Monrovia – The constitutional power given to the presidency of Liberia is probably being hijacked by some influential lawmakers of the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC).
President George Manneh Weah keeps being criticized in the public for allegedly allowing people believe to be his confidants to make major decisions in government.
There are reports that CDCians in various ministries and agencies are said to be seeking the removal of non-CDCians from their posts for them to be filled by their party stalwarts. As these partisans are said to be fighting to replace non CDCians on jobs, some influential lawmakers from the CDC are on the other hand allegedly usurping the Executive Branch power by dismissing presidential appointees.
One of such lawmakers is Senator Saah H. Joseph of Montserrado County. Senator Joseph and the Chairman of the House’s Committee on Health, Representative Joseph Somwarbi, are now allegedly usurping the function of President George Weah by appointing and dismissing people from the Executive.
Senator Joseph, in a communication addressed to the Human Resource Manager of the Liberia Medicines and Health Product Regulatory Authority (LMHRA), instructed that the Managing Director of the LMHRA be replaced with immediate effect by the HR.
The copy of the communication, in the possession of this newspaper reads, “It is an honor to present to you my compliments and write to inform you of the President’s mandate. It would be recalled that by the President’s mandate, all HR’s were asked to supervise all activities at all Government Ministries and Agencies.”
Senator Joseph claimed that he got the mandate from President George Weah to ask the HR to take over the entity and let go the current Managing Director, Mr. David Sumo.
But the Office of the President has clarified that it is not in the know of such mandate from the President to Senator Joseph. Deputy Presidential Press Secretary Smith Toby told FrontPageAfrica via mobile: “I really haven’t seen the communications you are talking about and I don’t know anything about it, but I will talk to the President about that and I will get back to you after I meet the President,” Toby explained.
Based on the mandate from Senator Joseph, the LMHRA HR also wrote Mr. Sumo that he (HR) has now taken over the entity.
“In the same vein, both Hon. Somwarbi and Hon. Joseph have informed me (HR Joseph Redd) that the President of the Republic of Liberia, His Excellency Dr. George M. Weah has mandated that we return to STATUS QUO at the Authority, meaning that I take over until all administrative functions until he appoints a new MD,” the HR said in his letter to Mr. Sumo.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Health Rep Joseph Somwarbi confirmed the communications from the office of Senator Joseph ordering the HR to take over.
Rep. Somwarbi, however, said that it is not advisable for members of the Legislature, which is a different branch of government, to appoint or dismiss someone from another branch of government.
“Nobody should usurp the functions of the President because it is the sole responsibility of the President to constitute the board of directors and appoint a new Managing Director. The President should be given the chance because he’s aware of his appointing power that is enshrined in the Constitution of Liberia,” Rep. Somwarbi of Nimba County noted.
Rep Somwarbi, a former employee of the LMHRA, further said, “It was only surprising this morning that I got information that Senator Saah Joseph has written the LMHRA’s HR (Redd) to inform the current MD Sumo to return to status quo, I had a meeting with some of the employees who have been accusing the MD and it was the time they told me,” he explained. The morning Rep. Somwarbi referred to was Wednesday, July 24, 2019.
He stated further that at the end of briefing, some of the entity’s employees informed him that Senator Joseph has already taken the decision to remove the current MD, which he said was surprising for a lawmaker to write a government entity informing them to return to status quo.
“So the current administrator is still acting until President Weah can do the appointment for a new Managing Director, so that was what we discussed during the meeting,” he said
According to Rep. Somwarbi, it is not the responsibility of any lawmaker to remove or ask for the removal of appointed officials of government because.
He disclosed that they had met with the President and he (President) didn’t tell them about any letter from his Office so it surprised him to hear that Sen. Joseph had written a letter to remove an appointed official of government.
The President’s decision to call for an investigation at the LMHRA was based on some civil society organizations, alleged sponsored by some Lebanese pharmacy owners, who that feel they have been suppressed by Sumo’s stern action in curbing fake drugs from the Liberian market.
The owner of Itter Pharmacy on Benson Street, a Lebanese national, Mr. Nabil Itter, who is said to be a friend of Senator Joseph, was said to behind the protest against Mr. Sumo.
Mr. Itter refused to comment further on the allegation of being behind the civil society group. Itter, however, said anyone who has any qualm against him should go to court.