Senator Edwin Snowe has petitioned the plenary of the Senate to cite Finance Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan to explain reported reversals of wage harmonization affecting the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC), the General Auditing Commission (GAC) and the Judiciary.
In a statement accompanying the petition, Snowe said recent reports indicate the finance minister publicly disclosed reversals of harmonization “outside of Legislative actions by repealing, amending and/or modifying the existing ‘Act to Establish the Remuneration Standardization of 2019.”
The senator described the Minister’s action as a “gross violation” of law and a disregard for the statutory mandate of the National Legislature.
Snowe said the action prompted him to invoke the Senate’s constitutional oversight role and ask that the minister be summoned to “clarify the veracity of reported reversals of harmonization and provide specific legal authority or statutory reliance under which such actions were taken.”
The senator added that he supports a holistic reversal of harmonization where appropriate, “but let it be done in respect and/or consonance to the law for the good of our country,” the statement said.
The petition asks the Senate to require the finance minister to detail the legal basis for the reported changes and to explain whether any statutory procedures were followed. The matter is expected to be considered by the Senate plenary in the coming days.
