The Financial Gazette

Njabulo Ncube, Assistant Editor

PRIME Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is under pressure from disgruntled civil servants to intervene in their push for a salary review amid revelations that the public workers are getting increasingly agitated over the government’s seemingly deafening silence over their plight.
The union leaders, under the auspices of the Apex Council — the umbrella body of all civil servants excluding State security agents — and government negotiators, last week reached a stalemate over salary increments after several meetings.
They rejected a US$240 million government offer brought to the table during the National Joint Negotiation Council (NJNC), saying the package was inadequate.
The government offer, if spread among the estimated 230 000 civil servants, would have seen each public worker getting an increment of about US$87.
Tendai Chikowore, the chairperson of the Apex Council, has now written to the premier imploring him to urgently intervene in the salary dispute.
“We, the civil service Apex Council, are writing to you because we are convinced that it is the current government’s policy to restore social service delivery in Zimbabwe to optimum levels,” reads part of the letter.
“We are convinced that you deeply appreciate and embrace the observation that the country’s civil service carries the prime responsibility of delivering such services and as such deserves improved salaries and conditions of service,” she said.
The letter was copied to Lucia Matibenga, the Minister of Public Service; Mariyawanda Nzuwah, the chairperson of the Public Service Commission; Nelson Sambureni, the chairperson of the NJNC; Prince Mupazviriho, the government team leader and the APEX member unions.
Chikowore said the civil servants’ welfare required commitment and undivided attention from all principals of the government of national unity.
“While we agree that the National Budget is a moral document in so far as it reflects the values and decisions of the nation, budgets become morally meaningless when they keep other citizens in poverty longer than others. Right now we feel morally failed by our government. Thus we suggest that you (Prime Minister) support the civil servants by proposing and defending substantive revision of our salaries.
“It is our belief that you would like to hear voices of those faithful workers of government and as such, we request a meeting with you at your earliest possible time,” Chikowore added.
The premier is still to respond to the letter.
The Apex Council is demanding a monthly minimum salary of US$538 for the least paid civil servant from the current US$200.
A week-long strike in January failed to entice the government to come up with an acceptable deal, hence, the latest move to approach the coalition government leadership as agitated workers weighed their next move.
With talk of elections either this year or early 2013, ZANU-PF and the two formations of the Movement for Democratic Change are seen using the civil servants’ plight to gain political mileage.
Finance Minister, Tendai Biti, has publicly stated that the country is technically broke and as such cannot bankroll significant salary increments for civil servants this year.
But the civil servants want the coalition government to channel proceeds from the sale of diamonds mined from Marange diamond fields towards the improvement of their low salaries.
According to Obert Mpofu, the Minister of Mines and Mining Development, the country has the potential of generating at least US$2 billion per annum through the export of diamonds.
This followed a Kimberley Process plenary session in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in October last year that approved the export of diamonds from the Marange mines that had previously been banned from doing so. 
At least US$30 million in diamond revenue is estimated to be going to Treasury every month although Biti disputes the figures.