Monrovia, Liberia – A thorough system review of the Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs (MOS) spanning the period up to March 31, 2024, has been completed and submitted by the General Auditing Commission (GAC) to the National Legislature.
The study evaluates the financial management systems run by G. Wesseh Blamo (August 2021–January 2024), Sylvester M. Grigsby (January 2024–present), and Nathaniel Farlo McGill (January 2018–August 2021).
The purpose of the evaluation was to determine if the Ministry’s financial management procedures and systems comply with established rules, laws, policies, and legislative rulings. In order to evaluate these systems and provide suggestions for enhancements, the GAC conducted a limited assurance engagement, encouraging the Ministry to adopt responsible financial management procedures.
Significant problems in governance, budget management, financial reporting, personnel management, procurement, inventory, fixed assets, and information technology management were found during the GAC’s review.
The GAC could not find any policy pertaining to the hiring and supervision of additional staff. The additional payroll, which included 739 people and paid $2,622,060 annually more than half of regular staff salaries was unknown to the Civil Service Agency (CSA).
Funds from other budget lines, including consulting, were diverted without the appropriate approval from the Deputy Minister of Budget and the CSA, and there was no proof that these wages had been budgeted for or reported.
There was no documented competitive recruitment process or performance reviews, nor was there an established wage structure for these employees. The GAC raised concerns about identification verification when it discovered that some employees had duplicate National identification (NID) numbers.
According to the GAC, bank accounts were formed at the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) without the necessary authorization, which would have made it easier for illegal transactions to take place.
There were four secret accounts at the Liberia Bank for Development and Investment (LBDI) with suspicious transactions totaling $878,295.34, including a “JULY 26 Celebrations Escrow Account” holding $38,835.95 and L$55,145.72.
Complete personnel documents, including as employment contracts, qualification lists, job descriptions, and security clearances, were missing from the Ministry. This shortcoming had an impact on multiple workers. Without any proof of retirement plans, five employees who had passed the retirement age were still being paid.
A number of parks built by the Presidential Special Project Department/Section have problems in their management that the GAC found. There was no protocol in place to oversee these parks.
The Monrovia City Corporation (MCC) outsourced the parks to Green Park Management Incorporated (GPM Inc.) without holding a competitive bidding procedure or providing proof of park management experience. The absence of mechanisms for capital recovery, income sharing, and fee regulation in the agreement may have an impact on the parks’ ability to be financially sustainable.
The Revenue Code of Liberia Act of 2011, the Public Financial Management Act 2009 (Amended 2019), the Public Procurement and Concessions Act of 2005 (Amended 2010), the Civil Service Standing Order, and the Decent Work Act of 2015 were among the important regulations that the GAC found the Ministry’s financial management systems did not comply with.
