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Trust Freddy

Herald Correspondent

Headmen will now be allocated motorbikes and village heads bicycles to help them carry out their duties efficiently, Deputy Minister of Local Government and Public Works Marrian Chombo has said.

Responding to a question in Parliament from Zanu PF legislator Cde Cecil Kashiri over Government policy regarding village heads remuneration during the National Assembly’s question-and-answer session she said back pay was now being processed for inclusion in the May pay and the bicycles had been approved.

The paper work, said the Deputy Minister, had already been done.

“I agree with you that the village heads are supposed to get bicycles as all the paper work was done and I vividly remember that about a fortnight ago, I approved that they get the bicycles and also the headmen are supposed to get motorbikes,” the Deputy Minister said recently.

“There is a back pay that is supposed to be coming to the village heads and we are also processing that they get that with the May pay.”

It was Government policy that village heads were paid timeously but some were not officially registered with the Local Government Ministry, which often led to payment delays.

“We have had incidences where most of village heads have not been accredited or registered with the Ministry mostly because we are doing a lot of resuscitations. Yet there are village heads who have been appointed and we have boundary issues which have not yet been resolved though the village heads have been appointed.

“As such, they would not be registered in our data base, so they do not get paid. My Ministry however ensures that all registered village heads are paid their allowances and salaries on time,” she said.

Also, according to Deputy Minister Marrian Chombo, the Government was aware that there was a backlog in the installation of headmen, but they were working to go through each province one at a time to make sure that everyone is installed on time.

Regardless of their standing in society, the Second Republic has always respected traditional leaders because of the role they play in communities as the custodians of the country’s cultural norms and values.

The latest move to sort out the pay and basic transport was part of Government’s ongoing programme to ensure that all traditional leaders were mobile.

Chiefs recently received vehicles and under the philosophy of leaving no one and place behind, headmen would receive motorbikes and village heads bicycles.