High Salaries Demand Equitable Service Delivery on City Council [Editorial]

H The ARARE city council continues to compensate its high-ranking officials, notably the town clerk and department leaders, well beyond the salary limits set by the Local Government Board. This discrepancy becomes even more pronounced when various allowances are included in their total compensation packages.

The government-appointed board oversees the activities of all local authorities and has established a flexible range of salary scales for senior administrative personnel. These scales consider factors such as the population size of the cities, towns, or rural districts where these administrators serve, along with their required educational credentials.

This aims to establish a fairly consistent framework for municipal administration throughout the nation.

This measure also prevents a council from attempting to cut costs by employing inadequately qualified personnel at extremely low wages. Additionally, it tackles the issue now prevalent in Harare where high-ranking staff members inflate their salaries.

Typically, the salary ranges and requirements for employees in local governments are meant to align with those for civil servants working in central government. This ensures that individuals across the public sector fall into similar categories.

It is quite evident that the poor quality of numerous City Councillors in Harare over recent years, an issue repeatedly pointed out by successive Mayors affiliated with the same opposition party as most of these councillors, has enabled high-ranking officials to manipulate their positions as purported superiors when dealing with employment contracts.

It appears that these same officials have readily approved payments for councilors attending meetings and organized workshops with substantial subsistence and travel benefits for councilors at resort locations far from Harare. This indicates potential reciprocal favor exchanges regarding municipal financial matters.

The rationale behind taking no steps regarding the directives from the Local Government Board is clear: The administrative officers tasked with enforcing these guidelines and establishing new terms of employment and salary structures to supersede those deemed invalid are exactly the same individuals benefiting from the current excessive compensation schemes.

Thus, Harare still spends $500,000 each month on salaries and benefits for its senior administrators, where the city clerk can earn up to $30,000 monthly. On top of these substantial regular payments, leading officials enjoy additional luxurious privileges like vacation stipends covering not only their travels but also accommodation at various resorts within Zimbabwe, nearby regions, and even international destinations.

Mid-level and junior employees within the city council, including the technicians striving to maintain essential services despite inadequate funding from the administration—such as insufficient resources for crucial supplies like water purification agents—are compensated according to typical salary ranges customary across the public sector, reflecting their roles and credentials without excess.

Now that we have seen the evidence presented to the Commission of Inquiry regarding the operations of the Harque City Council, it’s clear that the senior management team isn’t doing much to boost staff morale within the municipal buildings.

Regular employees have experienced late salary payments and various issues with receiving their due compensation, largely because liquidity is being diverted to senior executives.

We believe that when the compensation for senior municipal officers exceeded the boundaries established by the Local Government Board, typical justifications were likely offered. These included claims that key personnel might depart from public service to join the private sector unless such salaries and benefits were provided.

Given that many of the top officials, save for maybe one or two, are damaging the city, most locals would gladly witness their departure from public office into the private sector. Although we doubt that boasting about prestigious city council experience will land them jobs offering anywhere near their current compensation. The community would surely applaud as they left.

If the Harare City Council, influenced by its non-compliant officials, fails to establish an appropriate classification system and compensation structure, the Local Government Board might need to step in with stronger measures.

It could involve deploying a group of experts seconded from the Public Service Commission who have comprehensive knowledge of the public sector’s pay scale system. They would swiftly create a suitable job classification and remuneration framework for the Harare City Council.

Even though Harare might be capable of handling the task independently, it would make sense for it to seek technical guidance from the Local Government Board and the Public Service Commission. This way, they can ensure everything is done correctly the first time around, instead of having plans constantly exchanged back and forth between the board and the council until the current group of city officials eventually retires.

Meanwhile, the council, supported or instructed by the board, should establish performance contracts for its senior officials, similar to what the President deems crucial for the upper echelons of the civil service.

Officials who are not meeting expectations, particularly those severely underperforming, might be transferred to roles better aligned with their skills or motivated to exit council service altogether.

Simultaneously, certain fundamental requirements should be established for local government council members, particularly those serving on boards associated with intricate entities such as large cities. Historically, city councillors tended to be individuals who had achieved success in their careers or businesses and wished to contribute to society or address issues they found problematic within their communities.

In these times, many council members aim to rely on their allowances, which were initially intended to cover expenses so that councillors wouldn’t incur personal costs. This includes purchasing fuel for driving to meetings and paying phone bills when responding to constituents' inquiries and such matters.

Irrespective of their political affiliation, council members ought to possess fundamental abilities and a professional foundation to excel in their roles.

Provided by Syndigate Media Inc. ( Syndigate.info ).