New LWSC Director General Plans Audits among Rising Payroll and Staff Flow

Monrovia-Following the defeat of the Former ruling Coalition for Democratic Change, Several Governmental institutions are set to face audit with the recent statement coming from the Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation Director General designate Mohammed Ali  who has expressed optimism to commission an HR and a holistic audit of what he described as a huge increase of employees from 189 in 2017 to 669 in late 2023 without a proper vetting process, something he believes is not in the best interest of the Country.

Making the disclosure before the Senate Committee on Public Corporations chaired by Margibi County Senator James Emmanuel Nuquay Monday, February 19, 2024 in the chamber of that august body Ali recounted that the general staff of the institution stood at 189 with a payroll of US$ one hundred Fifty Five Thousand, Five Twenty one dollars and sixty six cent (155.521.66) in 2017.

According to the spokesperson of the Unity Party during the Presidential and Legislative elections pointed out that in December of 2023, the employees were elevated to six hundred and six (669) thus increasing the payroll to US$ Three hundred eighty four thousand, one hundred sixty and eighteen cent (384,160.18,) which currently makes the entity dependent on the Ministry of Finance and Development-Planning an act Director General frowned at.

The LWSC Boss designate revealed that the institution is supposed to be contributing to the national budget but unfortunately, it rests squarely on the Ministry of Finance to service its payroll; something which he said the when confirmed will work out modalities to lasting solution.

Deliberating further, the steward of the Unity Party said in 2023, 154 persons were employed while between July and November 2023, 20 janitors and 85 security officers gained employment at the public institution, stressing that such employment was done in the absence of vetting to establish whether they met the requisite criteria continues to create a burden on the entity.

He has however stressed that he does not intend to dismiss any Liberian but he wants the two different audits of the system for the effective running of the institution.

“This is not going well for the entity with your support honorable Senators we can fix it, let me say this sometime we don’t intent to sack people but commission the HR audit as well as holistic audit of the entire system to understand what is wrong and what can we change and how can we change it and on the overall improve it the institution” MO. Ali said.

Meanwhile, Ali said his administration will do everything to regularize water supply across the country but noted that is a major problem with availability with water in Central Monrovia, adding that most of the pipes are built on by residents thereby impeding the implementation of the project by the Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation.   

The LWSC Boss  designate has at the same time vowed to outsource the metering on a prepaid basis as being done by the Liberia Electricity Corporation and ensure citizens pay for the water, indicating that if private entities handle the metering, they will collect the money and increase efficiency of the supply.