UN
United Nations Peacekeeping
10 Mar
2009
Press Review of 28 October 2005
Yesterday's National Assembly proceedings mainly focused on MPs' appeal for the transition Government's resignation is the dominant news in today's local papers.
MPs called for 'Government's resignation' yesterday, following 'the latter's inability to implement the Mbudi Agreement signed on 12 February 2004, stipulating that a bailiff would be earning US$ 208 a month and a public service secretary-general US$ 2,080,' reports La Tempête des Tropiques. Furthermore, 'Budget Minister made it clear that the transition Government would not be able to implement the Mbudi salary scale,' adds L'Observateur. In concrete terms, 'the Democratic Republic of Congo does not have the financial means to implement the Mbudi salary scale,' explains La Tempête des Tropiques, indicating, 'If the US$ 200 to be paid monthly to each one of them are multiplied by 400,000 heads, the whole amount would total US$ 960 millions a year which is quite impossible to reach, if we have to consider the whole government budget package, even that of the next budgetary year.' The transition government is 'actually prepared to negotiate the Mbudi agreement by instalments during the review of the 2006 budgetary year,' informs L'Observateur [pro PPRD, President's party], echoing the Budget Minister. We must recollect that 'Mbudi was both an ideal and an objective to be reached by the Government,' recalls Le Potentiel.
'The majority of the current Government's members not only displayed their limits, but also showed a high-level care-free approach towards the nation's future,' estimates Le Potentiel. 'MPs would have better urged components and entities to name technocrats to serve in a Government whose task would mainly consist in organising elections,' says Le Potentiel, pro-opposition paper. Will 'Government or Arthur Z'ahidi Ngoma's resignation be an appropriate solution to the civil servants' strike,' wonders L'Avenir. Apparently no. 'The person to take over from [Arthur Z'Ahidi N'Goma] will be faced with the same budget, the same IMF and the same political and economical environment ('). Ministers' resignations will not solve any problem,' says L'Avenir, pro-PPRD. The best thing to do is to act as some MPs put it, 'to determine the ceiling and substance of the instalments based on the available means. This is feasible, and we have to do it. It is in the best interests of the civil servants to have it done,' estimates L'Avenir.
'The majority of the current Government's members not only displayed their limits, but also showed a high-level care-free approach towards the nation's future,' estimates Le Potentiel. 'MPs would have better urged components and entities to name technocrats to serve in a Government whose task would mainly consist in organising elections,' says Le Potentiel, pro-opposition paper. Will 'Government or Arthur Z'ahidi Ngoma's resignation be an appropriate solution to the civil servants' strike,' wonders L'Avenir. Apparently no. 'The person to take over from [Arthur Z'Ahidi N'Goma] will be faced with the same budget, the same IMF and the same political and economical environment ('). Ministers' resignations will not solve any problem,' says L'Avenir, pro-PPRD. The best thing to do is to act as some MPs put it, 'to determine the ceiling and substance of the instalments based on the available means. This is feasible, and we have to do it. It is in the best interests of the civil servants to have it done,' estimates L'Avenir.
