What a way to end the week after Thuli Madonsela’s damning Nkandla Report was released. According to the Sunday Times, Members of Parliament have voted to give themselves up to 24 business class flights each year for 10 years after they leave office (no doubt this is a quick move for those MPs who will not be returning to the house after the May 7 elections).
The article notes:
In terms of the new post-retirement travel benefit for MPs, adopted by parliament’s oversight authority a fortnight ago, former MPs and their spouses will get between eight and 24 free flights a year over the next decade.
The authority recommends that retired MPs and their spouses be given free flights at taxpayers’ expense based on the number of years they served in parliament.
In terms of the proposal, an MP would qualify for eight economy-class tickets a year for 10 years after serving one term, 16 such flights a year for 10 years after serving two terms, and 24 business-class tickets a year for 10 years after serving three terms in parliament.
Parliament’s oversight authority also wants the retirement travel benefit extended to all 430 members of the nine provincial legislatures.
The oversight authority is the highest policymaking body for parliamentarians and comprises senior MPs, including speaker Max Sisulu, National Council of Provinces chairman Mninwa Mahlangu, ANC chief whip Stone Sizani and Democratic Alliance chief whip Watty Watson.
This gross abuse of public funds is in line with the ongoing perversion of the ‘Ministerial Handbook’ which gives Ministers massive allowances, security upgrades, housing benefits, and – according to the article – already gives former Ministers the post-retirement travel perks.
Why on earth do our public representatives believe that these expenses are legitimate for the taxpayer to shoulder? After all, it’s not as if their pay packages are low! The 2012/13 salary list can be seen below (source: Moneyweb)
So why is it that our public representatives feel they can give themselves these perks? The most pathetic excuse, in this article, came from the DA’s Deputy Chief Whip Sandy Kalyan, who said that:
“the idea was to ‘level the playing field’ between the benefits granted to former MPs and those given to former ministers and deputy ministers. Currently, former ministers and former deputy ministers are entitled to 78 single tickets per year and former MPs receive four tickets per year.
“We believed it to represent a disparity,” said Kalyan.”
This is utterly absurd! So, because former Ministers receive an excessive and unjustified perk, the reasonable course of action is to give more unreasonable and unjustified perks?!? Why was the discussion – and decision – not centred on cutting down (or, preferably, eliminating) the former Ministers free travel?
Often we focus on corruption as the ‘backroom deals’, payoffs, contracts given to family members, commissions for sealing deals. But surely these kinds of perks are also corrupt? It’s not hard to believe that in a ‘perk culture’ like this Jacob Zuma didn’t notice anything strange about a multi-million rand upgrade to his private residence. After all, if you’re used to government taking care of all your big life expenses (cars, housing, travel) then how do you know when it’s ‘over-the-line’. Yes, the misuse of funds for personal gain at Nkandla was horrific. But so is the everyday draining of the public purse for unconscionable ‘perks’ like these.
It’s time for us to stand up against this kind of corruption – the corruption of the purpose and soul of public service.
So here’s my proposal to Parliament – call a meeting of the oversight committee, and release the following set of decisions:
- No MPs or Ministers receive cars or houses in addition to their salaries
- MPs and Ministers may only access travel for official business, such as visiting their Constituency Offices
- There are no travel benefits for the children and/or spouses of MPs (this is why people have salaries!)
- There will be no travel, or other benefits, to former Presidents, MPs or Ministers.
What would you add to this list?
– Janet Jobson
A! Campaign for Action and Accountability 