Rise of the bureaucrats
When the ruling Cambodian People’s Party promised civil servants a pay rise earlier this year, some suggested it was also trying to give them a reason to vote for it in July’s national election.
The 20 per cent increase came amid the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party’s pre-election push to lure the support of those in the civil service by promising them a $250 minimum wage if it formed government. …
Opposition lawmaker Son Chhay said yesterday that a 20 per cent increase to civil servants’ salaries – even annually, which the government has promised – “does not even cover inflation” and won’t be enough to appease civil servants in the long-run.
“The government needs to … provide civil servants a decent living and enough for food to feed the family. We have explained in detail where the money would come from,” he said, adding that cracking down on a $500 million “embezzlement” of tax would easily cover the pay rises his party pledged pre-election. …
In August – as the opposition continued disputing the results of the ballot – the Ministry of Economy and Finance announced it would increase the baseline wage of civil servants to $80 per month from about $62, as well as give 90,000 workers a 40 per cent pay rise.
When asked to provide a breakdown of increased expenditure from the government’s 2014 draft budget – which is $500 million bigger than this year’s – Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan said a significant amount would be spent on civil servants’ salaries, but declined to elaborate. …
Ath Thorn, president of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers’ Democratic Unions (C.CAWDU), said it was promising that the government was paying more attention to civil servants.
“Allocating more money for civil servants in the budget and raising wages shows some respect for the role they play in the economy,” he said. …
Daniel Pye and Sen David
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/rise-bureaucrats
