NRC issuers still grumbling over payments
By Charles Musonda
THOUSANDS of civil servants who are owed allowances for conducting mobile issuance of national registration cards (NRCs) last year say they are disappointed that government allegedly intends to pay them K19,000 each, which is the balance for phase two of the exercise.
But Ministry of Home Affairs permanent secretary in charge of administration Dickson Matembo has assured them that they will be paid all their dues soon once government mobilises resources and warned that it is an act of indiscipline for servants to rush to the media whenever they are aggrieved.
“As for the K74,100 for the exercise which took place from 13th September, 2025, to 30th November, 2025, no one knows whether or not there will be any payment, after waiting for a year now,” said an internal source who asked to remain anonymity.
According to the source, from April 10, 2025 to July 7, 2025 the Ministry of Home Affairs and Internal Security rolled out a countrywide mobile registration exercise for NRCs.
He said the entire exercise was for 80 days and it was divided into two phases, meaning phase one and two carried 40 days each.
The source said the uniform amount per day was K950, which came to K38,000 per individual for 40 days in the first phase which government paid in June, 2025.
The source said as for phase two, government only paid K19,000 to each civil servant in November, 2025 leaving a balance of K19,000 for each officer who participated in phase two.
He said, however, before government could finish paying the balance of K19,000 to each individual officer who participated in phase two, another countrywide mobile registration exercise took place from September 13, 2025 to November 30, 2025.
“It is important to state that this exercise ran for 78 days. Then calculate 78 days by K950, it gives you K74,100 owed to each individual officer who participated in the exercise plus K19,000 balance of the phase two exercise,” the source said.
“So if you add these amounts, you find that government is owing each officer K93,100. We are talking about over 3,000 officers who participated in the exercise countrywide. This is the reason why there has been so much controversy around this issue.”
When contacted, Matembo questioned the source of the story, saying as the person in charge of administration at the ministry, he was not aware of the reported impending underpayment.
He said the allowances will be paid soon the moment government mobilises the money.
“They will be given, I think it is an undisciplined civil servant coming to you, just like you people in The Mast there, if you have administrative issues, you sort them out administratively, imagine somebody goes to report to other media about the Mast, how do you feel? That is indiscipline isn’t it? It is the same people when the programme is there they go round begging to be put there. They are put on the list two days they are not paid they come to the media, how do you manage? It is not right but they will be paid,” Matembo said.
