Bring back Domelevo, pressure group urges Akufo-Addo

The pressure group Citizens Movement Against Corruption is calling on President Akufo-Addo to make real his fight against corruption by recalling the Auditor General, Daniel Yaw Domelevo, from leave, where the president has ordered him to spend 167 days.

Speaking on the Asaase Breakfast Show, the co-chair of the Citizens Movement Against Corruption, Edem Senanu, said Domelevo has distinguished himself during his tenure as Auditor General and must be allowed to continue his good work.

“We’re aware that Domelevo has won awards for Ghana internationally. There are several other countries who have come here to learn about how he put in place the surcharge system, which is done in East Africa as well.

“He is somebody whose reputation precedes him and we’re thinking, ‘Let’s manage this so we set the right precedent,’ ” Senanu said.

He added that having won several awards and received recognition locally and internationally for himself and the country, Domelevo is best suited to continue in the role.

He explained: “What we’re seeking is a solution that does not take away the best of the best when these opportunities come up, because … the likelihood is that anybody going into any of these independent offices [will think] that, ‘If the government doesn’t like what I say, they are going to get rid of me anyway so I won’t bother going there.’ ”

A directive from President Akufo-Addo to Auditor General Domelevo to take his accumulated leave, of 167 days spanning 2017 to 2020, has elicited mixed reactions from sections of the public, including minority political parties and civil society organisations (CSOs).

Scores of CSOs have signed a petition, addressed to President Akufo-Addo, requesting him to recall Domelevo immediately from leave.

Bad faith

In a four-page letter dated 3 July 2020, addressed to the Secretary to the President, Domelevo said that the directive was a sign of bad faith, because the work the Audit Service is doing is causing embarrassment to the government.

He said the directive was born out of selective treatment on the part of the Office of the President, because there are other public office holders who should also be directed to go on leave.

He argued that the instruction should be reviewed because it was unconstitutional and held grave implications for the constitutional independence of the office of the Auditor General.

However, the Office of the President said in a counter-statement that Domelevo’s submission on the matter, which has created a certain impression in the public domain, is “unfortunate and without any foundation”, and premised on a lack of understanding of the law.

It said the president’s instruction was based on sound legal principle, the rule of law and good governance practice.

“You can be assured that the decision for you to take your accumulated annual leave was not taken in bad faith,” said the statement from the Office of the President.

“Rather, given your own publicisation of your deteriorated relationship with your Board, which notified you severally of not taking your annual leave, the President was the only person vested with the constitutional power to direct you to proceed on your accumulated annual leave,” the letter said.

Critical to good governance

The letter further argued that, under the law, the office of Auditor General is a public office, subject to the labour laws of Ghana, and not one of the categories of worker excluded from the scope of application of the Labour Act.

Citing Section 31 of the act, it argued that the Auditor General could not forgo his leave and that any agreement to relinquish his entitlement to annual leave was void.

“You may therefore not agree with the President (your appointing authority) to relinquish your entitlement to the accumulated leave or to forgo same. You may also not agree to be paid in cash in exchange for the accumulated annual leave. Such an agreement would be void under Section 31 of the Labour Act.”

The Office of the President also disagreed with Domelevo’s assertion in his letter to the Presidency that the constitutional independence of his office was being undermined by the directive, and described this as a false belief.

“… the Auditor General is an office and not a person such that if the person for the time being occupying same is unavailable the office ceases to exist,” the Presidency said. “Handing over all matters relating to the office of the Auditor General will not have any implication for its constitutional independence and operation.”

The letter further pointed out that the president did not see the work of the Auditor General as an embarrassment to his government, but had at all material times provided the resources needed for the efficient working of Domelevo’s office because the institution was considered critical to the good governance of the country.

It added that, in line with good governance, taking annual leave ensures that an officeholder is rested and, therefore, able to perform the functions of his or her office efficiently.

Thus, President Akufo-Addo, said the letter, was not infringing on the independence of the Auditor General, but exercising his constitutionally mandated authority to ensure that Domelevo complied with the terms of his appointment.

The Office of the President maintained that the directive would remain in force and had been amended from 123 to 167 working days, to reflect the Auditor General’s leave for the working year 2020.

The earlier directive was in respect of the period 2017 to 2019.

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