July 13 2011 at 09:00am
Deon de Lange
Auditor-General Terence Nombembe will become one of the highest-earning public officials in the country – if President Jacob Zuma approves a pay hike recommended by Parliament.
The standing committee on the auditor-general (A-G) has suggested a 64 percent increase in Nombembe’s total remuneration package, from about R1.7 million to R2.65m a year. And with this increase set to be backdated to Nombembe’s appointment in 2006, the A-G will also get a handy windfall of R4.7m in backpay.
By the end of his term in December 2013, he would have earned a total of R23m in salary, and will then also receive an end-of-contract bonus of R13.9m, bringing his total earnings for the seven-year period to about R37m.
If approved, the A-G’s new salary will overtake Zuma’s own pay package of R2.4m.
The parliamentary recommendation, however, appears to be based on a flawed reading of the Public Audit Act, which says the A-G’s salary “must be substantially the same as those of the top echelon of the judiciary”. Chief Justice Sandile Ncgobo earns the most at R2.1m a year.
Instead of comparing the A-G’s salary to those of the country’s top judges, Parliament accepted a proposal by the A-G remuneration committee that he should earn the same as Chief Justice Ngcobo.
The Star
Comments by Sonny
Salary or Traditional privileges......?
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