Colombia is once again mulling to reduce its Congress members’ salaries. The issue has been under discussion for over a decade, aiming to substantially lower the pay of House representatives and senators whose earnings remain disproportionately high compared to the country’s low average wages.
Political controversy has once again erupted, with lawmakers exchanging mutual accusations of sabotaging and delaying initiatives meant to fulfill long-promised salary reductions, which have yet to materialize.
Political controversy in Colombia over yet another attempt to lower Congress members’ salaries
Senator Ivan Cepeda, part of the governing Historic Pact coalition of President Gustavo Petro, recently submitted a bill to Colombia’s Congress proposing a salary cut for lawmakers. Meanwhile, Senator Maria Jose Pizarro, from the same coalition, presented the proposal to the Senate’s First Committee to begin discussions. However, the initiative has stalled despite three meetings to debate the bill.
This sparked a new controversy among Congress members, accusing each others of willingly delay debates and voting. Pizarro recently claimed that “some legislators disagree with reducing their own salaries and have used various tactics to avoid discussing the proposal,” which is backed by 56 Congress members.
However, Congressman Jota Pe Hernandez confronted Pizarro, accusing her of delaying the process. “When they say lawmakers should answer to the public and the media about whether they want to debate this, that’s misleading. This is the 25th such bill in over a decade, so congress members have debated this repeatedly,” Hernandez argued.
As of yesterday, four sessions had been held without making even a millimeter of progress on discussing Cepeda’s proposal.
Pay cut for Colombia’s Congress: An unfulfilled promise
Colombia has been debating a substantial salary reduction for its Congress members for many years, yet no agreement has been reached thus far to turn these promises into reality.
On average, a congress member earns a base salary of around 48 million COP per month (approximately US$11,500USD), this in a country where the minimum wage 1,423,500 COP (approximatelly US$340).
This disparity has fueled a longstanding demand to lower salaries that are clearly far higher than what political decorum demands in a nation marked by low wages and high rates of poverty and inequality.
However, despite numerous attempts to implement such a reduction, the initiative has repeatedly failed, exposing a lack of political will within the legislative branch.
The discussion about reducing lawmakers’ incomes originated in the late 20th century, when the gap between their high salaries and the average citizen’s earnings became evident.
Over the years, various proposals have emerged in Congress. One of the most notable was a constitutional reform promoted in 2004, which ultimately did not succeed. More recently, in 2022, President Gustavo Petro backed a bill to cut legislative salaries, but the proposal stalled in Congress.
Currently, a new effort led by pro-government Senator Ivan Cepeda is under discussion, aiming to finalize a measure that has historically faced legal and administrative hurdles, as well as resistance from congress members themselves.
Meanwhile, citizens continue to demand greater austerity in politics and transparency in the management of public resources. For now, the salary reduction remains an unfulfilled promise.