By Moses M. Tokpah
Liberia-Civil Service Agency Director General Josiah Joekai has pointed accusing fingers at Representative L. Marvin Cole of violating the Agency’s Standing Orders. Cole Chairs the Rules, Orders and Administration of the House of Representatives.
At the Ministry of Information regular press briefing Tuesday, Joekai accused Rep. Cole of halting the payment of salaries of employees of Central Administration, saying such decision contravenes chapter 5 section 2.1 of the standing orders of the CSA.
“The payment of salaries and wages throughout the Civil Service shall be determined by the Civil Service Agency and disbursed by the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning,” he cited, and claimed that the Bong County lawmaker issued instructed Guaranteed Trust Bank (GTB) not to disburse the July 2024 salaries of the Houses’ Central Administration employees.
The CSA was notified of this directive,” he said
The directive triggered the Senate Rules, Orders and Administration Committee to formally request the CSA to separate the payroll of its central administration from that of the House of Representatives, Joekai disclosed.
“The CSA Employee Services Division thoroughly reviewed the request submitted by the Senate Rules, Orders and Administration Committee chaired by Senator J. Gblebo Brown and after a meticulous evaluation, it was confirmed that the Senate’s Central Administration payroll was consistent with the version previously approved by the CSA,” the CSA boss asserted.
Director Joekai said the CSA had no other option but to officially approve the separation of the two payrolls. “The CSA had already approved the salaries and the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning had transferred the necessary funds for the relevant Banks consistent with the established laws and policies, but unfortunately, the payment process was halted by Hon. Cole’s directive,” he emphasized.
“Therefore, the instruction given by honorable Cole directly violates the standing orders of the Civil Service” he disclosed.
He claimed that the CSA and the MFDP bear no responsibility for the delay in the payment of the houses’ Central Administration employees’ salaries, saying that the Agency regrets the delay attributed to Hon. Cole’s directive.
At the same time, the CSA Director General has revealed that on Wednesday August 7, 2024, the leadership of the House of Representatives granted the Agency’s request to physically verify and count all employees of the house’s central administration.
He mentioned that this marks a critical milestone in the CSA ongoing efforts to sanitize the national payroll, streamline the wage bill; and reinforce accountability, integrity and professionalism within the government’s workforce.
