The official said most civil servants were opting to live in single rooms with their families while subletting the rest of the house.
He said most civil servants staying in government accommodation were in serious arrears; although they are supposed to pay a `little` rent which is channelled towards the maintained of the houses by the ministry.
Government subsidises their rent. Most of them pay less than US$25 for a four roomed house but they are failing to pay and as a result are subletting the accommodation to outsiders, which is illegal, said an official from the ministry who declined to be named because he was not authorised to talk to press. The official said some senior government officials who have been transferred to other locations were still letting the houses to other people for personal gains whilst others who are in need of cheap accommodation are sleeping in offices.
Civil servants interviewed by this paper said they could not pay because they were getting peanuts from their employer. What else am I suppose to do if I am earning less than US$128 a month with a family to look after. It`s an insult, said another civil servant who said he was letting his government five-roomed house to a local gold buyer.
Another civil servant in the ministry of Women`s Affairs, who declined to be named, said she rented her government house to her brother who is paying her US$250 a month for the full house, while she has opted to lodge in two rooms for US$50 in the high density suburb. Most civil servants earn less than US$200 a month, a far cry from the poverty datum line pegged at US$502.
Post published in: News