Malawi President rejects newspaper report on salary compared to Magufuli

The State House has come out with blazing guns, firing shots at local media  for suggesting that President Peter Mutharika earns K3.8 million monthly.

According to the State House, Mutharika instead earns K1.5 million monthly despite a couple of increments over the years.

The State House was reacting to an article “Magufuli’s K3m salary thrills local analyst” published in The Nation newspaper on Thursday, 5 October 2017.

The article further suggested that Mutharika earns a salary of K3.8 million following an increase on 1st October 2014, hundred times more than an average Malawian.

However, Presidential Press Secretary and Spokesperson, Mgeme Kalilani said the published article had no factual basis.

“Salaries of Deputy Ministers, Ministers, the Vice President and the President in Malawi are legally looped together in such a way that the lower salary is two thirds of the next higher salary,” said Kalilani in a statement seen by Nyasa Times.

“The effect of the looping of the salaries is that an increment in any of the lower salary triggers an automatic increment in the others. As such, the salary of the President of Malawi at any given point is affected by the salary adjustments effected to the salary of Deputy Ministers, Ministers or the Vice President.”

He said despite having his salary increased on October 1st, 2016, to K3.8 million as an automatic result of adjustments in some of the positions below him, Mutharika has refused to pocket the salary.

“His Excellency Prof. Arthur Peter Mutharika found the presidential salary at K2.7 million per month when he came in Government in 2014. The President declined to draw the salary of K2.7 million monthly and instead directed that he would actually be receiving K1.5 million monthly,” he added.

Kalilani said Mutharika has been refusing to receive a salary raise in order to lead by action his principle of spending on austerity measures.

“It is therefore not correct to suggest that President Peter Mutharika earns K3.8 million per month and then proceed to use this false suggestion as a basis for attacking his personal character.

“It is also wrong to suggest that the President does not declare his salary because, in this country, as stated earlier, the President’s salary is by law already available as public information.”

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