THEY WANT TO GET RICHER – Sikota

THEY WANT TO GET RICHER

…Increasing number of MPs aimed at enriching politicians, says Saki

• Sikota said at the end of a five-year term, a single MP would get more money than a civil servant who had worked for 40 years in the public service
• On the gratuities alone the so-called saving that the Minister of Information and Media Cornelius Mweetwa is talking about would be wiped out.

By George Zulu

STATE Counsel Sakwiba Sikota is shocked that the United Party for National Development (UPND) is pushing for the amendment of the Constitution because its agenda is to make politicians rich.

Sikota, the United Kwacha Alliance (UKA) faction chairperson, said the amendments were seeking to increase the numbers of members of Parliament (MPs) from 156 to about 270 if the Constitution of Zambia Bill 7 of 2025 goes through.

He said the push for more MPs was costly to the national treasury because currently, the country was faced with other challenges which needed attention.

In an interview with The Mast, Sikota reminded Zambians that running the current parliament was costly and burdensome on the treasury, wondering how easy it would be with the increased number of parliamentarians.

He castigated Minister of Information and Media Cornelius Mweetwa for misleading the nation that the amendment of the Constitution will help save money when the opposite is the truth.

“I’m surprised that the minister of information is trying to mislead the Zambian government by claiming that Bill 7 is going to be saving the country lots of money. Bill 7, in fact, is going to be draining the country of the much-needed resources, the scarce resources we have. This is because if you look at the number of constituencies they want to create, I believe 55 is the number they are talking of, and then an extra 13 nominated, you are talking of 85 new members of Parliament,” Sikota said.

He said increased number of MPs would gobble more money in salaries and other allowances.

Sikota urged the UPND to be honest and sincere over its suspicious push for more MPs in Parliament if it was not out of hunger for power and change of the Constitution.

“If you look at the salaries of members of Parliament, it is not a small amount, and it is not just the salaries which they have, but also the sitting allowances that the members of Parliament have. Apart from the sitting allowances, as you know, the members of Parliament are entitled to duty-free vehicles, and we are talking about top-of-the-range vehicles. We are not talking about small little Vitz vehicles or something like that, but top-of-the-range vehicles. That is not coming out of their own pocket,” he said.

“That is the money from the State. Apart from that, you also have, for each member of Parliament, there is a constituency office. So they will need to build so many new constituency offices. If not building, then they will have to rent from somebody.”

He said the UPND and President Hakainde Hichilema were ready to increase the number of MPs for political expediency at the expense of service delivery to citizens.

Sikota, who is United Liberal Party (ULP) president, said the scheme by the UPND and its leadership was motivated by mere lack of care and an arrogant attitude.

“Rentals are not cheap for that kind of office. Those offices also have staff who are working for the member of Parliament to look after that office. There are at least three members of staff who will then have to be paid. So three times 85? You can see the number of people we are getting into. We are now going close to 270 extra people who will have to be paid. Apart from that, there is the water, electricity and security services at those offices. That is a very large amount of money that will have to be spent,” Sikota said.

He said it was not only salaries, allowances, soft vehicle loans and health checks privileges MPs got, but also mid-term gratuity, which was about K1 million each.

Sikota said at the end of a five-year term, a single MP would get more money than a civil servant who had worked for 40 years in the public service.

“I am sure you have heard that members of Parliament get a mid-term gratuity, which runs into a very hefty sum. It is over a million kwacha for each one of them. So just for those 85, mid-term, you are talking of close to K100 million that you will be spending on them for mid-term.

Then, end of term as well. They get gratuity. So that one is slightly more, it will be about 150, I am talking about just for the extra members of Parliament. So just on the gratuities alone, that so-called saving that the minister of information [Mweetwa] is talking about would be wiped out,” he said.

He said Zambians had now been given a clear reason for rejecting the amendments of the Constitution as it would not address the challenges the country is facing but empower politicians to become wealthy.