By Ethel A. Tweh
Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation (LWSC) Director General-designate Mr. Mohammed Ali has complained about an increase of employees from just 189 in 2017 to 669 in 2023.
Appearing before the Liberian Senate for his confirmation hearing, Mr. Ali said he did not intend to sack people at the entity, but he was concerned about the heavy load of staffers there.
Ali appeared before the Senate Committee on Public Corporations chaired by Margibi County Senator James Emmanuel Nuquay on Monday, 19 February 2024 on Capitol Hill.
Mr. Ali recounted that the general staff of the entity was 189 with a payroll of US$155,521.66 in 2017.
According to him, in December of 2023, the employees increased to 669 and increased the payroll to US$384,160.18. He lamented that this makes the entity dependent on the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning.
“One of our problems at the LWSC is staffing. In December of 2017, the LWSC had 189 employees with a payroll of US$155,521.66 a month,” he explained.
“By the time we got into December 2023, the employees’ number had grown to 669, increasing the payroll to US$384,160.18, [and made] the entity dependent on the Ministry of Finance,” he added.
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The LWSC boss-designate noted that the institution is supposed to be contributing to the national budget.
Unfortunately, he said it rests squarely on the Ministry of Finance to service its payroll, something he promised to change with the support of the Senate if confirmed.
He also indicated that on 1 April 2023, 154 persons were employed while between July and November 2023, 20 janitors and 85 security officers gained employment at the public institution.
He disclosed that such employment was done in the absence of vetting to establish whether they met the requisite criteria. He said this continues to create a burden on the entity.
Ali said his administration will regularize water supply across the country. But he told the Senators that there is a major problem with the accessibility of water in Central Monrovia.
He narrated that most of the pipes are built on by residents, thus making the task difficult.
The LWSC boss-designate has planned to outsource the metering on a prepaid basis as being done by the Liberia Electricity Corporation.
He said he wants to ensure that citizens pay for the water. He believes that if private entities handle the metering, they will collect the money and increase the efficiency of the supply.
Ali said they intend to work with the Ministry of Public Works to ensure that they recover their pipes, noting that this can be done by first identifying where they have clots in the sewage system through the engineers.
