Municipal councillors want to earn R1.3-million a year - the same as MPs. Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Pravin Gordhan has gazetted a system for grading municipalities and the salaries paid to their councillors.Gordhan wants salaries of councillors to be based on the size of the population they serve - and on their ability to generate revenue for their town or city.According to the Government Gazette, salaries of senior public officials in municipalities should be based on a scale of 1 to 6, with 6 denoting a more populous and wealthy municipality.The mayor of a grade6 municipality would be entitled to up to R1.177-million a year, whereas a grade1 mayor would be paid about R653158 a year.Gordhan also wants a cap on the allowance paid to councillors for attending committee meetings and the introduction of a properly managed car-allowance system.But yesterday the SA Local Government Association - which represents about 9000 councillors across the country - put its own demands on the table.It wants councillors to earn the same as MPs , arguing that they have comparable responsibilities."On the grading of municipalities based on the income of the municipality, it is Salga's position that there should be greater equality between the payment of municipal councillors, and of MPs and MPLs."As all councillors have the same responsibilities, regardless of the income of the municipality in which a councillor serves, the basic salary of all councillors should be the same."The notion of full-time and part-time councillors should be abolished," said Salga's communications manager, Karen Reyneke.Salga also wants councillors to be paid directly by the Treasury.Salga's demands are being made against the backdrop of improved but still worrying local government audit outcomes for the 2013-2014 financial year.Auditor-general Kimi Makwetu revealed that, in that year, 40 municipalities and 18 municipal entities had achieved clean audits.The number of municipalities whose audits revealed irregular expenditure fell but Makwetu said irregular expenditure remained "unacceptably high" at R11.4-billion. He raised concerns about certain municipalities in the Free State, Limpopo and North West that had not achieved a single clean audit opinion for several years.About 36% of municipalities received audit disclaimers.If the 9000 councillors get their way, taxpayers would have to fork out R11.7-billion for their salaries.Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene has previously said that the fiscus is under great pressure and the situation would not improve any time soon."Our weak economic performance has put a great deal of pressure on the fiscus, with revenue insufficient to cover expenditure," Nene said in his maiden Budget speech earlier this year.This latest wage demand by Salga coincides with the collapse of public-sector wage talks. Unions pulled out of negotiations after having initially agreed to a 7% increase and a medical contribution of 28%.From July 1 , full-time councillors will earn between R457210 and R832197, excluding allowances, depending on the type of municipality they serve.Their part-time counterparts will earn between R195712 and R416098 a year, excluding car allowances...