The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Ways, Means, Finance and Budget, Senator Prince Kermue Moye, has explained why the salaries of most civil servants were not increased despite the passage of Liberia’s largest national budget to date.
By Obediah Johnson
Recently, the Liberian Senate concurred with the House of Representatives to pass the Fiscal Year 2026 National Budget totaling US$1.25 billion—the first time the national budget has surpassed the one-billion-dollar mark. However, the budget does not include a general salary increase for civil servants, a decision that has generated concern among public sector workers and some elected officials.
Appearing as a guest on Cape FM 96.5 in Paynesville on Tuesday, December 23, Senator Moye said the decision to retain current salary levels was deliberate and aimed at enforcing the National Standardization and Remuneration Act of 2019.
According to Senator Moye, lawmakers rejected a “blanket salary increment” in order to first standardize pay across government institutions and absorb thousands of long-serving volunteers into the official payroll.
He disclosed that volunteer teachers, doctors, nurses, health workers, as well as personnel at the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency and other security institutions, including the Liberia National Police (LNP), were captured in the FY 2026 budget and placed on payroll.
“The deliberation on civil servants’ salaries took almost half of the proceedings, and we closed the budget around 10 p.m.,” Senator Moye said. “This government believes that before salaries can be increased, everyone must first be brought on par.”
He stressed that directors and officials performing similar functions across ministries, agencies, and branches of government should earn comparable salaries, noting that across-the-board increments could further widen existing disparities.
“If you increase salaries without standardization, those already earning high wages benefit the most, while people earning very little—or volunteering—gain almost nothing,” he explained.
Senator Moye also raised concerns about what he described as “uncontrollable payrolls” inherited by several government ministries and state-owned enterprises (SOEs), making it difficult for some institutions to meet their revenue contribution targets.
“What the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning is doing is bringing people on par—lifting those at the bottom to reasonable levels before considering any increment,” he said.
‘Don’t Politicize the Issue’
Senator Moye criticized those politicizing the retention of civil servants’ salaries, calling such actions unfair and misleading. He assured the public that a comprehensive salary increase would be considered in the future once the ongoing standardization process is completed and additional fiscal space is created.
He noted that although the government wage bill increased significantly under the previous administration, the Boakai-Koung-led government is committed to ensuring fairness before implementing salary increments.
“How can people be volunteering and doing the same work as salaried staff while others continue to get increments?” he asked. “Placing volunteers on payroll is a way of stabilizing the civil service.”
While acknowledging that civil servants desire higher wages, Senator Moye urged them to consider their colleagues who have worked for years without pay.
“I don’t believe civil servants would be so naive or wicked as to deny thousands of their colleagues the chance to be placed on payroll, just so they alone can get increments,” he said.
He added that government is “patching the holes” in the system to ensure fairness until the economy can absorb salary increases.
Senator Moye also disclosed that US$38.5 million was identified in the draft budget and allocated to key ministries and agencies to strengthen their operations and fulfill statutory responsibilities.
On Public Service and Leadership
Addressing perceptions that public service is a pathway to personal enrichment, Senator Moye urged newly elected officials to discourage such thinking.
“Public service should not be treated as a competition,” he said. “As a first-time lawmaker, comparing yourself to long-serving colleagues will only destroy you.”
He warned against fabricating lies, engaging in proxy wars, or tarnishing the reputations of others for political relevance, noting that such practices would not thrive under the current administration.
“Some people only shine in crisis,” Senator Moye remarked. “But under this government, political loyalty must be earned through service.”
The Senator reaffirmed his commitment to working with President Joseph Nyuma Boakai to ensure that promises made during the 2023 general and presidential elections are fulfilled. Senator Moye served as the National Campaign Manager of the ruling Unity Party during the elections.
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