Our salaries, perks are not enough, says Tanzanian lawmaker

Mbogwe MP Nicodamus Maganga.

By Sharon Sauwa

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Dodoma. A Member of Parliament has asked his fellow lawmakers to publicly state what they are being paid, saying people should know that their salaries and allowances are not enough.

Mbogwe MP Nicodamus Maganga said on Monday that he was not aware that allowances paid to lawmakers were not enough before he was elected to Parliament.

“Before coming in here, I thought allowances were more than enough. However, when you look at other parliaments such as those in Kenya and South Africa, lawmakers are paid in dollars,” he said when debating the government’s 2021/22 Budget.

Mr Maganga asked MPs to be frank with members of the public who think that “we are being paid a lot of money”.

“I know the nitty-gritty of all underhand dealings, but I don’t want to be a con man. However, people tend to think there is a lot of money here, while the opposite is true. There is nothing here,” said Mr Maganga, adding that with only nine days left before the Budget sitting ends, voters should not expect MPs to go back to their constituencies with money.