Finance and Economic Development Mthuli Ncube has been derided for claiming that civil servants were the highest-paid workers in the country.
In an editorial this Saturday, the NewsDay described Ncube as a delusional man who can’t separate fiction from reality.
Ncube made the remarks in Parliament on Thursday after awarding government workers a 41% pay hike.
He said the least paid civil servant now earns $14 000 while workers in the agricultural sector are paid $5 000.
Ncube has been accused of insincerity for comparing professionals such as teachers, nurses, police officers and other civil servants with non-skilled farmworkers.
Teachers have been demanding at least US$520, but Ncube’s offer, which is $19 000, is below the poverty datum line of almost $21 000, according to the ZimStat’s latest figures.
While Ncube awarded civil servants a paltry 41 per cent salary increment, he approved price hikes on basic services by government agencies such as ZESA, ZINARA and CVR by over 120 per cent.
“Ncube is living a lie and the earlier he comes back to his senses, the better for the country”, the editorial further claims.