{"id":53010,"date":"2024-02-26T14:21:39","date_gmt":"2024-02-26T14:21:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-i-will-not-play-politics-with-peoples-salaries-livelihoods"},"modified":"2024-02-26T14:48:12","modified_gmt":"2024-02-26T14:48:12","slug":"liberia-i-will-not-play-politics-with-peoples-salaries-livelihoods","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/liberia-i-will-not-play-politics-with-peoples-salaries-livelihoods","title":{"rendered":"Liberia: \u2018I Will Not Play Politics, with People\u2019s Salaries, Livelihoods\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Liberia. <\/strong><\/span>The Speaker of the House of Representatives, J. Fonati Koffa, has come under fire for what some critics termed as the swift passage of the US$41.3m Budget recently submitted by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, with some insinuating that the budget did not receive the level of scrutiny that it should have from the opposition-controlled Lower House.The passage of the spending bill, which is intended to cover expenses for the month of February 2024, has been met with mixed reactions, but Speaker Koffa has responded to his critics not only in a succinct way but also aptly \u2014 noting that the budget got the deserving scrutiny holistically and realistically.<\/p>\n

The Speaker, at a press conference on Friday, 23 February 2024 at the Capitol Building, said that the House of Representatives acted carefully and judiciously to keep the government functional and afloat for February to avoid a shutdown.<\/p>\n

He frowned on those who argued that the US$41.3m should have been given \u201cmore time to be scrutinized,\u201d indicating that the US$41.3m budget passed the test of time and the majority of the lawmakers have a better understanding and this was expressed through their votes.<\/p>\n

The Speaker, who is also the Grand Kru County District #2 Representative, stated he would not do anything that would deny the Civil Servants their timely salary payment or stagnate the workings of the Government of Liberia. He also emphasized the House\u2019s commitment to promoting transparency, accountability, and openness under his leadership.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe look at the budget holistically and on the issues \u2014 what the line items are based on but not on our feeling that we are CDC opposition lawmakers to oppose the President\u2019s budget or with the President to support the budget. The question should be whether or not this budget passes the test of time \u2014 the US$41m budget passed that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaker Koffa added: \u201cI am not prepared to hold civil servants\u2019 salaries on a political maneuvering or political stunts. I simply can\u2019t do it.<\/p>\n

He asked rhetorically: \u201cDid I want to have the budget and embarrass the government to reject it? Yes, that\u2019s a nice thing to do and some people will be lifting me that I am a hero because I oppose the government (by rejecting the budget); but what happens the next day? When do people have to get paid? What happens?<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople will talk about the political thing, but sitting in this chair as the 3rd most powerful person in this country, I am not going to play politics with people\u2019s salaries or livelihood.\u201d<\/p>\n

The top priorities in February\u2019s spending bill include compensation or salaries for government employees, which constitutes US$26 million (63%); Debt Servicing, US$5.7 million (14%); the president\u2019s 100-day deliverables agenda, US$1,941,210 (5%); and other goods and services, US$1,514,000 (5%).<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Liberia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Liberia. The Speaker of the House of Representatives, J. Fonati Koffa, has come under fire for what some critics termed as the swift passage of the US$41.3m Budget recently submitted by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, with some insinuating that the budget did not receive the level of scrutiny that it should have from […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":53008,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,12],"tags":[233,237,234],"class_list":["post-53010","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-liberia","tag-liberia"],"yoast_head":"\nLiberia: \u2018I Will Not Play Politics, with People\u2019s Salaries, Livelihoods\u2019 - Liberia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Speaker of the House of Representatives, J. 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