have asked the CEOs of each regional corporation to liais with our legal unit at the Ministry of Local Government, who will provide that guidance where they can do an addendum to the existing contract and so on, referencing the cabinet note.
02:37And they have been, so they have been, so they have been provided with legal step-by-step in terms of how it should be treated.
02:45And I think it is a misunderstanding. And this is what happens when there are people within the system who choose to make mischief and they don't know what they're talking about.
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