Finance minister, Patrick Chinamasa, recently announced that civil servants would not receive bonuses this year and in 2016.
The position will be reviewed in 2017.
In a statement, Chinoputsa said the suspension of the 13th cheque, the first since independence in 1980, showed that the Zanu (PF) government was clueless.
“The pronouncement by the Disgraced Minister of Finance one Patrick Chinamasa that the illegitimate government of Robert Mugabe has shelved payment of bonuses to civil servants till 2017 vindicates what many of us have always said that this grouping of people has no clue on how to run the economic affairs of this country,” he said.
“It is a sad and shocking development which will further make life unbearable for the civil servants who have for long braved harsh working conditions.
“When any right thinking person would expect that the government should move on to increase the salaries of civil servants, these insensitive and out of touch politicians had other ideas of making life unbearable for civil servants,” added Chinoputsa.
He said the public service wage bill had been pushed up by ghost workers “in the form of youth officers (who) continue getting salaries from government when they are doing nothing in their respective areas.”
Chinoputsa said these ghost workers were affecting genuine civil servants and accused government of poor priorities as shown through the purchase of luxury vehicles for ministers and President Robert Mugabe’s foreign trips.
“This patronage system has now unfortunately affected real and genuine civil servants who toil everyday to ensure that people continue to get the different services and products that are essential.
“Surely Chinamasa you cannot sacrifice the welfare of genuine civil servants over the interests of this shadowy militia group that is known for terrorising parents and elders in communities,” he said.
Post published in: News