Lilongwe City Council get K3mil more revenue per month with temporary staff
Lilongwe City Council has seen its revenue increase by K3 million a month since August, 2017 when management sent on paid leave 94 revenue collectors to pave way for monetary investigations in its markets.
The city council deployed temporary revenue collectors in order to establish the financial benchmark.
The city’s Director of Commerce, Genscher M’bwabwa and Acting Director of Administration Stallitchi Mwambiwa made the revelation in separate interviews at Lilongwe Civic offices after a meeting with the old staff who will commence their duties on November 1, 2017.
“The council has realized an increase in revenue collection from K16 million to over K19 million per month from August, a period when the old staff went for paid leave.
“We did not change anything in the markets to avoid compromising the outcomes. While the permanent staff keep on lodging complaints day in, day out, for underperformance, this study has surely proved them wrong,” M’bwabwa said.
He said the LCC Audit Department and the office of the Chief Executive Office undertook some parallel studies that faulted the employees for not meeting given financial targets in the markets.
However, M’bwabwa admitted that the revenue collectors work in a challenging environment that needs management’s speedy attention.
“Yes, both the old and new staff worked in the same insurmountable conditions that the markets are swimming through, but the difference is huge and we will bang heads to probe the matter further and get to the bottom of the outcome of these research findings,” he said.
He warned that the council has sharpened its teeth to use its employment conditions to punish anyone found abusing funds at any level regardless of the amount of money misappropriated.
“LCC struggles to meet its mission of being reliant with equal opportunities, environmentally sustainable and to be a technologically driven city, due to non-remittance of city rates,” said M’bwabwa.
According to the Acting Director of Administration, Mwambiwa, Lilongwe City Council has nearly 1, 678 employees and sent on paid leave 94 revenue collectors in August to pave way for monetary investigations in the markets.
“We have millions of money with many institutions and individuals who owe the council huge non-remitted city rates, how do we deliver in a situation of insufficient economic resources,” he queried.
The administrator said has dictated new targets on the old staff which are driven by the outcome of the study that indicated that the team was underperforming.
However, chairman for the concerned revenue collectors, Samuel Elias, said they expected the management to take into consideration their concerns as they prepare to report back for work.
“We appeal to the management to address our concerns with swiftness to enable us discharge duties in a conducive working environment, there is a lot we expect from them,” Elias said.
Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :