NewsWhore
12-15-2011, 04:10 PM
The Dominican Federation of Municipalities (Fedomu) says that more than 90% of the city councils and municipal districts of the country have not paid the Christmas bonus to their employees due to a lack of funds. The municipalities fail to make reserves for the bonus and at year's end expect the central government to come to the rescue by authorizing a loan.
This year the municipalities say they are supposed to be supplied through a RD$1 billion loan proposal expected to pass in the Chamber of Deputies today. The legislators, who have left the legislative initiative on the table twice, have prepared the way for dealing with the bill that authorizes the governmental Banco de Reservas to disburse the loan during the session that begins this morning.
The director of Fedomu, Victor D'Aza, asked the deputies yesterday to approve the loan, because otherwise some 70,000 to 90,000 municipal employees, who have not been able to collect their Christmas paychecks, would be adversely affected. D'Aza told Diario Libre that, "we know that there are cooperative and supportive people in the Chamber of Deputies. We hope that those who are conscious of the fact that poor municipal employees deserve to have a Christmas dinner with peace and tranquility, can convince the others and approve this loan."
The Municipality Law, 176-07, established that the city councils and municipal boards should save sufficient money each month to pay this 13th salary at the end of the year, however, most do not do this and take out loans every year. D'Aza argues that "the city councils, although they want to are not able - in most cases - to make these savings, because the resources that they receive from the state have been fixed over these last years and everything has gone up in price (building materials, office materials, etc)."
Diario Libre reports that only Santo Domingo East, San Pedro de Macoris, Bani and Los Rios, in Bahoruco, as well as the municipal board of San Luis, have complied with this requirement. Why were they the exception? Alfonso Perez Perez, the mayor of the tiny town of Los Rios in the southwest, attributes it to good planning. "You, as the manager, have to plan when the year begins," he said. Perez said that they had paid the Christmas bonus on 5 December, adding that by October they had already saved all the money needed. Los Rios has 80 employees and receives RD$1,153,000 million a month.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#2)
This year the municipalities say they are supposed to be supplied through a RD$1 billion loan proposal expected to pass in the Chamber of Deputies today. The legislators, who have left the legislative initiative on the table twice, have prepared the way for dealing with the bill that authorizes the governmental Banco de Reservas to disburse the loan during the session that begins this morning.
The director of Fedomu, Victor D'Aza, asked the deputies yesterday to approve the loan, because otherwise some 70,000 to 90,000 municipal employees, who have not been able to collect their Christmas paychecks, would be adversely affected. D'Aza told Diario Libre that, "we know that there are cooperative and supportive people in the Chamber of Deputies. We hope that those who are conscious of the fact that poor municipal employees deserve to have a Christmas dinner with peace and tranquility, can convince the others and approve this loan."
The Municipality Law, 176-07, established that the city councils and municipal boards should save sufficient money each month to pay this 13th salary at the end of the year, however, most do not do this and take out loans every year. D'Aza argues that "the city councils, although they want to are not able - in most cases - to make these savings, because the resources that they receive from the state have been fixed over these last years and everything has gone up in price (building materials, office materials, etc)."
Diario Libre reports that only Santo Domingo East, San Pedro de Macoris, Bani and Los Rios, in Bahoruco, as well as the municipal board of San Luis, have complied with this requirement. Why were they the exception? Alfonso Perez Perez, the mayor of the tiny town of Los Rios in the southwest, attributes it to good planning. "You, as the manager, have to plan when the year begins," he said. Perez said that they had paid the Christmas bonus on 5 December, adding that by October they had already saved all the money needed. Los Rios has 80 employees and receives RD$1,153,000 million a month.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#2)