Does the compensation & benefits desire to the parliamentarians
By: Mohamed Ash'had
www.haveeru.com.mv (March 1, 2012)
Chapter three, Article 70 of the Constitution defines the role of the parliament. The most important aspects of their work are to represent their people. Do they represent their people? Do they work freely without any pressure? Does the compensation and benefits desire to parliamentarians?
Today, there is a huge debate about parliamentarians of Maldives. The required qualification of the parliament post, the salary that they earn every month, the authorities and the benefits
The increase of education levels makes the job opportunities more challenging in Maldives. And also the number of applicant is increasing day by day. For instance, the responsibility of the job is depending on the qualification of the job.
According to the Maldivian constitution chapter 03/73 states that the qualifications of people majlis are
§ Is a citizen of the Maldives;
§ Is a citizen of the Maldives;
§ Is not a citizen of a foreign country;
§ Is a Muslim and a follower of a Sunni school of Islam;
§ Has attained the age of eighteen years; and
§ Is of sound mind. (Majlis, 2008)
According to the responsibilities of parliamentarians they should have different authorities than other jobs.
· The attendance of MPs is maintained throughout the sitting. However, MPs are free to leave and come in as they please, and the proceedings are not affected if the legal quorum of 25% of the total number of 77 MPs is present 26. However, for the passage of a bill or a motion that requires the public to act upon, a simple majority of the whole parliament is required.
· Also, it’s a flexible job and one doesn’t have to attend it regularly no does one have to really prepare for the sessions. You could just go there and say a few things and vote. Many feel that it is an easy way to make a good living.
· A Member of Parliament cannot be arrested even for murder while inside the Majlis Chambers, or on the way or returning back to/from the Majlis.
· No Court Summon can be handed over to a MP while within the Parliament Compound.
· If a Member of Parliament is to be searched, the person doing so should have proof beyond doubt (not reasonable doubt), of a crime. Even in a Court of Law the requirement is beyond reasonable doubt.
· (20-b) Even if a Member of Parliament is serving a sentence of a Civil or Criminal Court, the authority that enforces the sentence is required to ensure that the MP is able to attend the sittings of the Parliament and Committee Meetings.
· The President, Vice President, members of the Cabinet, members of the People’s Majlis, including the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, members of the Judiciary, and members of the Independent Commissions and Independent Offices shall be paid such salary and allowances as determined by the People’s Majlis. (Majlis, 2008)
In, year 2010 members of the parliament increase their salaries to 65200 by themselves. In addition approximately more than MVR 80,000 can get every month. But still they are struggling to increase their salaries and benefits.
However, in figures compiled from sources including the Asian Development Bank, the CIA Fact File, the Economist magazine and official government statistics, the Maldives was found to offer a significantly higher salary for its MPs than some of its South Asian neighbors such as India and Sri Lanka combined, at least on 2009 levels of income.
Combining both base earnings and allotted allowances, the monthly salary of a Maldivian MP was said to be equivalent to US$ 7,083; well above Sri Lanka and Indian levels, which during 2009 were found to be around US$877 and US$5,966 respectively. Based on 2009 levels, both Sri Lanka and India had much higher national rates of goods and services produced – recorded as Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of US$96.47 billion and US$3.6 trillion respectively? By comparison, the GDP of the Maldives over the same period was US$1.683bn.
MP’S Salaries Compared by other countries (Editor, 2011)
| | Maldives | Srilanka | India | France | Italy |
| MP’s monthly salary (US $) | 7,083 | 877 | 5,966 | 6,651 | 6,936 |
| GDP (US $) (2009 est) | 1.683 billion | 96.47 billion | 3.68 trillion | 2.094 trillion | 1.737 trillion |
| Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est): | -$370 million | -$291 million | -$26.63 billion | -$51.86 billion | -$66.2 Billion |
The benefits of very high compare to other strategic jobs.
1- Any Member of Parliament who has served for one term (5years) is entitles to : 30% of Salary (for 2 terms 45% and 3 terms 60%) of a Member of Parliament.
2- 2- A Medical Insurance.
3- 3- An Official Passport
4- 4- A Title of State Honorary and to be addressed as MP for the Constituency served.
5- All Members are entitled to a duty free car every 5 years.
6- All Members are to be provided with a Diplomatic passport and VIP Lounge facilities at all airports in Maldives and abroad where available.
7- All Members, spouses and children under 18 years are to be provided Medical Insurance applicable in SAARC and ASEAN Countries.
8- Land Transportation for the Speaker and Deputy Speaker within Maldives shall be arranged by the State. (This need not be Official Majlis work, as the next line clearly shows). In addition to this the State shall arrange all forms of transportation within Maldives and abroad when they are of official work.
I have, a big question about the benefits are required them to do this work.
Any investor who spends the amount, he needs the product according to the investment. We are spending them to do the specific tasks. But the question is how much they contribute, how much they represent the people. These are the questions that we ask ourselves today.
Instead of cancelling the majlis over fights, looks the working statistics of people majlis.
Attendance Analysis for the parliamentarians in Maldives
| | TOTAL DAYS | WORKING DAYS | NON-WORKING DAYS |
| 1st Session (March-April) | 61 | 24 | 37 |
| 2nd Session (June, July,August) | 91 | 36 | 55 |
| 3rd Session (June, July,August) | 90 | 36 | 54 |
| Monthly | 30 | 12 | 18 |
| Annually | 365 | 96 | 269 |
www.haveeru.com.mv (March 1, 2012)
Bibliography
Editor. (2011, 01 13). Maldovian Parlimentarians earn salaries. Retrieved 06 30, 2011, from Aisantribune.com: http://www.asiantribune.com/news/2011/01/13/maldivian-parliamentarians-earn-salaries-par-sweden
Majlis, P. (2008). Constitution of The Republic Maldives 2008 . Male': Ministry of Legal Reform, Information and Arts.
maldives, T., & UNDP. (2011). Parliament Watch. The Evaluation of the parliment of maldives 2010 , 10-12.
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