Rodney D. Sieh, [email protected]
Monrovia – Just days after President George Manneh Weah suggested in a BBC interview that he could not force his ministers to declare their assets but rather only inform them to do so, a leaked communication exchanged between the office of the President and the head of the Liberia Anti Corruption Commission, Cllr. James Verdier suggest that a large number of government officials are yet to complete the task.
Asked by the BBC’s Mike Thomson whether he would make his ministers declare their assets, the President said, while stating that most of his officials had declared their assets, hoped that they all would eventually do so. “To make them declare? No! That means I inform them to declare – it’s prudent to do so, they know that it is the law, they must abide by the law.”
Asked about the failure of many in his government to declare their assets, the President replied: “Some did, I did, you know it is important to declare your assets, most especially me.”
Cllr. James Verdier, Chair, Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission(LACC)
“In that case Sir, let me remind you that on January 4, 2019, in a listing of public officials in the Executive Branch who have not filed as per our mandate were presented to the President. This means the President has what you are requesting. “
Regarding his own assets declaration – and why he has not made them public, President Weah said: “That’s my privacy, I got kids to protect, I have my family to protect, I give them access to all my banks and they have to now protect me.”
The latest wrangle in the controversy comes in the wake of a communication sent to Cllr. James Verdier, head of the LACC by the Minster of State for Presidential Affairs, Mr. Nathaniel McGill.
The communication was reportedly written and sent following a meeting this week between President Weah and U.S. Ambassador to Liberia, Christine Elder.
Request to LACC
Minister McGill, in his communication requested the LACC boss to submit a list of all officials of government who had declared their assets.
“By Directive of the President of the Republic of Liberia, H.E. George Manneh Weah, you are requested to submit to the Office of the President, the list of all officials of Government who have declared their assets with the Liberia Anti-Corruption or through the General Auditing Commission(GAC) to the LACC,” Minister McGill wrote.
The minister also requested the LACC boss to inform the President’s office whether the anti-graft body conducted any exit interviews with former officials of government. “At the same time, the President of the Republic would like to know whether or not an exit interview was done with former government officials. Such pertinent information is crucial so as to give the President a full appreciation of those who are in compliance with the law. You are kindly requested to respond to this communication by close of business Friday, 22 February 2019,” the minister wrote.
In response to the Minister’s communication Friday, February, 22, 2019, the LACC boss wrote:
“Dear Mr. Chief of Staff to the President, I refer to you the letter of 19 February 2019 on the directive of the President of the Republic of Liberia, in which you requested the list of all officials of Government who have declared their assets; and you further inquired on behalf of the president, “whether or not an exit interview was done with former government officials.”
Request Triggers LACC Concerns
By “all Officials of Government” in my mind you are making reference to the three branches of government. But as you may know, under our Assets Declaration regime, it’s the individual heads of the three branches of government who are charged with the responsibilities to implement and enforce compliance by officials of their various branches. In the case of the Executive branch, it’s the President of Liberia, in the case of the judicial branch, it’s the Chief Justice; and the Legislature, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate. So, I am left to wonder if this request refer to “all officials of Government” or all “officials of the Executive Branch of Liberia.”
I would surmise that the request to “all officials of the Executive Branch of Government. In that case Sir, let me remind you that on January 4, 2019, in a listing of public officials in the Executive Branch who have not filed as per our mandate were presented to the President. This means the President has what you are requesting. Notwithstanding, and for the case of reference, I am once again including in this response a listing of all “officials of the Executive Branch of government who have filed their assets.
I am also concerned why the request is made only for “Officials of Government who have filed their assets and not those who have not filed their assets. Because to institute punitive actions as required by law and was advised in our communication is inaccurate. However, I have once again attached the list of non-compliance officials of the Executive Branch of government who have deliberately, defiantly and disrespectfully refused to file assets declaration in keeping with the law.
Mr. Chief of Staff to the President, if you communication refers to a list of “all officials of government officials” who have filed assets declaration then please confirm this and we will be obliged to send you the listings of the Judicial Branch of Government. There has been a zero percent compliance on the part of the Legislative branch. There is no listing for this branch.
Now, regarding the President’s inquiry as to whether or not an exit interview was done with former government officials”, my respond is NO. There is no law requiring an exit interview”. The National Code of Conduct in Part 10.1 provides: Every Public Official and Employee of Government involved in making decisions affecting contracting, tendering or procurement , and issuance of licenses of various types shall sign performance of financial bonds and shall in addition declare his or her income, assets and liabilities prior to taking office and therefore : (a) at the end of every three years; (b) on the promotion or progression from one level to another; (c)upon transfer to another public office; and (d) upon retirement or resignation.
I believe you are referring to the “exit declaration”. This is another weakness in the Code of Conduct because there is not supplemental clause that compels or punishes public officials upon retirement, resignation or even dismissal to file their exit declaration. We have had less than 1% compliance with this provision and the law does not give the LACC neither power nor authority to ensure compliance by officials exiting government.
Finally, Sir, I want to draw you attention to your salutation in your letter where you refer to me as Mr. Counselor at Law. Please note that “Counselor-At-Law is a professional title and it’s not my surname. Counselor Verdier; Mr. Verdier etc. I hope this is taken into consideration in future communication.”
LACC Boss’s Days Waning
The exchange comes as Cllr. Verdier is winding down his tenure as head of the anti-graft body.
Cllr. Verdier was appointed by former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on February 27, 2014 and should be ending his tenure in five days.
Under the 2008 Act establishing the LACC, the Chairperson and Vice Chairperson of the Commission shall be appointed by the President for a term of five (5) years each, and shall be eligible for reappointment for one additional term of five (5) years.
Cllr. James Verdier, Chair, Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission(LACC)
“I believe you are referring to the “exit declaration”. This is another weakness in the Code of Conduct because there is not supplemental clause that compels or punishes public officials upon retirement, resignation or even dismissal to file their exit declaration. We have had less than 1% compliance with this provision and the law does not give the LACC neither power nor authority to ensure compliance by officials exiting government. ”
“To ensure continuity, the President on a staggered term basis, subject to confirmation by the Liberian Senate, the President shall appoint three (3) additional Commissioners for terms as follows: (a) One (1) Commissioner shall be appointed for an initial term of four (4) years. (b) One (1) Commissioner shall be appointed for an initial term of three (3) years. (c) One (1) Commissioner shall be appointed for an initial term of two (2) years. Therefore, all subsequent appointments shall be for a fixed period of five years. Commissioner so appointed shall be eligible for reappointment once.”
Multiple sources confirmed to FrontPageAfrica this week that it is unlikely that President Weah would renew the tenure of the departing LACC boss.
Last November, Cllr. Verdier told a news conference that about 80 percent of officials within the executive branch of government had failed to declare their assets despite continued engagement to ensure that they do so in line with the law. The LACC boss said at the time that only 92 of the 460 public officials within the executive branch of government have declared their assets. “All officials of the executive branch, who are required to file asset declarations, but have failed to do so should be reprimanded and or suspended for one month without pay,” Cllr. Verdier said.
According to Verdier, Part 15.1 sanctions for infringement of the national Code of Conduct (CoC) provides that sanctions for any breach of the CoC shall be those prescribed by the Standing Orders of the Civil Service or any other law governing the public service.
During the last days of his tenure, the LACC boss has been taking the Weah-led government to task, telling Radio France International this week that the CDC-led government was holding back its funding and threatening to remove its tenured head, a criticism that has not sat well with Information Minister Lenn Eugene Nagbe, the government’s chief spokesman. “Over the past few months there has been an internal wrangling in the corruption commission itself. Some of the commissioners have been accusing the chairman of not being above board in his financial dealings,” he said, referring to LACC boss James Verdier.
Minister Nagbe dismissed Cllr. Verdier’s criticism over the lack of funding and concerns over a new bill dealing with tenured positions in state agencies. “If you look at Liberia’s current national budget this year there has been more allocation in our budget for transparency institutions including the corruption commission,” said Nagbe, describing how this had demonstrated a strong commitment to the fight against graft.
In his defense, Cllr. Verdier said the allegations against him had already been investigated and were found to be “frivolous”, adding that he had requested a “multi-year system audit” for the LACC.
The LACC boss, who was appointed by former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, had told RFI that the anti-corruption agency’s experience under Weah was “terrible” due to problems with funding and fears that the government would replace the anti-corruption body’s tenured chairperson with a political appointee. “We don’t have funding, we have struggled to actually have this administration put itself behind the fight against corruption and make some bold statements regarding transparency, accountability and ensuring that we can fight corruption.”