National Assembly: MPs quarrelling over “gombo”

The 157 floor-member MPs of the National Assembly may soon benefit an increase in their car allowances and micro-project grants, after they mounted a recalcitrant protest against what they described as the princely treatment accorded to bureau members as opposed to the catechist treatment reserved for them.

By Mbeh Moses Eben in Yaounde

Cavaye Yeguie Djibril

It was with divided minds that MPs of the National Assembly adopted some five bills that were tabled by government for their examination last week. The MPs had their minds diverted to the issue of the allowances and other benefits allocated them by President Biya and to an extent the House Speaker, Cavaye Yeguie Djibril.

                Some floor member MPs made it an issue and created a scene at the Glass Palace when they vigorously protested the allocations reserved for them as car, house and other allowances, meanwhile their colleagues of the bureau were allocated very huge sums for the same purposes.

                “Why this very wide gap between us and the bureau members, did they come to the Assembly through a special election? We shall accept such discrimination only over our dead bodies,” swore some MPs from mostly the smaller opposition parties but whose views were shared and supported by the rest of the 157 floor member MPs.

                However, and may be because the frustration of the MPs was widely reported in the press, the authorities in Yaounde could not stay indifferent. We learnt that President Paul Biya ordered that a study be done on the issue and a report submitted to him.

                                It emerged from the study that the car allowances for ordinary MPs should be raised to something about 30 million FCFA, while the allocation for micro-projects is also raised to 15 million FCFA for all MPs. These proposals were submitted to the authorities for onward transmission to Etoudi.

                It should be mentioned that if ordinary MPs are awarded 30m each for car purchase, it would greatly reduce the gap that presently separates them from the bureau member MPs.

                At the bureau, secretaries (12 in number) earn 45m each as car allowance. The 4 questors each grab 50m, the 5 vice-presidents 60m each, the 1st vice-president 70 million and the House Speaker 80m for the same purpose.