AVAP urges government to extend allowance removal to other ministries

 AVAP urges government to extend allowance removal to other ministries

Chipata, May 22, ZANIS ——- The Anti-Voter Apathy Project (AVAP) in Eastern province has urged government to extend the removal of similar allowances from officers in other ministries to ensure a full clean-up of civil servants’ payroll system.

AVAP Regional Coordinator, Maumba Ngoma said there were a lot of workers in other ministries apart from education who were getting allowances which they did not deserve on their salaries.

In a statement dated 21^st May, 2013 made available to ZANIS in Chipata yesterday, Mr Ngoma said the stance taken by government so far to remove some allowances from teachers’ salaries should be commended by all well meaning Zambians.

He said this was not a new trend as the Pensions Association in the region was also asking its members to submit their details so that ghost pensioners were removed from the system.

“What government is doing is to ensure that public funds are protected and the clean-up system should be extended to other ministries,” Mr Ngoma said.

He noted that some government workers such as those in the judiciary, education and health were getting rural hardship allowances which they were not entitled to as the areas where they were operating from were not rural but peri-urban areas.

Mr Ngoma observed that government was losing millions of Kwacha from payment of allowances to undeserving public servants adding that, the money could benefit the majority poor Zambians.

Last week the Ministry of Education removed double class and responsibility monthly allowances respectively from teachers’ salaries, a move which has sparked anger by the educationists.

Some Teachers’ Unions have urged government to expedite the cleaning of the payroll system of teachers to remove ghost workers so that deserving teachers could start receiving their allowances again.