Illegally hired civil servants face boot

MASERU-THE Sam Matekane-led government has ordered ministries and departments to dismiss illegally hired employees.

The government says those illegal contracts should be terminated by the end of January.

Most of those likely to be shown the door are political party functionaries illegally hired on temporary contracts. Many didn’t go through the formal interviews and their positions were not advertised.

Rather, senior officials of the previous government brought lists from which recruiting officers were instructed to hire. The government never made it a secret that it was parceling jobs to party members.

Such blatant nepotism riled the public and soured the mood against the government then led by Moeketsi Majoro.

The order to terminate the contracts comes as the government is battling a financial crisis that has forced it to freeze recruitment and cut off fat in other areas.

Matekane appears to be making good on his election promise to clean up the government that is bleeding due to corruption, fraud and nepotism.

In a memo from the principal secretary for the Ministry of Public Service, Lineo Ramabele-Smith, it said the government had decided to terminate “unlawful appointments”.

The memo says the government has discovered that the ministries, departments and agencies “have been appointing officers without following proper recruitment processes”.

“These are appointments that were not authorised by the relevant appointing authorities,” the memo said.

“Such appointments are mostly done on temporary basis and contract terms,” it reads.

Ramabele-Smith has however warned that necessary processes and procedures should be followed in terminating the contracts.

“An administrative decision made by an organ of state, even if impugnable, is binding until it has been reviewed and declared unlawful by a court,” Ramabele-Smith said.

She advised all ministries, departments and agencies to approach the courts to have their unlawful appointments and recruitments reviewed and nullified before they could be terminated.

The government has also decided to temporarily suspend all recruitment processes until further notice.

These include all previously advertised positions and requests already submitted to the Centre for Assessment as well as those submitted to all appointing authorities.

Ramabele-Smith said this is “due to the financial crisis the country is currently facing”.

“However, in situations where court orders have been issued for either appointment, reinstatement or upgrading of positions or officers, MDAs are requested to comply,” the memo reads.

MDAs are ministries, departments and agencies.

The decision has enraged the official leader of the opposition, former deputy prime minister Mathibeli Mokhothu.

Mokhothu, leader of the Democratic Congress (DC), criticised the decision on his Twitter account.

“Cancellation of the new employments to civil servants and teachers in the name of saving the government funds shows lack of vision by the government,” Mokhothu tweeted.

Mokhothu’s tweet however elicited a barrage of angry responses.

Some said the government is simply correcting the wrongs of Mokhothu and his partners in the previous government.

One told Mokhothu that Matekane is “dealing with the stampede of your party members” hired illegally at the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Ramabele-Smith’s memo said the government is aware that some MDAs might need to fill critical positions, adding that they are advised to submit their request with clear and detailed justifications to the Ministry of Public Service.

“Such requests will be scrutinised by the establishment committee before approval by the principal secretary,” the circular reads.

It further reads that applications for appointments on secondment and new study leave are suspended.

However, those already appointed and granted approval for study leave before the publication of the circular may proceed.

Nkheli Liphoto