He and the leader of the NPS faction in parliament, Jerrel Pawiroredjo, are the only ones who have kept the promise they made during their election campaign. Other legislators whose party is also part of the current government commented on the law that was presented by the previous coalition and that paved the way for the extravagant salary hike. However, they failed to take any real action after nearly a year. For the first time ever in the history of parliament and Suriname a member of parliament publicly announced that he believes that he earns too much and therefore presented a bill to lower the salaries.

All eyes are now on the chairman of parliament, Ashwin Adhin, as he must determine if the bill will be placed on the agenda. But even if it is placed on the agenda, it will not be certain if it will ever be discussed because it could be left stranded due to a lack of quorum. If that happens, MP Atompai and MP Pawiroredjo risk becoming isolated politically while the people will once again get more proof that legislators are not willing to make sacrifices in the nation’s best interest. The issue has divided the members of the coalition because some MPs from the National Democratic Party (NDP) claim that a gross monthly income of SRD 130,000 is hardly enough to make ends meet. This statement has sent shockwaves throughout the entire nation because when the bill that was aimed at approving the salary hike was presented in parliament during the previous administration the then opposition strongly rejected it.

The bill that is aimed at lowering the salaries of the MPs also includes a component that addresses the salaries of the judiciary. The salaries of the judiciary are still a hot and controversial topic especially given the fact that the attorney general receives a salary that is five times higher than that of the head of state.