New Democrat (Monrovia)
4 May 2011
The cabinet has rejected published requirements for a new Auditor General, while duping an agreement with Jaifin Consultants, hired to oversee the process for US2000, according to Civil Service Director Dr. Willian Allen.
In an interview with this paper Friday following the cabinet’s decision, he said the decision was taken based on ‘perceptions in the media.’ But he said in his opinion, the new requirements are without shortcomings.
The move comes amidst the controversy surrounding the advertisement announcing the new requirements connected with the recruitment of a new Auditor General to replace outgoing AG John Morlu, following President Sirleaf’s decision not to re-nominate him.
Dr. Allen: “I briefed the Cabinet on the recruitment process yesterday (Thursday, April 28) and distributed copies of the ad, and it was the collective opinion of the Cabinet that the ad be strengthened. So, we listened to the collective wisdom of the Cabinet and decided to pull the ad.”
But Dr. Allen, who made the revelation during an interview with this paper on Friday, April 29, also stated that the withdrawal of the ad was based on perception, perception which he said derived from the media, notwithstanding his admission that the Cabinet decided to pull the act because they wanted to strengthen it.
Interestingly, also, although Dr. Allen indicated that he conformed to the collective decision of the cabinet, he believes that there’s nothing wrong with the current ad, that there’s no need to strengthen it, contending: “Well, I think it is a matter of perception. I don’t think the current ad is weak. In my opinion, the ad can stand as it is.”
Meanwhile, the CSA Director has confirmed that the services of Jafain Consortium, the agency originally hired to take charge of the recruitment process, has been terminated, with Dr. Allen admitting that the Cabinet decided to take the contract from Jafain because it was the wrong entity to have given the contract to.
Dr. Allen: “Well, once again, it’s about perception. It’s not the Cabinet’s perception; it’s the perception that has come out of the press. The reason that was given is that since the ad was published, there has been this perception in the media that Jafain was not the agency to do that. So, based on that, the Cabinet said that because we want the process to be open and transparent, we do not even want a perception otherwise. So I was advised, as Director the Civil Service Agency, to look for another company or another agency to perform the role that we had originally ascribed to Jafain.”
Since the release of the ad, many have indicated that the government’s requirements fall below the original EU-oriented requirements that saw the nomination and subsequent appointment of Mr. John Morlu to the post. For instance, the EU was responsible for the first recruitment process; now, the Government is responsible. Also, the EU required that the candidate demonstrate a minimum of 15 years of practical experience in the management and organization of professional audit teams and in conducting comprehensive audits of public institutions, ministries, agencies and other similar bodies, while the Government requires a minimum of 10 years of working experience. Contrastingly, also, the EU specifically required that, concerning the 15-year minimum experience, the candidate must have experience of auditing in both the private and the public sectors. The Government, on the other hand, says that the candidate’s 10-year experience must include at least 3 years at the senior management level in public service.
It may be recalled that since President Sirleaf’s announcement that she would not re-nominate Mr. John Morlu for the Auditor General post, a plethora of comments and suggestions have surfaced in regard to the kind of individual the new AG should be, a development which, perhaps, precipitated the government’s formulating and publishing a set of requirements, which it has withdrawn based on pressure from various quarters.
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