You do not have powers to fire civil servants at will, prosecutor general tells PM

The Prime Minister does not have the right to summary dismissal of public servants, prosecutor general Elmi Guled has said warning any such acts violate the constitution and is tantamount to institutional development in the country.

In a raft of directions to PM Hassan Khaire Sunday, Guled said the constitution spells out clearly the powers and responsibilities of the prime minister adding that hiring and firing civil servants is not the preserve of the PM.

“On hiring and firing of public servants, a minister may forward proposals to the cabinet which will then make a decision to approve or reject and sometimes the Lower House may be involved and the president gives a final approval. There is no single officer in government who can do these things on his or her own,” Guled said.

Without making any references to any cases, the prosecutor said government employees were now in a state of panic and have raised concerns over the security of their jobs. “This risks demolishing government systems,” said Elmi.

It is not clear if the prosecutor’s rebuke is related to the recent sacking of two senior officials at the ministry of Information and Public Guidance, a matter which the auditor general Dr. Nur Farah has raised questions over.

Information Minister Abdirahman Yarisow last month dismissed four officials including Director General and Director of Finance and Administration in what he attributed to alleged cases of corruption in the ministry.

In a memo addressed to the Prime Minister Hassan Khaire and copied to the President and House Speaker Osman Jawaari mid last month, the auditor general wondered why the two officials were not given a chance for right of reply.

“The minister of information has fired two directors of the ministry whom he already accused of with corruption and ordered the guards that they cannot come to office even to pick evidence documents in the ministry in an attempt to deter their defense,” Farah said.

The prosecutor further called on the federal government to respect the constitution and that everyone must act within the limits of the law.