New Democrat (Monrovia)
Othello B. Garblah
28 May 2009
President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has vigorously defended the huge salaries some appointees are being paid, such as those at the country's Maritime Bureau, with reports that the Commissioner earns about US20,000 along with US180,000 per annum and others within the Bureau taking US14,000, all tax free.
According to Maritime sources, the Commissioner earns US20,000 monthly from the government while Liberia International Shipping & Corporate Registry LISCR(the hired maritime contractor) reportedly pays him US180,000, totalling 420, per annum, excluding expenses. This totals US420,000 per annum exluding insurance, traveling and related other expenses, sources have revealed. Efforts to obtain a ocopy of the Bureau's budget have proved fruitless, but the President has promised to make it available. The job is not competitive and it's like all other political appointments.
The President said these individuals heading such an enity should be "well paid" in order to get their full performance, adding that she is ready and prepared to defend the huge salaries of the Maritime officials including their Budget to the core.
"I will defend the salaries we pay for the reason (that) the budget is approved by me," President Sirleaf said in response to a question during a press conference Tuesday,stressing, "We will defend it (Maritime Budget) to the core."
She said the Maritime officials were paidy well because she wants them to remain on top of the agency agreement.
"When it comes to Maritime, you know we have an agency agreement with LISCR (Liberia International Shipping and Corporate Registry), that agency agreement pays the agent a certain amoount of money in keeping with an agreement that was rectified by the Legislature. We also have Liberians who are working with that agency in the US, in Boston, the salaries of those Liberians are fixed according to the function of their jobs on equal pales with the salaries of the expatriates. So our Maritime people here must also be on the same level," she said.
President Sirleaf further defended the Maritime thousands saying "LTA makes a lot of money too. In those agencies that are dealing with people and agencies where we want to make sure they remained financially independent we pay them well. I wish we could pay everybodd in government well."
The president said there was no reason for officials at the Bureau of Maritime to be withholding the budget saying that she would ask them to make it public.
"So, there is no reason for you to not have the budget. And I will order them to do it. There is no such thing like 10% that goes to them that is not true. That particular law or procedure was put aside a long time ago. But they have a budget, they get pay well. We can defend it because we want to make sure that they stay on top of the agency arrangement. The government gets its share of the budget in accordance with that agreement," she said.
The Maritime bureau has been subjected to massive abuse n the past, with the UN Panel of Experts intervening and calling it "cash extraction box" under Mr. Taylor. About four years later, the current commissioner Kesselly, reports say, submitted and approved a budget totaling $2. 712,800.00. Mr. Kesselly's allotted budget for the purchase of vehicles surpasses the recast budget approved during the transitional period. Mr. Kesselly's budget includes, among other things, $US 180,000 for vehicles purchase, $20,000 for computer and other related equipment, $25,000 for office furniture and furnishings, $150,000 for reconstruction and improvement works, $200,000 for personnel Insurance(Local and International), $75,000 for foreign daily allowance and $300,000 for business development. All for a staff of 75.
Reports also say Mr. Kesselly's overall budget beats the budget mark cited by Moore Stephens which at the time was US$856,000 representing 39 percent cut. The auditors reported that "Most of the proposed savings are from operating expenditure. Interestingly fixed, which perhaps underlines a lack of efficiency of expenditure control in these areas, for example rent and utilities and vehicle operating expenses, and communicating and postage. "The savings were perhaps understandably light in the area of personnel although the Commissioner was singled out for special treatment with a "Commissioner allowance". The capital budget includes eight vehicles for the commissioner and his deputies to allow for the smooth running of the registry of the entity." The current budget does not stipulate how many vehicles are being purchased by the current BMA leadership.
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