Liberia-Civil Service Agency’s (CSA) Boss Josiah Joekai is having hectic and standoffish embraces over the firing of several Liberians from their positions at various ministries and agencies of government for allegedly insulting of leaders.
Several employees of the Monrovia City Corporation have since been given the marching orders for under-covered social media posts critical of the government.
The decision has sparked public criticisms to which House Speaker J. Fonati Koffa, Senator Darius Dillion and many other stakeholders added their voices, detesting such action as un-called-for and intolerably undemocratic.
Also joining the fray and the volley of criticisms of the CSA boss, Senator Amara Konneh said sacking of people he referred to as supporters of the main opposition party, the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) for allegedly insulting leaders is wrong.
“The CSA circular memorandum (below) issued yesterday (8/19/24) warns all mainline government personnel to refrain from bullying and other forms of misconduct,” Senator Konneh observed.
Agreeing that the threat of disciplinary action for violating the CSA’s policies is welcoming, he also wondered as to how the CSA intends to monitor misconduct in a society where people rarely blow the whistle for fear of being ostracized.
He conjectured that “The CSA’s only tool—or at least its simplest and fastest—is to monitor civil servants’ social media activity. But in doing so, the CSA risks pushing the government down the slippery slope from reasonable monitoring of public activity to effectively limiting the freedom of speech among its employees.”
In addition to wondering how the CSA intends to monitor people’s activities, Sen. Konneh similarly wondered as to who is the most vulnerable to the CSA’s threat of disciplinary action, whether it is the ruling party affiliates, who are more likely to defend their government’s actions from every criticism, or non-affiliated opposition staff or independents who are more likely to criticize the government they serve, especially now that they feel disempowered.
Further deciphering the issue that has plunged society into chaos, he asked whether the CSA can seriously claim there is one from the ruling party who is making social media statements in contravention of the CSA Human Resources Policy to “exhibit good conduct at all times, both at work and off duty…and shall not act in a manner derogatory to the honor or dignity of the public service”.
Such a scenario, according to him, is hard to believe.
Still mirroring the appropriateness of the action, he proffered: “Assuming the CSA acted in good faith, this glaring disparity and lack of balance in who was targeted with termination wreaks a witch hunt and an effort to purge the government of non-ruling party-affiliated staff. I’m not claiming this was the intent, but one can certainly argue that it appears that way.”
Senator Konneh went on saying: “If this was the political calculus, just remember that in politics, that cat chasing the mouse today will one day become a mouse as well.”
He said it is obvious that Liberians may have failed to learn this lesson in 177 years as Liberians, because regardless of where one belongs, whether Unity Partisan or CDCian, Christian or Muslim, “we are all Liberians.”
According to him, “divisiveness hurts us all equally, and we are dying from a death from a thousand cuts. Although each incision may be small, we’re killing ourselves.”
Sen. Konneh quipped that if such policy is to be implemented, the CSA must ensure it is meted out justly and equitably, stressing that “Failure to do so harms the nation as a whole.”
“If the CSA’s objective is to increase professionalism in its staff, I suggest the Agency meet its staff where they are, invest in research to understand them, and make every effort to build them up. Yes, that includes firing people for criminal activity, but it should lead with professional development, workplace seminars, and investing in staff of all backgrounds,” the Gbarpolu Senator indicated.
Konneh said his experience denotes that the best reform tools include investing in leadership development, team building, rewards and incentives programs, career development initiatives, consistent salary payment and increase, technological advancement to improve efficiency, and enforcing our anticorruption framework.
According to him, the time is now that Liberians break with the past and chart a new course of civility and human relations.
He added that “CSA plays a leading role in this process. It is the arbiter of fairness and ensuring the rights of government employees. Let’s ensure CSA transforms the civil service in a way that is seen as apolitical.”
He urged Liberians and stakeholders to ensure that the CSA is respected and admired by all, noting that “censorship will not help us achieve that objective.”
His reactions partly stemmed from a CSA memorandum of August 19, 2024 in which CSA boss Joekai threatened to subject any civil servant to disciplinary action per the Standing Orders and other relevant personnel guidelines and regulations for engaging in unbecoming conduct.
According to the CSA, the measures are not to be taken lightly as they are essential for maintaining professionalism, decency and integrity of public service.
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