Is British prime minister's 'greed' for bigger pay package appropriate?

Strange things are happening these days across the world. And Britain is no exception to this global trend.

Many people must have been surprised when British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he would resign from the position as he is not happy with his pay package. After the surprise came various reactions from different people -- some concurred, and some disagreed.

Perhaps, one may not have heard any other prime minister or president of any country in the world express such views. Nobody would weigh the position of the head of the state against their salary.

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One can understand if a professional at any level would want to quit a job and change to a new one. A professional mostly works for his/her own satisfaction and to meet personal and family interests. If the duty benefits the country or the society, it is incidental.

But this cannot be true for a politician, who is supposed to be one of the lawmakers in the country, and is supposed to serve the country -- even by sacrificing his interests.

No politician contests in any election, stating that he wants to earn money. And people only vote for those who can serve the nation selflessly.

Every politician -- and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is not an exception to this -- has made promises of serving the country and seeking positions of power to serve the national cause. Certainly, at every opportunity, Johnson would have said the same.

While people vote for a politician assuming he would serve the country as promised, it would be dishonest if a politician would get elected and then occupy position in the government and then complain that his salary is inadequate. If he makes such a complaint, he would be accused of concealing his real intentions.

With this bizarre complaint, Boris Johnson has not set a praiseworthy standard for British prime ministers. This is particularly surprising, because it pertains to the Great Britain.

The British Parliament has been the model for many other parliamentary systems, and its Acts have inspired the legislations of other countries.

It's still not clear what his countrymen think of this surprising move. And I am sure even Johnson does not care much. Because had he cared, he would not have made such a statement.

Let's see what happens next.

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)