The salary factor
26 April 2008
With the Parliamentary Entitlement bill yet to be endorsed, Pay Commission yet to be instituted and parliament session yet to begin, the Members of Parliament (MP) are living without salaries while the ministers are getting paid.
The legal justification to this is that the ministers have started working and shouldering responsibilities but have not the rest? Observers feel that even the MPs have started taking up responsibilities in bits and pieces, be it at home or in public.
Most MPs, according to a source, were bankrupt and were on a borrowing spree. All MPs should be vested with same privilege.
Until the Parliamentary Entitlement bill is passed, the ministers will perhaps continue drawing pay scale and other benefits enjoyed by the former ministers,said the National Assembly Secretary, Nima Tshering.
The Cabinet Secretary, Dasho Sherub Tenzin confirmed that the ministers will enjoy the same benefits as done by the former ministers until the entitlement bill is enacted.
“They can do so as they have taken up their offices whereas the MPs haven’t as yet,” he clarified.
The 10 cabinet ministers were conferred Dakyen by His Majesty on April 11 and they joined their office from the same day.
With the parliament session date tentatively fixed for May 8, the ministers can draw a month’s salary and enjoy other benefits as well.
However, the Draft Constitution states that the NA and NC shall continue for five years from the date of first sitting of the respective houses. This indicates that the pays and other benefits of the parliamentarians should come into effect from the first joint sitting of the parliament.
The MPs on the other hand, could ask, if the need be, for a reasonable amount of advance from the respective houses that will later be adjusted with the salaries once the pay gets fixed.
The salary fixed for the MPs in the entitlement bill, Nu 30,000, is subject to change. “If they are not happy with the ceiling fixed, it can be changed,” Nima Tshering said.
A National Council member questioned the legality of the payment to the ministers as they are also MPs in principle. “Even the ministers should be drawing salary advances just like any other MPs. There is no legal basis for entitling them with salaries and other benefits,” he said.
The NC Secretary, Tshewang Norbu, said that some members had expressed difficulties having to live without any allowances at present. “We are trying to work on the matter with the concerned authorities and hopefully expect a positive outcome,” he said.
However, some NA members had no objection or complaints against the fact that ministers were getting paid and they were not.
The opposition leader, Tshering Tobgay, said the ministers should be paid since they were already working. The MPs entitlement,to him, was secondary to working and serving the people. “There should be a legal basis for payment. I leave it up to the parliament and NA secretary,” he added.
MP Ugyen Dorji said that there weren’t any justifiable basis of payment for the MPs. An option he saw was to pay the MPs based on the entitlement bill and later adjust with their salaries.
“The ministers deserve to be paid. They are shouldering more responsibilities,” said MP Passang Thrinlee.
By Sonam Pelden
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What a perilous outcome of our first parliament election? Ministers are being paid and MPs are not being paid. By nature human beings are so selfish.
Ministers/elected MPs only have mouths and stomach as compare to MPs/Non-ministers.
Pay commission too needs to rectify a meager salary of all government, corporate employees and private employees. if not we have to pay a heavy prices due to social unrest in our small society. This too will couple by increasing trends of global food crisis.
Where is GNH????
It is a shame that a very small county like Bhutan cannot be managed effectively by our authorities . I wonder what would happen if we have population like China and India. GNH is just a lip service, in reality I suppose majority of the people are not happy in Bhutan, especially low grade civil servants who faces favoritism, nepotism, harassment, etc. We hope the new Government for which we have voted will bring changes.
I can’t imagine the politicians would be so optimistic when it comes to their benifits. From the very begining they foreseen all these matters n now they are wriggling for their paymants. What about the poor civil servants. Is anyone sensing this ongoing problems. There needs to be done a lot to the civil servants first and then the politicians. After all they will be paid for 60 months during their active service.
What is GNH ? When a Govt. employee living with pay of Nu.3500.00 has to meet one month’s living expense of 4000 and above. :
House rent ( 2 rooms) 1,500.00
Electricity bill 85.00
Water bill 60.00
50 kg rice – 750.00
1 kg milk powder 185.00
Sugar 2kg 60.00
Teal leaves 50.00
4 weeks vegetable( 300*4) 1200.00
TOTAL 3,890.00
Add : Childern’s school expenses ???
Additional diet ( Meat, cheese, butter ) ??
Fruit ???
Clothing ??
We hope the new Government for which we have voted will look for the low grade civil servents.
Politicians were running after power and money leaving many promisesto the people before they were elected. Once they are elected, they forget about of general public and think about themselves only. This is what we called selfishness towards achieving ones own needs.
Everyone talks about gross national happiness, but in reality no one knows what GNH stands for. Come on fellow friends etc… let us know what really the GNH means.
Some people cannot sleep thinking about their type of food for the the next meal.
But there are some who do not know where to spend the money. Is this realy GNH??? We Bhutanese have to think a lot before we talk about GNH to the outsiders.
When outsiders ask question about GNH, I used to say “I don’t know about that”. Infact, no body nows the real meaning of it.But for me in reality, it is “Gross National Hunger”.
Politicians were running after power and money leaving many promisesto the people before they were elected. Once they are elected, they forget about of general public and think about themselves only. This is what we called selfishness towards achieving ones own needs.
Everyone talks about gross national happiness, but in reality no one knows what GNH stands for. Come on fellow friends etc… let us know what really the GNH means.
Some people cannot sleep thinking about their type of food for the the next meal.
But there are some who do not know where to spend the money. Is this realy GNH??? We Bhutanese have to think a lot before we talk about GNH to the outsiders.
When outsiders ask question about GNH, I used to say “I don’t know about that”. Infact, no body nows the real meaning of it.But for me in reality, it is “Gross National Hunger”. I wish we will be blessed by the new goverment to whom we have voted with sincerity and honesty. ??????????