By Amin Kef (Ranger)
As a follow up to our probe into issues raised in the 2021 Audi Report, this medium has now unearthed new evidences that clearly point to the fact that payment that was made to a member of staff that was attached to Sierra Leone’s Embassy in Washington, USA, Fatmata Dao, up to the period of 2019, were justifiable as it was in honour of salaries and leave allowances that she was legally entitled to.
The decision to pay her was based on the fact that she was still a staff of the Embassy in Washington although she was on study leave and as a result it was totally right for her to be entitled to salaries and allowances.
From our investigation, it was against such a backdrop that on the 21st December, 2017, the Director General (DG), Human Resource Management Office (HRMO), conveyed approval to the Director General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MFAIC), for Fatmata Dao, with Pin code 127806 to proceed on study leave with pay for 2017/2018 at her former duty station in America.
Our investigation further proved that on the 1st February, 2018, the DG, MFAIC, conveyed the approval to the Minister Counsellor and Head of Chancery of the Embassy.
Then on the 1st August, 2018, the DG, MFAIC, sent another memo to the Minister Counsellor/HoC that funds had been transferred to the Mission’s account in order to make payment to Fatmata Dao.
Also, in January 2019, the DG, MFAIC, issued another memo requesting the Minister Counsellor/HOC to make payment to Fatmata Dao after sending salary backlog for August to December, 2018 of US$31,368.55 and a backlog salary in respect of November 2017 to July 2018 of US$56,463.39.
On the 19th June 2019, the DG, MFAIC, conveyed an extension of approval for study leave with pay for Fatmata Dao with effective 2018/2019 from the DG, HRMO.
It must be underscored that based on approvals from the HRMO, the conveyance of approvals of memos, and physical sending of the funds, the Embassy made the payments to Fatmata Dao.
By all indications, it was realized that no clandestine or unauthorized payment was made to the diplomatic staff that borders on any corrupt practice whatsoever.
What as a matter of fact came out glaringly during the investigation is that whenever there is a change of Government some Members of staff in the country’s diplomatic missions find themselves in awkward positions as they are most times summarily recalled from their duty locations to be replaced by other political appointees. Those recalled or left out in the cold then start the tortuous process of claiming all their emoluments or entitlements.
Unfortunately, sometimes these unfortunate members of staff are treated with a dint of political discrimination, looking at them as belonging to the Political Party of the Government that was in power whilst they served in those Missions.
As a result, those caught up in a situation of having to claim allowances and benefits are treated with disdain and left to struggle until it pleases those who should effect payments do so.
After a thorough assessment, this medium has proved beyond all reasonable doubts that some of these diplomatic staff belong to the Civil Service and are not politicians.
It is expected that with proper understanding, this wrong perception will change and a clear distinction made between political appointees and public servants otherwise the trend of political discrimination will still continue.
