Liberian President Joseph Boakai has suspended Director General of the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority (NaFAA) Emma Glassco and directed that a probe be launched into allegations of corruption at the government agency.
According to the president, Glassco’s suspension was “due to managerial and financial inefficiencies and insulting behavior.”
“This conduct, considered unbecoming of a public official, was reportedly exhibited during an official investigation meeting,” the president’s office said in a statement. “President Boakai has urged the suspended director general to fully cooperate with the investigations in order to address the concerns raised.”
The suspension, Boakai said, came at the recommendation of NaFAA’s board of directors, which comprises representatives from the Liberian ministries of agriculture, national defense, finance and development, commerce and industry, and the nation’s maritime authority.
NaFAA workers have been calling for an investigation into Glassco for multiple years, claiming she has illegally dismissed workers and unfairly deducted observer dues and denied them insurance.
Protesting workers have also claimed their salaries have not increased since around when Glassco assumed her position; others claim they have been kept on temporary employment status for too long, which runs contrary to Liberian labor laws.
Though workers have long levied accusations toward Glassco, the NaFAA organization at large had, until recently, backed Glassco’s leadership …
