South Africas blatant scandal: The huge, unethical salaries of CEOs – why it will continue to happen. Written By Dr Deena Padayachee Why is our socialist and left leaning govt happy for CEOs to be paid such gigantic annual salaries that they can never spend in a year? I have asked this question of many leading ANC figures including Pravin Gordhan and Ben Turok at public meetings and have not received satisfactory explanations. Progressive countries like China, which within a few decades has become a world leader economically, (and lends money to a bankrupt USA to fight its many wars) ensure that their industrial and financial heads do not, on the whole, get paid such exorbitant, unethical amounts. The CEO of the Marikana mines gets paid over R 32 million annually. The CEOs of huge food chains get paid over R 500 million annually. The CEOs of huge clothing chains get paid over R 300 million annually. The CEOs of medical aids are sometimes paid over R5 million a year. Nobody deserves to get paid such ridiculous amounts while the workers of their companies often get paid a pittance by comparison. This is how I worked out yesterday why govt is allowing these huge, unethical salaries: The CEOs have to pay 42% tax to govt which govt can then use on extravagant projects like Nkandla. 42% of the money that is taken from the profits which result largely from the workers sweat actually ends up going to govt. This means that more than actually should be charged is charged for products. The already taxed consumer pays an invisible tax on products besides the VAT which he or she pays. But much of that more that is garnered does not go to pay workers more, it goes to the CEO and the executives but then, in reality, much of the ‘extra’ does not go there. It goes to govt. 1. So actually what is happening is that citizens are taxed directly on their salaries, 2. Then they are taxed again via VAT 3. And thirdly they pay more for products and services as orchestrated by these giant corporations, and the ‘more’ then goes to govt via the 42% tax on the CEOs and their highly paid executives. That third way of taxation is invisible to most. That is how the govt is able to afford Nkandla and so much else... Comment is welcome.
Posted on: Thu, 25 Sep 2014 23:20:28 +0000
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