adminaimed at creating tension between civil servants and traditional leaders.
He said just like civil servants, chiefs were also underpaid and efforts to engage the Ministry of Finance for allowance reviews had been fruitless.
He said since the dollarisation of the economy, chiefs received an increment once.
“These are falsehoods meant to portray traditional leaders as people living lavishly,” he said.
“We are grossly underpaid and we earn far below most civil servants. We are a sector that has been neglected for a long time and I think Minister Biti knows this. We have been pushing to have our salaries reviewed upwards for the past two years without success.”
The reports by private and online media said the “cash-strapped” Government had awarded traditional leaders a 60 percent increment in allowances, neglecting civil servants.
The reports claimed the move was a “cynical inducement” ahead of general elections expected this year.
Headmen, acting headmen, village heads and their officials were also said to have been given the money.
Chief Charumbira said chiefs deserved allowances commensurate with the duties they carried out in various communities. “We are also parents and have families to take care of. The duties we carry involve a lot of expenses and how do people think we are surviving,” he said.
Chief Charumbira described traditional leaders as “chief executives” of communities.and deserved to be treated with due respect.
“Chiefs are all rounders. They perform many duties that an ordinary person cannot perform,” he said.
“We are the owners of this country and it is disappointing that some people don’t recognise the duties which traditional leaders carry. Even if there was an increment, anyone who would voice that would not be a true and patriotic Zimbabwean.”
He added: “It is also our hope that the performance of the economy will improve and everyone would be paid adequately including traditional leaders. For the meantime we are soldiering on with the peanuts we are getting.”
Online Reporter