By Shadrach Aziz Kamara
FREETOWN – A wave of salary irregularities and unauthorized secondment practices within the Ministry of Agriculture has been exposed by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament. Chairman Hon. Ibrahim Tawa Conteh, during a parliamentary hearing, highlighted disturbing cases of staff receiving double salaries, overstaying secondments, and remaining on the payroll without formal authorization or oversight.
One of the most glaring cases involved an employee (PIN: 132658) seconded to the National Commission for Social Action (NaCSA), who collected a net salary of NLe 494,560 between May 2020 and December 2023, despite the absence of official secondment approval from the Human Resource Management Office (HRMO). The ministry acknowledged the lapse and said the individual began repaying the amount after audit findings were revealed.
Another case involved an Agriculture Officer (PIN: 134564), seconded to the National Fertilizer Regulatory Agency (NFRA), who received salary payments even after taking up full-time duties at the new agency. The ministry confirmed that a repayment was made in March 2024, following audit scrutiny.
More troubling, however, were revelations that staff with PINs 132661, 142455, and 128367 remained on indefinite secondment—far beyond the two-year limit set by Rule 5.26 of the Civil Service Code. These individuals neither resumed duties at the ministry nor resigned, yet continued drawing salaries, raising suspicions of ghost workers and systemic payroll fraud.
The committee also identified a Monitoring and Evaluation Officer (PIN: 140004) who had remained on secondment for five consecutive years—blatantly violating civil service guidelines.
Despite the ministry’s known staffing shortages, PAC Chairman Hon. Conteh criticized the continued secondment of key personnel to external agencies without proper accountability. “We are denying job opportunities to others while keeping the civil service clogged with inactive or mismanaged personnel,” he stated.
The Ministry of Agriculture responded by stating that directives had been sent to all relevant project managers and agency heads, instructing seconded staff whose tenures had expired to either return to the ministry or formally request extensions. Officials also confirmed that refunds were underway in some cases, with receipts submitted to the Audit Service.
Hon. Conteh emphasized that this practice—where staff retain their ministry status while receiving higher pay at donor-funded agencies—undermines civil service integrity and effective governance. He called for urgent reforms and rigorous enforcement of secondment protocols.
The PAC has pledged to work closely with the HRMO and Audit Service Sierra Leone to recover misused funds and ensure full compliance with personnel management laws.
