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18 Jun, 2018 11:52

‘$200,000 not a lot of money’: Scandal-hit politician sparks outrage with salary claim

‘$200,000 not a lot of money’: Scandal-hit politician sparks outrage with salary claim

Australian politician Lucy Gichuhi has been called “shameful” and “clueless” for claiming her $200,000 (USD$148,921) a year salary is not a lot of money.

The South Australian politician made the comments in an interview on Kenya Citizen TV in January, but the interview is now going viral as Gichuhi finds herself embroiled in a scandal for using taxpayer money to fly her family members across the country.

“My salary it is somewhere on the website, I don’t look at it because it comes into the bank, but it’s not a lot of money by the way,” she told Kenyan TV host Jeff Koinange. “Politicians, and I mean Australian politicians, work so hard 24/7, nobody, and I mean nobody, can compensate them for the work they do.”

When pressed about how much her salary was, she said: “200,000 Australian dollars, in a whole year, that’s not a lot of money.”

The Liberal senator is facing backlash after she was found to have used her travel entitlements to claim for two family members’ flights from Darwin to Adelaide. Her decision to spend $12,000 on travel to Sydney for a number of functions is also being scrutinized.

Gichuhi defended the Darwin expense, saying it was an administrative error and that she will pay it back with an additional 25 percent penalty. She said the Sydney travel costs were legitimate, as she was travelling to attend functions.  

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