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Ivory Coast halves government pay to cut fuel prices

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The Ivory Coast government is halving the salaries of its ministers to pay for a reduction in the price of fuel. Prime Minister Guillaume Soro said the managers of state-owned companies would also have their pay cut in half, to pay for a 10% cut in fuel prices. "Having heard the people's cry from the heart, the government has decided to cut the price of fuel," Mr Soro said.

The announcement comes after a strike by public transport works in the main city Abidjan last week. On 7 July, Ivory Coast increased diesel prices by 44% and petrol prices by 29%. The government attributed the increase to rising global oil prices. Mr Soro said running costs and investments in government departments would also be cut to help cope with the extra expenditure.

Overseas trips by government members would also be reduced to a "bare minimum", he said. Escalating food prices sparked violent protests in Abidjan in March and April, when housewives took to the streets banging pots and pans, youths built burning barricades and at least one man was killed.
unclepete

16 responses // Ivory Coast halves government pay to cut fuel prices

  • Now there's an idea!!!
    GardenTim
  • http://img79.imageshack.us/img79/7311/1713610242f2ae22f...
    Boy I am so glad to see a post from Cote D'Ivoire on Current. With a refinery in Vridi(southern suburb of Abidjan) and a new one being built, I hope that the bad past few year are behind us. I hope that la Cote D'Ivoire will shine as it once did in the 90's.
    African leaders need to take unparalleled initiatives and this seems to be a step in the right direction.
    silverex87
  • http://farm1.static.flickr.com/148/361884215_2e9003cf70...
    Here is the Vridi Refinery
    silverex87
  • the funny thing about this country is the amount of wining we do, we're the spoiled children of an adolescent country....i have yet to hear about any protests of these sorts here.....not to mention the government taking a pay cut and less working vacations....I am glad there are people making noise around the world......
    PAINTERGRL
  • You will never see these greedy bastards do anything along these lines. I can hear it now:"Well..uh(huff,puff) these cuts wouldn't do any thing to..uh..(huff puff) lower fuel prices so..uh it would really be an.. uh.. empty gesture on our part. Besides, we..uh (huff puff) we have to be able to feed our..uh (huff puff) our families see?"

    Yeah I see. Why don't you guys try feeding your.. uh..uh you know..uh.. families like most of the rest of us do?

    My sons and I have 5 people living in a 4 bedroom house just to make ends meet.And only three of us have insurance through our employers. The other 2( me and my oldest son who by the way has moderately severe asthma) are SOL.

    I really don't like our current batch of politicians.
    pissedoffinarkansas
  • This is a start...but cutting fuel by 10% that has been increased over 50% is just a start...people are still suffering to make things work between the costs of food, health care, basic necessities and fuel...
    The cool thing is that in most things that are gonna be a challenge, getting started is the hardest part....

    Cool runnings....

    BFAM_RVS
    BFAM_RVS
  • "We may have a bill ready in about 10 day." INDEED!!
    cadsuch
  • Imagine if all the political leaders of the world took a 50% pay cut to help their own countries... WOW!
    unclepete
  • You know, I just couldn't image Britain and America doing that...
    thekingbeyond
  • http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2329/2126806202_51043f2b...
    Abidjan la Belle....
    silverex87
  • Although it would be nice to stick it to the politicians, their salaries aren't the problem. US politicians don't really make that much compared to the leaders of industry.

    Your average congressman makes $188,100 a year.

    Your average CEO makes around $10,000,000 a year.

    There are as many CEO's as there are corporations in America. That's a lot of $10mil paychecks.
    flyingkick
    1 response to this
  • Maybe, but wouldn't it be nice as a symbolic gesture?
    pissedoffinarkansas
  • Word? I wish the US government cared about it's citizens this much!
    fuhleesha
  • I recently over heard the review of the oil industry big wigs by the US Senate... One of them stated that he made 12 million a year. That's dollars... and he was the highest paid there, another quoted 2 million. Imagine if they took pay cuts down to oh, gee lets give them some luxury - $750,000 a year. That would be $1,250,000 a year put back to lower prices by probably a good majority of upper execs in the oil industry. Imagine those that make more!
    And I won't touch the government, they're so tight in bed with big oil that you couldn't pry them apart with industrial lube. and the jaws of life...
    lynmorrigan
  • That's just what we need here!
    Egnatius212

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