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NEARING AN END? Auditor General of Liberia, John S. Morlu is escorted from the Unity Conference Center following his presentation to lawmakers over the 2007 budget. As he prepares to wind down his audits, a crucial chapter looms for Morlu as his two-year contract nears completion. Morlu’s contract is up in April 2009. But Morlu says the contract issue is the least of his worries right now. “Right now, I am concern only with reaching the end of my contract." |
hat a difference a couple of years have made for John S. Morlu. The controversial and sometimes polarizing head of the General Auditing Commission in Liberia is in the news nowadays for all the right reasons - at least in the eyes of some of the forces among the powers that be in Liberia.
It has been a little over a year now since Morlu’s now infamous declaration that the Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s government was three times more corrupt than its predecessor - the National Transitional Government of Liberia headed by Charles Gyude Bryant, drew ire from the administration and a downpour of assaults from key administration officials.
 GAUGING HIS SUCCESS |
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“Let the Liberian people be the judge. “Let the Government be the judge. Let our international partners be the judge. Today, we have built a credible, independent and professional Supreme Audit Institution. I believe we are one of very few high performing supreme audit institutions recognized in Africa, today. In all sincerity, I did not come to Liberia to succeed. I came simply to assist the President and the National Legislature to make a difference.
JOHN S. MORLU III, AUDITOR GENERAL, RL |
In the wake of recently release audits - and those yet to be released by the GAC, it appears the John Hopkins-educated Morlu is now in the good books of a government, suddenly eager to fulfill its obligations to the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program and the international community, a prerequisite for the splashing of future aid to Liberia.
For a while, many including Morlu’s critics were beginning to conclude that he would never be able to complete the audits - or back up his “three times more corrupt” claims. But Morlu laments that he has not been deterred by his detractors. “That is their business. They do not know me, personally and professionally. I do not believe I have ever failed at anything I commit to doing. No matter the obstacles and challenges, I usually find creative and innovative means to get the job done. That is how I got ahead in corporate America. I do not whine and complain. I just do what I can with the limited resources available. I came from America with my God, my computer and shared intellectual prowess buttressed by solid education, extensive experience, and international exposure. They must not underestimate what a man can deliver, no matter the challenges.”
While much of the political atmosphere in Monrovia was at first skeptical in the initial days after Morlu’s declaration, the aftermath of Morlu’s assertion saw stories of corruption surfaced in virtually every sector of the government, the most noticeable instances included: the controversy surrounding the auctioning a container at the National Port Authority, the Scandal at Kendeja which led to the dismissal of a junior minister; fraudulent domestic debt payments, the Buchana Renewables Energies(BRE) saga; the Delta Mining and not forgetting some 50 corruption pronouncement made recently by the President. More recently, the entire Board of Directors at the Liberian Electricity Corporation (LEC) were dismissed over corruption allegations and the County Development Fund, US$16.8 million additional revenue put back into the National Budget. At the ministry of State, it was discovered that one office had submitted two budgets to the National Legislature. More recently, a chain of email communications, letters and other documents pointed to even more problems of corruption involving concession contracts and key administration officials.
Within his own agency, Morlu also used his firing wand to rid the GAC of tainted officials - Deputy Auditor General for Technical Services, David F. McGill and the General Audit Manager, Welehlatue W. Seah, Sr. The two former GRC officials joined the Commission when they were nominated to the position during the National Transitional Government of Liberia (NTGL) by one of the factions of the Accra Peace Agreement, the Government of Liberia
According to the GAC, McGill’s behavior over the course of the past year demonstrated “low integrity”, which is inconsistent with the mandate of the GAC, the first line institution for ensuring integrity throughout government. Most paramount was that the European Union provided a generator for the sole use of the GAC; however, Mr. McGill used his authority by supplying power to a third party, a non-GAC facility to the tune of US$665.95 from November 2006 to January 2007. “This is a blatant abuse of donor issued equipment,” Mr. Morlu said, noting that “this incident has caused the GAC a great embarrassment and a potential financial loss of US$39,000.
For his part, the General Audit Manager, Welehlatue Seah was dismissed for engaging in malpractices including coming to job under the influence of alcohol as well as raining insults of his fellow colleagues. The Auditor General said these and few others acts on the part of McGill and Seah “has brought disrepute to the GRC, the frontline accountability institution for ensuring integrity at all levels of government.”
But even amid a mountain of corruption allegations, Morlu appeared reluctant to take credit or pound on his critics when a reporter called him recently to find out whether he felt vindicated, almost two years after his infamous declaration.
Not ‘about right or wrong’, Morlu says
Says Morlu: “It is not about who is right or wrong. It is about working to the last atom of your strength and passion for change and to purposely do what you are assigned to do. As you are aware, I was hired by the President and the international partners through the European Union (EU) to do a piece of job and that is what I have done. My assigned task is mainly about helping the Government to fix a broken system of governance to build a system of fiscal accountability, fiscal transparency and financial probity in public sector financial management.”
Subtly, Morlu alludes to the obvious which he suggests is ingrained in the Liberian culture. “It is now generally agreed that corruption is our biggest obstacles to economic renewal and development. We can all admit that corruption is a culture that is deeply institutionalized in every spectrum of the society. And as the President has rightly stated, when we put into place effective systems of internal controls over financial management, accountability and transparency will improve and thereby limit the opportunity for people to engage in corruption. Self-correcting and self-balancing mechanisms are what we are now working with the Government to put into place to support the efforts of the Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS). We are trying to be a kind of a “change agent” in Government.”
‘Sloppy argument’ - Small potatoes vs. big potatoes
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Auditors from Ghana discuss strategy. Besides the Ghanaians, five auditors from Zambia also assisted the GAC in auditing selected state organizations and provide the needed on-the-job training to newly recruited staff. |
After all, Morlu continued, “corruption only resides and flourishes in an environment that is not accountable and transparent. People who do not want to be accountable and transparent, for example, will not keep financial records because they can be traced and brought to book. Essentially, instead of moving backwards, we are saying let us demonstrate as a Government, what systems we have put in place to checkmate fraud, waste and abuse.” In the end Morlu says the government will be judged by the reform efforts we put into place to diminish corruption.
As Morlu unleashes the first batch of audits of the Sirleaf government, critics have been quick to pound the AG that he may have already been compromised, with some already suggesting that the NAASCORP and Bong Mines audits released so far are only targeting the small fishes while a sea of big wits including Harry Greaves’ LPRC and Chris Toe at the Ministry of Agriculture and others remain untouched.
But Morlu explains that the process is taking shape, one step at a time: “Auditing is not a quick and rush work. Remember in the Liberian parlance that hurry hurry bursts trousers. It is a step by step and arduous process. It is not a personal matter against so and so individuals or institutions. We are doing our best with the support of 23 Auditors-General in Africa to deliver not just audits but quality audits that add significant value to the push for fiscal accountability, transparency and probity. I am doing my job and the timing and sequence of events are purely my prerogative, though delay from auditees can also cause hiccups to the process.”
According to Morlu, the materiality threshold is low for Government audit. “Every penny of public resources is significant and we are doing all we can to ensure that almost, always, every cent of public monies are accounted for. As a matter of fact, it is a sloppy slope argument and even foolhardy to measure one’s progress against another’s time-line and sequence.”
Thus, the AG wonders who is determining which institutions in Liberia are big potatoes and which one are small potatoes. Well, so far on the public accountability front, I developed a risk matrix to prioritize the auditing efforts on high impact and strategically important institutions. Again, who is determining what small potatoes are and what are big potatoes? We must stop personalizing the war on corruption instead assumed an institutional and system approach. Our efforts have to be purely professional and institutional focused. “
Curtailing corruption -Morlu, EM on good footing now
In a testament to the budding improved relationship between the Executive Mansion and Morlu, Sirleaf recently suggested during her monthly radio program, “Conversation with the President”, that she is currently working with Morlu, to put in place a system that would help to curb corruption in the government. According to Sirleaf, “when the system is put into place”, corruption in government would be curtailed. Sirleaf stated that in an attempt to fight corruption in government, the names of government officials who are accused of the act are now being exposed and their names forwarded to the Ministry of Justice for action, “unlike in the past where their names were hidden”.
Sirleaf’s declaration was a 360-turn from the early days when the administration and Morlu were at loggerheads over not only his “three times more corrupt” statement but his public ridicule of the government’s budget.
Water under the bridge? Building legacy with prez
Now Morlu says it is all water under the bridge. “Just doing my job the best way I know how. I have just stuck to God, Principle and Integrity (GPI). That is what the President wanted in an Auditor-General. I believe our international partners wanted an experience principle minded person with the global exposure, commitment and integrity to lead the reform and transformation of the new GAC. I am glad to have been chosen, although through a competitive process.”
According to Morlu, he really never felt that he had a problem with the President. In fact, he implies that the President is his biggest supporter. “She asked me to apply for the post. Her appointment when I was selected. She insisted that I come home and assist. She cares about my well-being and that of my family. She know me personally. I believe you all know I supported her. I even got into a media fight over her administration. The records are there. So I am not some stranger to her, at all. She has to succeed, so some of us are around to push the envelope for accountability and transparency.”
In all honesty, Morlu explains that the President likes people like him who are committed to doing their job professionally with a high degree of innovative spice. “I am helping to make her the Accountability President in Africa. Again, she asked me to come home and assist her fight corruption and I took that literally and that is all I have stuck to doing in the last 18 months. Let me summed up, I have also squarely focused on doing my job in line with best practices. The President is our best chance to redeem and rebuild this country…and I am just doing my best to assist her build a legacy.”
Govt. vs. Morlu: Rugged start, lots of turmoil
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“At this point, though, I will say that I am biased to leaving. I believe that in a small way I have contributed to the issue of accountability and transparency. I have made some difference, I hope. Is two years not enough? Going to law school is a big option as well, as Unisys was going to pay for it. But I put that on hold and came to Liberia to serve as AG.
JOHN S. MORLU III, AUDITOR GENERAL, RL |
If Morlu and the Executive Branch are now walking a fine line, their rugged past was anything but smooth during the initial days. In fact, Sirleaf’s declaration and Morlu’s newfound appreciation is a far cry from the government’s initial position in which corruption reports were greeted with strong denials and demand of proof from journalists by Sirleaf - before Knuckles-Gate hit the heart of what appears to be some of the backdoor dealings by some administration officials. In fact, the government appeared reluctant to release reports or make public any reports of corruption. The issue was a sensitive one and the boiling point which set off a chain of exchanges between Morlu and the President.
Even the legislative branch also had some beef with Morlu. In early 2008, the Senate rejected a formal communication from the GAC bearing the signature Morlu, informing it of the Commission’s intention to conduct a “transactional audit” there shortly. AG Morlu wrote the House of Senate informing it of the GAC’s intention to conduct a “transactional audit” of the upper House. It is expected to focus on the transaction of the Senate during the period 2006 to 2007.
In June 2007, Sirleaf accused Morlu of conducting pre and not post audit of the national budget in violation of Section 53.3 of the Executive Law and Duties of Auditor General. In response, Morlu says he was only reiterating the President’s earlier statement on corruption, when he made the remark that the Sirleaf administration was three times more corrupt then Bryant’s government.
In his critique of the budget, Morlu pointed to a December 2006 UN Panel of Experts report which stated that “The new Government, however, had problems in spending, which left more than 50 per cent of the budget to be spent in the last month — June — of the recast budget period,” adding, “At present, more emphasis is being given to the release of funds than to performance and value for money.”
The AG said as of June 22, 2007, the Liberian Government has a US$31,841,540 cash balance. But questioned whether the government could spend all that money within 8 days while we are still generating revenue. Without even taking into consideration the additional revenue generated between May 22, 2007 to June 22, 2007, we have gone from US$47 million down to a round up of US$32 million. That is US$15 million spent in one month. What are they spending money on? It is just a run on the bank to exhaust money before the fiscal year ends without consideration what the money is spent on how? Arguably, would not that be considered fiscal irresponsibility, a waste of taxpayer’s money?” At the time, Morlu asserted that the budget is the most important economic document in any country and if corruption is to be fought, it has to start there. According to Morlu, the budget was filled with a lot of potholes and unanswered questions and raises a lot of red flags that if not corrected now could pose serious consequences in the long run – to the detriment of Liberia .
Morlu ‘not my enemy’, says Ngafuan
Today, Augustine Ngafuan, the former budget director who bore the brunt of Morlu’s assault is now Finance Minister. Antoinette Sayeh, his predecessor is now at the International Monetary Fund. But even Ngafuan would tell FPA later, that despite their differences, he and Morlu share a mutual respect. “Morlu is not my enemy and I am not Morlu’s enemy. But even if he considers me to be an enemy, which I don’t think he has done, I will never ever consider Morlu my enemy. In fact, he is my brother. We are two young Liberian professionals trying to do our jobs from different perspectives. I have been in leadership since elementary school and one of my characteristics is extreme tolerance of the views of others, even if those views are unpalatable, scathing, unfair, blatantly false and personal. But while I respect the right of anybody to differ with me, I too have the right to tell the person that I differ with their differing. This is the democratic process.”
Besides the budget, Morlu also took the administration to task over unnecessary tax waivers. “We have learned a managing director has been dismissed from RIA for waiving almost US$100,000 in duties to a cell phone company. How will the administration ever built this Nation when people are waiving taxes and custom duties? The Revenue Code of Liberia 2000 says that the Minister of Finance should report 60 days after the end of the calendar year the value of tax exemptions and waivers to the National Legislature and that the document should be made public. Has she done that? Why? Is it because the value of waivers and exemptions are a significant portion of amount collected?” Sirleaf herself has decried the bogus transactions and payments to bogus entities and has described it as syndicated. “If the administration cannot project this surplus as an opening balance, it could be spent without consideration for value for money,” says Morlu.
But silently - and publicly, government officials were hoping Morlu would keep his views to himself - or at least to the audit books, quietly. But Morlu declared at the time, he really had no choice – his plight was ignored and he lacked the support needed to carry out his work.
In response to the President, Morlu asserted that there was nothing secretive about a public document like the budget. “A private citizen may present comments and analysis of the Budget to his Senator and/or Representative. The Auditor General should be applauded for identifying sources of revenue left out of the Budget and not crucified,” said Morlu at the time.
Despite Morlu’s explanation Sirleaf countered in her letter that keeping sensitive government information secret would allow the AG to make comments and suggestions in the constructive spirit in which I believe you intended to contribute to the budget process in our country,” according to the letter obtained by FrontPageAfrica.
But Morlu informed the President: “As you are aware, the introductory paragraph of section “S 53.3 Duties of the Auditor General” of the Executive Law of 1972 states: “The Auditor General shall be the officer of the Government principally responsible for conducting comprehensive post audit…” In your letter you indicate that “instead, the Office of the Auditor General has only reviewed and analyzed the draft National Budget…”
Sirleaf said the Auditor General’s review and analysis of the draft National Budget amounts to a ‘pre-audit and not a post-audit as mandated by the Law. “It appears to me that in conducting such a pre-audit, the Office of the General Auditor acted in conflict with, or at best in deviation from, its statutory duty.”
But Morlu denied the President’s claims and responded by saying that some senior officials in the government were talking not from an informed position as he was only reiterating the President’s earlier statement on corruption, when he made the remark that the Sirleaf administration was three times more corrupt the Bryant’s government. “The President stated ‘There is systemic corruption in Liberia ...and she inherited some of the corruption." All I did was to quantify what the President has said,” said Morlu. The Auditor General said it is not up to the President to clarify or state how systemic is corruption in quantitative terms. “How much also did she inherit from past governments, 10 percent, 20 percent or 100 percent?”
Continued Morlu: “President Sirleaf herself said this that there is systemic corruption in her government, that her government is a syndicate of corrupt people, a syndicate. So what’s the problem? All I did was to quantify what Sirleaf had already said.” She said this on the radio and everyone heard it. How did she come to this, did she conduct an audit?", the Auditor General asked.
Lost in the squabbles between the GAC and the executive branch was the fact that it was Sirleaf who, as head of the Governance Reform Commission during the transitional reign, fought to move the General Auditing Commission under the National Legislative, which is consistent with international best practices. Previously, the GAC reported to the President of Liberia. Coincidence or not, it happens that Sirleaf’s Presidency is bearing the fruits of the historic change in the process. As President, Sirleaf’s wish came back to bite her as Morlu became a torn in her administration’s side early on.
Audit phobia in Lib: Non-cooperation a factor
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| Overcoming bad roads is another challenge for auditors in pursuit of documents. |
With the GAC now in the process of wrapping up a number of important government audits, the process has endured numerous hurdles, including reluctance by some government ministries and agencies to cooperate with the GAC in turning over documents to facilitate the auditing process.
The current Audits which began November 27,2007 were postponed twice from April 20 to May 20th 2008 and from May 20th to June 20, 2008 due to delay from the Central Bank of Liberia(CBL) and the Ministry of Finance to submit Bank Statements
According to the GAC, since the audits started, GAC had made myriads of calls and appeals to governmental agencies and organizations to fully cooperate in a reasonable period of time to ensure that the timeline set for audits is met, but this has not been so”, the Engagement Manager asserted in a press release issued by the Communication Department, adding “June 30.2008, which is the deadline of the fiscal period of 2007/2008 is right near our door steep.”
After several appeals and an intervention from Sirleaf, some began to budge.
For Morlu and the GAC, the bank statement was crucial to the completion of the agency’s work as it serves as the most formal, independent, authoritative document for an auditor and failure on the part of the government to cooperate fully is hampering the completion of audits. “Because the bank statement shows all the debit, whether legal or illegal debit in your account and the credit to your account. It shows the actual legal expenditure and revenues deposited in the bank accounts.
The Executive Law of 1972, Chapter 53.4 provides that the Auditor General, or his designee is entitled to free access at all times to all files, documents and other records to the accounts of every Government Agency and Government organizations, and he is also entitled to require and receive from officials and employees such information as he may deem necessary for the proper performance of his duties. The release added that the Auditor General by law may station in any Government agency or government organization any person employed by the GAC to exercise more effectively the audit functions.
Bank statements have yielded positive results in other African countries like Tanzania where President Jakaya Kikwete, last year sacked his Central Bank Governor Daudi Ballali after an audit exposed fraudulent transactions involving the repayment of external debts.
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| Liberian auditors share notes before heading on to the field. |
An audit by global accountants Ernst and Young had revealed that more than 120 million US dollars had been improperly paid to 22 local firms through the central bank's external payment arrears account. The governor, Daudi Ballali, was forced to resign following the revelation, citing health reasons, as the auditors were finishing their report. He was replaced by his deputy, Benno Ndulu. Kikwete was recently singled out by U.S. President George W. Bush for his aggressive efforts in cracking down on corruption since coming to power in 2005. Kikwete's efforts have also attracted investors in the increasingly competitive east Africa region.
In Liberia, however the non-submission of documents proved to be a stumbling block - until now. J.S. Mensah, one of 12 auditors brought in from Ghana to help the GAC conduct audits of the government told FPA back in May that the non-cooperation was hurting the completion of the audits. “It is not helping us or enabling us to go to the ministries to continue the work because all of the documents are centralized at the Ministry of Finance and if we don’t examine them thoroughly and adequately we might not be able to do in depth audit at the various agencies and ministries,” Mensah says.
Besides the Ghanaians, five auditors from Zambia also assisted the GAC in auditing selected state organizations and provide the needed on-the-job training to newly recruited staff. Also, fourteen auditors from ten English speaking African supreme audit institutions arrived in June 2008 to assist GAC with HIPC-sanctioned audits of the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Lands, Mines and Energy Ministry of Public Works and the Ministry of Agriculture
Is Morlu’s Number up? Contract nearing end
As he prepares to wind down his audits, a crucial chapter looms for Morlu as his two-year contract nears completion. Morlu’s contract is up in April 2009. But Morlu says the contract issue is the least of his worries right now. “Right now, I am concern only with reaching the end of my contract. Opportunities for me are endless because wherever I have worked I have added significant value. This is why Unisys Corporation allowed me to take a leave of absence because when I worked there, I was able to make a difference and add value to bottom line performance and consequently improvement in earnings per share performance.”
But Morlu’s final decision may derive from a personal perspective and not a professional one. His wife, Angie, an African-American, who expressed fears for Morlu and pleaded for his return during his early struggles with the administration, wishes he returns home to help her care for one of the Morlu’s son who is sickly. Because he took a leave of absence, the insurance cost has been a burden on the Morlu family. Thus, Morlu’s ultimate decision could boil down to family over another two years in Liberia.
Nevertheless, Morlu says his options are endless. “At this point, though, I will say that I am biased to leaving. I believe that in a small way I have contributed to the issue of accountability and transparency. I have made some difference, I hope. Is two years not enough? Going to law school is a big option as well, as Unisys was going to pay for it. But I put that on hold and came to Liberia to serve as AG. Going to law school was always my first option but I had to get an MBA and other professional certifications to make some money fast to take care of my family at an early age. I believe the time now is right…and at age 35, the professional opportunities are tremendously promising. But again, the President, EU and me will decide when we reached that point, although it is befitting to say that the discussions are underway for a potential renewal.”
Fate lies in court of public opinion
Asked by a reporter whether he feels he has accomplished his tasks - with the completion of the audits, Morlu says his fate lies in the court of public opinion. “Let the Liberian people be the judge. “Let the Government be the judge. Let our international partners be the judge. Today, we have built a credible, independent and professional Supreme Audit Institution. I believe we are one of very few high performing supreme audit institutions recognized in Africa, today. In all sincerity, I did not come to Liberia to succeed. I came simply to assist the President and the National Legislature to make a difference. I came to also work for the Liberian people. I have delivered on all the 12 points in my terms of reference (ToRs), if you call that accomplishment.”
For Morlu, the most important question ought to be whether he has made a difference to which he contends he has. “I believe I can answer that in the affirmative. It is much difficult to make a difference than to pencil check a list of deliverables and accomplishments. This is because to make a difference requires a spiritual commitment to your God, your Principle, and your Integrity.”
Morlu says thanks to his leadership , the GAC has managed to recruit “the best-in-class professionals Liberia has to offer.” According to Morlu, the auditors and team at the GAC have remarkable self confidence in themselves. “They are deeply committed to their country; and they are men and women of the highest integrity. What else accomplishment can one look for in this world? I believe I have made some difference and that is all that matter to me.”
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