Johor councillors and village chiefs to get pay rise

JOHOR BARU: The state government aims to curb corruption by doubling the salary of hundreds of its councillors and village chiefs.

State Housing and Rural Development Committee chairman Dzulkefly Ahmad (pic) said at present, councillors and village chiefs received between RM1,000 and RM1,200 a month.

“They hold very important positions in their areas. The salary does not reflect the work and responsibility they have.

“We hope to follow Selangor’s model of paying councillors RM2,500 a month and may offer a pay hike for village heads as well,” he said.

However, he was quick to point out that the salary hike was not intended to buy support or loyalty.

“There is no hidden agenda or motive by increasing their salary.

“Giving them a better salary can reduce the risk of them making dubious deals to just make ends meet.

“The two groups are a vital piece in the state’s administration and it is important to help them focus on doing their best for the people,” he said in an interview.

Johor has 16 city and local councils with an average of 24 councillors in each. There are about 500 village chiefs.

Dr Dzulkefly said he also wanted to abolish the previous practice of Umno division chiefs being given the authority to distribute money by local authorities for charity purposes.

He estimated that at least RM50mil had been allocated since 2013 under the Yayasan Pihak Berkuasa Tempatan.

Each council has its foundation. “Under the scheme, 1% of each council’s annual collection will go to this foundation.

“It is a great scheme but I was shocked to learn that the chairmen for each of those foundations were Umno division leaders,” he said, adding that local authorities had no say on how they distributed the money to the poor.

“This stipulation will be abolished,” he said.