I was especially taken by the writer’s reference to the evolution of government’s pandering to its ministers and head of state, beginning with the abandonment of Peugeot 504s in favour of Mercedes limousines in 1980.
This pricked my curiosity about the evolution of perks enjoyed by ministers in my own country, Switzerland.
To put things in perspective, the Swiss Government consists of 7 Ministers elected to four-year terms by our bi-cameral national Parliament (House and Senate), just like in Nigeria), with Ministerial mandates being renewed by Parliament every four years until the Minister chooses to retire or he/she is dismissed for having committed some impropriety (which has happened three times during our history). As in Nigeria, the Federal Principle is adhered to in the choice of ministers – in our case there being three ministers from the French and/or Italian part of Switzerland, and the remaining four from the German part of Switzerland. Until 1971, only Swiss men could vote or serve in Parliament or as ministers, but since universal suffrage was introduced forty years ago, the women have made great strides – women currently occupying 3 of the 7 Ministerial seats.
Switzerland does have a President like other countries. The Presidency has a one-year term and is rotated among the 7 ministers.
Now a word about the evolution of pecks enjoyed by our Ministers.
I remember back in 1983, Swiss Television filmed a documentary called “A day in the life of the Swiss President.” At the time, our President was a chap by name of Pierre Aubert (a French speaker), who asked Swiss TV to do the documentary so that the people would have a better appreciation for how their elected public servants behave on a typical day.
The film begins by showing Mr Aubert making an early morning cup of tea for his wife in their four-room Bern apartment. Note: there are no official residences in Switzerland, each minister pays for an accommodation of his choice out of his taxable salary. Mr Aubert is then shown heading for work, carrying a couple of suits he drops off at the cleaners on his way to the bus stop. Mr Aubert then commutes to work by bus and a couple of his fellow riders, who happen to recognise him, wish him a good day and he responds in good humour. Once he arrives at work, the film shows Mr Aubert going through his mail, making phone calls, dictating letters to his secretary, and receiving visitors. At midday, the film shows Mr Aubert calling a friend to confirm a luncheon date at a local cafe, within walking distance of the Presidential office. The documentary then shows Mr Aubert in the cafe chatting animatedly with his friend and asking the waitress to give them separate bills so that the President can pay for his lunch out of his own pocket. What’s important to stress here is that there are no body- guards, no entourage, no hangers-on. The President of Switzerland is simply like everybody else in business or in government service, he goes about his day in a completely ordinary way.
Now to the evolution of perks for ministers since Mr Aubert’s Presidency in 1983.
For this information, I consulted the Swiss Government web page and found that Ministers’ salaries have almost doubled over the last 30 years – to a level of 440,000 Swiss Francs per year as gross, taxable income (note the Swiss France is now at parity with the US dollar). Moreover, given the increasing severity of each Minister’s workload, some years ago Parliament decided to give each Minister an official vehicle and driver to help carry out his/her duties with greater efficiency. The Government now also pays each Minister’s phone bills and gives him/her a lifetime first class on Swiss public transportation (railroad, bus and boat). On the last item, the first class pass, our current Minister of Transport, Doris Leuthard, has decided to make a habit of travelling second class by rail around the country to get a better idea of what’s on the minds of the ordinary Swiss – and the people adore her for that.
So in Switzerland, as in Nigeria, there has been an evolution of perks given by government to public officials. However, one of the things which haven’t changed here is housing. Every minister continues to choose where he wants to live, and how, and he pays for the housing of his choice out of his taxable salary.
Brunner wrote from Avenue General Guisan, 1009 Pully, Switzerland
