The Independent Democrats (ID) on Wednesday became the first and to date only political party to support the salary increases for MPs proposed by the Moseneke Commission.
”A caucus meeting attended by ID members of Parliament today decided to support all the recommendations of the Moseneke Commission regarding MP salary increases,” ID leader Patricia de Lille said in a statement.
A long-awaited salary review, released in late March by the Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers — chaired by Deputy Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke — recommended MPs get a 5,4% pay increase.
The proposal provoked an outcry from parliamentarians across the political spectrum, with many saying they had expected a lot more. If accepted, the proposed 5,4 % increase will see ordinary MPs total packages rising to R643 800 a year.
De Lille said the commission’s recommendations were ”the first time in the history of our young democracy that we had a professional evaluation of the three spheres of government, the executive, the judiciary and Parliament”.
It was the start of a process that would be expanded, and her party welcomed the fact performance indicators would be included in the next phase.
”The ID now calls on all political parties to support the commission’s recommendations,” she said. — Sapa