By Brima Sannoh
Over two years since she was suspended under controversial circumstances, Sierra Leone’s Auditor General, Lara Taylor-Pearce, has been ordered to be removed from office.
The decision was announced by the office of the President, after a review of the report by the tribunal set up by President Julius Maada Bio to investigate the matter.
Mrs Taylor-Pearce was suspended as head of Audit Service Sierra Leone, alongside her deputy, Tamaba Momoh in November 2021, sparking a huge debate over the constitutionality of the move by President Bio. It came shortly before the release of the annual Auditor-General’s Report, which turned out to be damning against the office of the President, among other government Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
The government accused Mrs Taylor-Pearce and Mr Momoh of professional misconduct relating to the way the report was generated.
Accountability campaigners questioned the motive for their removal, citing procedural breach, among other concerns. It took weeks before the tribunal was set up, as required by law, to probe the matter, And when it was done, the snail-paced nature of its proceedings left civil society campaigners largely unsettled.
Audit Service Sierra Leone is an autonomous body established by Parliament with the supreme mandate of auditing all government institutions including but not limited to agencies and departments across the country.
Mid last month, the tribunal, which was headed by retired Supreme Court Judge, Nyawo Finda Matturi-Jones, presented its findings to the President at State House in a ceremony that was attended by representatives of national and international development partners. It however remains unclear to this point what were the findings, as citizens continue to call on the government to publish the report.
The statement issued by State House, 9 July, 2024, said that President Bio had accepted all the recommendations of the tribunal as contained in the report, among which is the removal of the duo.
It added that the president had directed the Attorney General and Minister of Justice to initiate the necessary procedure for their removal.
Mrs Taylor-Pearce is considered as one of the most competent persons to have held the office since democracy returned to Sierra Leone. And she received criticisms from every government she served under, including that of former President Ernest Bai Koroma, who appointed her.
There were strong criticism and pressure on the Bio Administration from some Sierra Leoneans to reverse the decision of suspending the duo.
Budget Advocacy Network (BAN), a civil society organization that works on transparency and accountability on government financial activities, has been one of the most vocal about this issue, constantly urging the government to follow due process.
In its latest public statement on it, BAN expressed concern about the “snail pace” with which the tribunal proceedings were unfolding, which it said had created uncertainty about its conclusion.
