KABUL - A number of government employees complain about non-payment of transport fare on Thursday, which has been declared as a working day.
Seven years ago, the government of former president Hamid Karzai had declared Thursday as a closed holiday in order to reduce air pollution.
But the current government declared Thursday a working day at the beginning of the solar year 1398. In Kabul, government servants remain on duty from 8:00am till 1:00pm.
No transport fare
Najiba, an employee of the Minister of Women Affairs, told Pajhwok Afghan News: “The daily cost of my transportation is 80 afghanis. But I’m not being paid this amount, so it is hard for a worker who draws 8,000 afghanis in salary.”
Ahmad Shah, another worker of the Ministry of Interior, said: “On one hand, our salary is so low and on the other the government does not pay us transport charges.”
A worker at the Ministry of Education, who did not want to be named, said: “The government should pay us transportation fare before we formally complaints. It is very hard for a poor person to pay transport charges from his/her own pocket.”
Another worker at the same ministry held a similar view, asking the authorities to think about the wellbeing of poor government servants.
Shamroz Khan Masjidi, spokesman for the Ministry of Finance (MoF), said they planned to set aside a budget for transport charges and send the proposal to the cabinet.
He added government workers’ transport fare would be paid after approval from the cabinet. According to Masjidi, the government pays 1,760 afghanis in transport fare to each worker for 22 working days. (Pajhwok)