Daniel Yao Domelevo
Auditor General Daniel Yao Domelevo is on a collision course with the Presidency as he calls the bluff of the President’s authority to order him to proceed on his accumulated leave of 123 days.
He was supposed to complete his 123 days accumulated leave for 2017-2019; however, as a result of a response he gave to the President, he has been asked to complete the 2020 leave too, bringing everything to some 167 days.
The President has stood his grounds that the Auditor General obeys the order, his response notwithstanding.
The development follows an order to the Auditor General to go on his accumulated leave, a directive he says he finds anomalous.
A significant feature of the spar is the fact that the Auditor General’s response was released to the media even before it landed on the desk of the President.
For a public officer who enjoys media spotlight, his action was unsurprising to many who have watched his demeanour.
Sarcastic Letter
In his July 3, 2020 letter addressed to the Secretary to the President at the Jubilee House headed ‘Re: Accumulated Annual Leave ? Mr. Daniel Yao Domelevo’, he stated that he has commenced his 2020 leave (which began on July 1, 2020) “out of deference to the office of His Excellency the President of the Republic of Ghana and also out of the deep-seated respect I have for the office.”
He, however, said that the order contained anomalies, citing “recent law and practice in the country.”
It is deemed, according to the foregone, that “no worker is deemed to have accumulated any leave on account of their having failed, omitted, neglected or even refused to enjoy their leave.”
No Respect
In a swift response, the Office of the President, through the Secretary to the President Nana Bediatuo Asante, opened up with a subtle query about the Auditor General’s correspondence making it to the media even before reaching its intended destination.
“The attention of the Office of The President has been drawn to a letter with reference number AG/OP/20/8 dated 3rd July 2020, which is yet to be delivered to the Office but has been circulated widely in the media and on social media,” the correspondence stated.
“We note that the said letter is dated 3rd July, 2020, with an official reference from the office of the Auditor General, although you commenced your leave on 1st July 2020,” the letter added.
Leave Duration
The Presidency told the Auditor General that his accumulated annual leave of 123 working days, which he was directed to commence from Wednesday, July 1, 2020 “was in respect of the period 2017 to 2019, which you had worked without taking any annual leave, and did not include 2020.”
Should he decide to include his 2020 annual leave, “it is expected that you will resume work after a well-deserved leave of 167 working days, with effect from 1st July 2020.”
Belligerent Posture
The Presidency took issues with the Auditor General for seeking to mislead the public about the President breaching principles of good governance.
“The President has at all times acted based on sound legal principles, the rule of law and good governance principles, and the good people of Ghana cannot be misled by your lack of understanding of the position of the law for which you may be forgiven since you are not a lawyer.”
2020 Leave
The Presidency made reference to the Mr. Domelevo’s appointment in a letter dated 30th December 2016 the conditions of which he accepted, explaining that “as stated above, you have informed us that you have now decided to add 2020 to your accumulated leave, which we have accepted.”
Power To Appoint
The President’s power to appoint and exercise disciplinary control over the Auditor General, the Presidency reminded him, is enshrined in the Constitution.
“Thus, to the extent that you fail to comply with a basic term of your appointment such as taking annual leave, the President has the power to exercise disciplinary control over you to ensure that you comply with the terms of your appointment. The exercise of that constitutional power vested in the President does not affect the independence of your office, which the Constitution so highly guarantees.”
Matter of Law
Taking the Auditor General through the nuances of the labour law and the limitations of the independence of his office, the Presidency pointed out “the office of the Auditor General is not part of the categories of workers excluded from the scope of application of the Labour Act, namely the Armed Forces, the Police Service, the Prison Service and the security and intelligence agencies specified under the Security and Intelligence Agencies Act, 1996. (Act 526).”
In view of the foregone, therefore; the Presidency told the Auditor General both the Constitution and the Audit Service Act guarantee the Auditor General the right to take his annual leave as stipulated in his terms of appointment without it being varied to his disadvantage.
Query
The Presidency told the Auditor General that as a master of the Audit Service, he could not stop his deputy who would act in his absence from attending board meetings.
“In the case of the nine working days that you took, you, by letter dated 24th January 2020, notified the Chief of Staff of your annual leave and stated that in your absence, Mr. Benjamin Cudjoe, Deputy Auditor General, will act ‘except that he cannot represent me at the board’.”
It is expected that “you would be a master of the Audit Service Act and not insert such an exception, contrary to the Audit Service Act in your letter.”
He was also reminded about Section 6 (5) of the Audit Service Act which gives the person acting in his absence the power to attend a meeting of the board and form part of the quorum for a board meeting.
The Auditor General, he was told, “Has no power to amend that provision of the law to determine whether the person acting on his behalf can or cannot attend the meeting of the board.”
Labour Law
According to the Labour Act, the Auditor General cannot forgo his annual leave and any agreement to relinquish the entitlement to the leave shall be void, the Presidency stated.
The Auditor General has been told in plain language that he has not option than to proceed on leave because the holidays are mandatory.
Aspersions
The Presidency describes as unfortunate the Auditor General casting of aspersions “on and impute bad faith, without legal of factual basis to the President,” adding, “One would have expected that a person occupying the office of the Auditor General would exercise restraint and circumspection when addressing letters to the Office of the President.” It continued that his letter was laced with political undertones, something which should not be encouraged.
Abuse of Independence
While the constitutional independence is guaranteed and rightly so the Presidency observed that “it does not give licence for illegal conduct. Contrary to your false belief, the President has ensured that you have been provided with all the necessary resources needed for the efficient running of the Office of the Auditor General and considers your work a crucial part of good governance in the Republic.”
The Presidency also said the Auditor General’s stance that the decision that he take his accumulated leave was in bad faith is unfortunate, adding, “Given your own publicisation of your deteriorated relationship with your board, which notified you severally of taking your annual leave, the President was the only person vested with the constitutional power to direct you to proceed on your accumulated leave.”
Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu, the Deputy Auditor General, has been directed to act in the absence of the Auditor General.
The Auditor General is opposed to enjoying his accumulated leave and would rather limit it and appears to engage in a scathing media war with the Presidency.
By A.R. Gomda