Monrovia – Three ministries on Monday boycotted the ongoing budget hearing for fiscal year 2016/2017 in the wake of rumors that President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has decided to withdraw the budget currently before the Legislative Joint Committee on Ways, Means and Finance.
Report by Henry Karmo – [email protected]
The Ministries of Labor and Commerce failed to show up Monday before the committee without an excuse. According to Montserrado County District #2 Representative, Sekou Kanneh, Co-chair of the committee, with the exception of the Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs which sent an excuse since the death of its former head, the Ministry of Commerce stayed away without any written excuse.
Concerns were raised about the emptiness of the seats in the joint chambers where it was expected that representatives from the ministries and agencies would have been seated by 2:00PM, the regular starting time for budget hearing.
No knowledge on budget withdrawal
Asked what was the committee’s view on rumors about budget withdrawal by President Sirleaf, he claimed not to have any knowledge about the information, saying the President usually writes the Legislature if she needs them do things.
“Not to my knowledge. As far as I know, the process is ongoing even though some of the Ministries expected here today did not show up. What is clear is that we will close for agriculture break by the 31 of August and if the President needs us back, it is constitutional for her to ask us to do so,” he added.
Frontpageafrica Monday reported that in a rather rare but bold move, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is poised to recall the 2016/2017 draft budget this week, just a week after convening a Cabinet meeting during which she threatened punitive action against any member of the Executive involved in budget manipulation.
Multiple sources have confirmed to FPA that the President is on the verge of recalling the budget she submitted to the House of Representatives on June 2, 2016.
According to one source close to the Executive Mansion, the President has been contemplating this move ever since cabinet issued a warning to its members about budget manipulations.
The source explained: “As the administration comes to an end the President is keen for the budget to reflect more of her priorities, including energy, roads and other critical infrastructure.”
“With a not too rosy economic outlook the President wants to tighten the budget and do more from the executive end to prevent unrealistic revenue forecast leading to inflated expenditures which may not be in the national interest”, one Executive Mansion told frontpageafrica.
Frontpageafrica also reported that it has learned that the President has asked Mr. James Kollie, Deputy Minister of Finance for Administration to resign.
The President, it can be recalled, on July 31, 2016, accepted the resignation of the Comptroller and Accountant General of the Republic of Liberia, Mr. Sekou A. Sanoe and appointed Mr. Hanson Kaizulu as Acting Comptroller and Accountant General with immediate effect.
During last week’s Cabinet meeting, ministers expressed concern about budget manipulation and warned members that anyone found in breach would be punished.
The Cabinet mandated that punitive action awaits any line Minister who engages in budget manipulation process while being subject to the vetoing of the specific unauthorized appropriation, which runs contrary to the draft budget originally submitted to the National Legislature.