Political Affairs Commentators Kevin O’Brien Chang and Dennis Chung say while the Government’s plan to increase the salaries of political leaders was justifiable, it was executed poorly.

Their statements follow the massive public outrage that political leaders, including Members of Parliament, Cabinet Ministers, and councillors received pay increases of over 200%.

The finance minister received a 232% increase from $7.4 million in 2021 to $24.6 million by April 1, 2024. 

Similarly, cabinet ministers received a 230% pay bump, from $6.9 million in 2021 to $22.9 million next year. 

Following the fierce backlash to the announcement, Prime Minister Andrew Holness, on Monday, announced that he would be forgoing his 200% increase and sticking with his $9 million salary.

Speaking on Taking Stock with Kalilah Reynolds, O’Brien Chang said the Government’s communication leading up to and following the announcement was severely lacking.

“The Government blew it in terms of execution,” he said.

“First of all 200% was a bad move. Why not start with even 100% and go up from there? Any time things go up 200% it shocks people and we know Jamaica has a love-hate relationship was politicans,” he added. 

According to O’Brien Chang, while he agrees that paying political leaders better will attract better and more talent to the political arena, a gradual approach to salary increases might have gone over better with the public.

“They could have started with say a 100%, then after three years evaluate everyone’s performance than increase it another 50%,” he added.

Additionally, the commentator said the Government came across as unprepared for failing to properly communicate the details of the salary increases and who benefits.

“The communication was atrocious. We have the Prime Minister coming with job descriptions, KPIs and all that stuff after this was announced. These things should have been announced with the increases,” he said.

O’Brien Chang said it would have helped if the Government compared the public sector wage increases and the political sector. Additionally, he noted that many Jamaicans are under the impression that only parliamentarians received the pay increase.

“But principals, the Cheif Doctors, the Jamaica Constabulary Force, and Justices in the judiciary are also getting raises,” he noted.

He emphasized again that this information should have been provided to the public when the salary hike was announced.

“The public didn’t get the perspective it should have,” he said.

Chartered Accountant and commentator Dennis Chung shared similar sentiments.

“If you want a masterclass on how not to do something, this is it,” he said.

Chung, on the other hand, said that he does not have an issue with the 200% increase, however, he said he now expects the Government to go above and beyond to improve the living conditions in Jamaica.

“The fact of the matter is that I’ve always maintained that we need to pay our politicians more. It is very difficult to hold people who are running large institutions, which is what ministers and counsellors are doing, to a high standard if they don’t feel comfortable,” he said.

“But if I’m going to pay you $20 million a year, I’m going to want $30 million worth of value,” he countered. 

Chung said he believes that now that the issue of recompensation was tackled, the public should set standards for the politicians to accomplish.

“I think we should be setting the standard of what we want now that they’re getting the money. Give us order on the roads, give us a crime plan, and give us a better GDP,” he said.

He noted that with the General Election little over a year away, this is the prime opportunity for the public to hold the Government accountable.