Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed is calling on the government to grant public servants a salary increase of at least 100% before the end of 2026, arguing that their current earnings are insufficient to meet the rising cost of living in Guyana.
The call was made during a press conference on Monday, where Mohamed, alongside General Secretary of the We Invest In Nationhood (WIN) Party, Odessa Primus, raised concerns about the financial struggles facing public servants despite the country’s growing oil wealth.
Mohamed said he has been receiving complaints from public servants across the country who are finding it increasingly difficult to provide for their families as the prices of basic food items continue to rise.
He pointed to the minimum public service salary of $102,346 per month, questioning how workers are expected to survive on that amount in an economy generating significant revenue from oil production.
“I’m calling on this administration to increase salaries for our public servants immediately,” Mohamed said.
“How can persons survive on $102,346 a month?” he questioned, adding that public servants deserve to enjoy a comfortable standard of living.
When pressed by a reporter from Ignite News to specify the percentage increase he was proposing, Mohamed said he wanted salaries doubled.
“I’m calling for at least a 100% increase for our public servants, at least a 100% increase for our public servants,” he declared.
The Opposition Leader argued that Guyana has the financial resources to facilitate such an increase but claimed that corruption and the mismanagement of public funds were preventing workers from receiving better wages.
“And we have the money, we can do it. The government has got to cut back on their corruption. If they cut back on their corruption, trust me, we can pay our 90,000 public servants a better wage,” Mohamed stated.
He further urged the government not to wait until another election period to improve salaries, insisting that workers should benefit from an increase before the year ends.
“We don’t want to wait till elections time that you’re going to come and trick our public servants again,” he said.
“So please ensure before the year is out, you can increase salaries for our public servants.”
Meanwhile, Primus supported the call for higher salaries, arguing that public servants should not be expected to survive on wages that have failed to keep pace with the increasing cost of living.
“It would make more sense for the government to look at increasing the wages of public servants because we cannot have a cost of living here and then your salary is here. How are people supposed to survive?” she questioned.
Primus also argued that Guyanese should be able to experience tangible improvements in their living standards as the country continues to benefit from its oil resources.
She maintained that the nation’s growing wealth should translate into improvements not only in salaries but also in education, healthcare and other essential services.
The WIN General Secretary also turned her attention to the upcoming Christmas season, calling for public servants to receive a substantial year-end bonus.
“Christmas is coming again and public servants are looking forward to the year-end bonus. And so I’d just like to say that they’re looking forward to something significant,” Primus said.
