MONROVIA – A member of Joe Boakai’s inner circle, Martin Kollie, has hinted that there is an ongoing scramble for government jobs, warning the president-elect to be mindful of those he claims are unqualified and incompetent, but are seeking posts within the incoming administration.
Boakai is poised to be inaugurated later this month as Liberia’s 26th president, after which he’s expected to name to his administration officials, together with whom he with steer the affairs of the State.
But Martin warned Thursday that President-elect Boakai needs to put his feet down on credential and character checks, indicating that there is an ongoing scramble for jobs by individuals, whom he accused of being unqualified and incompetent for the posts they are interested in occupying in the incoming government.
He reminded Joe Boakai to take cognizant that a similar situation led to the failure of his predecessor, outgoing President George Weah, who Martin accused of appointing to governmental positions individuals, whom he alleged have fake credentials, and that they fell short of delivering essential results in public service.
He added that some of Weah’s officials do not even understand a simple concept in politics, a situation the president-elect’s right-hand man (Martin) described as being sad.
Meanwhile, Smart News Liberia (SNL) has seen a list believed to be the first batch of officials Joe Boakai would appoint to his administration.
Sources close to the president-elect and the Unity Party Alliance have hinted that the list is authentic, indicating that individuals listed therein are tipped to be the first to assume posts in the incoming Joe Boakai-led government.
According to our sources, those to be named among the first batch of Joe Boakai’s officials include former State Radio Director General, Charles Snetter, as Presidential Press Secretary. Snetter currently handles most of the media-related activities of the president-elect.
Others are: former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sylvester Grigsby, as State and Presidential Affairs Minister; internationally acclaimed female diplomat, Sara Frances Beysolow Nyanti, as Minister of Foreign Affairs; defeated Lofa County Rep, Francis Nyumalin, as Minister of Internal Affairs; former Chairman of Unity Party, business guru, Amin Modad, Minister of Commerce and Industry; opposition political leader of the Movement for One Liberia (MOL), MacDella Cooper, Managing Director of the Liberia Petroleum Refinery Corporation (LPRC); Jacob Karba-Kollie, Managing Director of the National Port Authority (NPA); Dr. Emmanuel K. Urey Yarkpawolo of the opposition Liberian People’s Party (LPP), as Managing Director for Liberia’s lone international airport, the Roberts International Airport (RIA); Dr. Louise M. Kpoto, Minister of Health; and renowned economist, financial guru and effective administrator, Austin S. Fallah, as Minister of Finance and Development Planning.
The rest are: the recently dismissed Minister of Post and Telecommunications, Cllr. Cooper Kruah, as Minister of Justice and Attorney General; current high-ranking police officer, Prince Mulbah, as Commissioner, Liberia Immigration Service (LIS); former Deputy Director of Police, Abraham K. Kromah; Inspector General of the Liberia National Police (LNP); Sam Gaye, Director, Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA); Sahr Johnny, Director General, General Services Agency (GSA); and current Minister of National Defense, Major-General Daniel D. Ziankahn, Jr., who according to our sources, has been tipped to retain his post.
At the time of this report, efforts exerted by Smart News Liberia to have independently verified the leaked list containing names of would-be appointees in the incoming Unity Party-led government proved abortive, as some individuals whose names are contained in the list were tightlipped.
