The Herald (Harare) Published by the government of Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe: MDC-T Admits WB Paying PM's Staff

Harare — THE World Bank has been secretly paying salaries to staff in Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's Office, a top aide has admitted, fuelling speculation that MDC-T is trying to run a parallel Government in Zimbabwe.

Minister of State in PM Tsvangirai's Office Gorden Moyo this week made the admission, but would not say how much the staff were being paid or why they were getting the extra money.

It is believed that some of the beneficiaries of the World Bank "slush funds" were getting between US$700 and US$7 000 monthly depending on grade.

Finance Minister Tendai Biti has told civil servants that the Government cannot afford to pay them more than the present average of about US$140 at a time when teachers' unions have been threatening job action over poor remuneration.

Oddly, MDC-T's Senator Obert Gutu has denied that any civil servant was getting more than other Government workers. Minister Moyo said the PM's staff were getting the money as part of a Government scheme with the World Bank, but State officials yesterday said this was not true.

"It is a scheme of Government . . . we are getting resources through a scheme of technical assistants (sic) through the World Bank. These people are being paid through the World Bank," Minister Moyo told an online news site.

Prior to this, Senator Gutu wrote an article in which he said: "For the benefit of the readership, let me categorically state that the Prime Minister's Office has got a small professional bureaucracy that earns the same salary as every civil servant."

Senator Gutu's statement strikes a discordant note with Minister Moyo, whom many would say is better informed about affairs in the PM's Office than the legislator.

A Government official last night said: "We have known about this (the World Bank salaries) for sometime now and we are taking it very seriously. That is all I can say for now."

Minister Moyo's disclosure is bound to cause consternation within the civil service and observers last night said it was "shocking" that civil servants "working in MDC-T offices were getting preferential treatment".

"This can no doubt threaten the very integrity of the inclusive Government. What are they doing that is so special that they should be paid more than other even more hardworking and dedicated civil servants?

"This raises serious national security questions as well because what we have here are people who are serving two masters and that does not augur well for the inclusive Government," an observer said.

The observer said it was "no coincidence that when PM Tsvangirai toured several Western countries earlier this year ostensibly to look for financial assistance for the country, all the money he got unconditionally went to NGOs".

"These are the same NGOs that could be helping to create the parallel Government," he said.

Earlier this week, independent parliamentarian Professor Jonathan Moyo charged that MDC-T was attempting to set up a parallel Government with the aid of donor funds.

He said: "Some of these (staff) are working on the Prime Minister's partisan newsletter and are reportedly being paid some US$700 a week while their co-ordinator, Andrew Chadwick, and other directors such as a well-known lady lawyer who left a high-paying job at Artherstone and Cook to join the Prime Minister's legal team are earning at least US$7 000."


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Comments 1 to 5 of 8 Post a comment

  • mrzyphl
    Sep 11 2009, 10:41

    Wow! These guys are really playing dirty now. A national political party needs to get financial support from somewhere. As a poor country Zanu-PF would also qualify for funds. But they don't need it since they control 90% of the country's wealth through extortion, theft, graft and manipulation. Besides, the MDC openly admits they are getting the assistance so how is that a secret? And how is it possible that the MDC is trying to run a parallel gov't when an unelected ZanuPF controls all the key ministry's where they agreed to share power equally?

    Pathetic.

  • takunya_ndebvu
    Sep 11 2009, 04:46

    If there is anyone who doubted or did not know what selling out is all about then here is a very good example. Everybody thought that by coming into government the sellout party and its leader will have been exorcised of the satanic sellout demon. But alas we were wrong, because selling out in the blood of the MDC.

    It all started with Mr. Boycott himself who sold out during the liberation struggle and caused the death of many freedom fighters. While all young men and women of his age were heading East, Tsvangi headed west and this trend has never stopped ever since that time. Today he continues to sell the people and the country of Zimbabwe out as if we are sweets.

    It is sad to note that the man himself does not realize the magnitude of the danger of what is going on around him because of his foolishness and stupidity. The man is as daft as not to see that what he is doing will destroy him politically.

    When he campaigned for sanctions the man did not realize the danger he was exposing the people of Zimbabwe to. It is only now that he is waking up to the realities of his selling out – Zimbabweans dying of hanger and of diseases like cholera, children not going to school, doctors and nurses treating patience without the necessary drugs and equipment and our currency becoming worthless.

    All this was as a direct result of Tsvangirai’s foolishness when he stupidly called for sanctions on the people of Zimbabwe so that they could vote for him. However, the people of Zimbabwe are clever; they recognize a sellout when they see one. That is why they denied him the right to become President of a country he sold out to imperialists.

    All along he has been denying that what he has done since selling those liberation fighters, killed by Selous Scouts, out was actually selling out. Now it is clear for even a blind person to see that this is SELLING OUT.

  • emily_sorensen
    Sep 11 2009, 10:58

    All this from the same person that stated "The CIA invented homosexuality and syphilis" -

    Clearly he's just a tad 'loopy'!

  • rafil
    Sep 17 2009, 07:53

    These liars never give up, even when they are exposed for being liars.These filthy crackers have been lying for long over the non- existence of sanctions only to be subsequently proved to be liars. They,ve equally said Tsvangirai is not what we (pan Africanists) have called a sell-out long ago,these crackers are ready to lie over the ineligibility of their parents to be just that,parents. They are shameless,filthy,racist,evil crackers and their mission here is to tell a warped version of events happening in Africa,in fact, they are here to plant further the evil seeds of invaders in Africa, we,re going to pick out those evil seeds you seek to plant everywhere in Africa,and if grown, we,ll uproot them. I,m talking about liars like awt- dependence,kjrs,fake zulu, roomkoster,nd other hideous non-functioning liars,defeated by the grit of the humble African, they can,t take it and are right now going bonkers because the African has decide enough is enough and taken back his land,stolen by use of force by their equally warped,racist,thieving cracker ancestors,who as we write are burning in hell. If you don,t want to believe Africans are masters of their own destiny, go bury your heads in shit,we,ll surely overcome, crackers.

  • rmkooistra
    Sep 11 2009, 08:29

    For a better story about sanctions than the unreliable nonsense of Takunya who has as profession to be the online-savage-liar people better read www.swradioafrica.com/pages/hotseat070909.htm

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