Aggrieved Judiciary workers of the Temple of Justice took to their heels, singing slogans demanding for their eleven months salaries, summing up to US$3 million, which they said was taken away by authorities at the Judiciary.
Chief Justice Francis S. Korkpor’s convoy came in at the Temple of Justice, but was prevented access after the aggrieved Judiciary workers launched code name “Bring Back our Liberian Dollars Salaries”.
Some security guys working at the Temple of Justice told the aggrieved Judiciary workers that the Chief Justice’s Convoy was coming, and so they should leave from his parking space; but instead of leaving, the workers said they were not going anywhere, and shouted, “Korkpor You’re Very Wicked, Give Our Money”.
When Chief Justice Korkpor came, he got out of his car and went to his office without saying anything them.
The Head Marshall of the Supreme Court, Amos Dixon, and other Judiciary officials went to the aggrieved Judiciary workers’ protest area and told them to leave the ground of the Temple of Justice or go back to work, but the aggrieved workers refused to listen to them and continued to sing their “Bring Back Our Money” song.
According to the 2019/2020 national budget, the Judiciary was allotted US$15,230,680, out of which US$12,9992,794 was apportioned as compensation of employees, while the offices of the Chief Justice was allotted US$151,744 and those of the four Associate Justices US$164,500.
In the 2018/2019 national budget, US$518,331 was allocated for the office of the Chief Justice, meaning there was a reduction of US$366,587 of the Chief Justice office’s budget for the 2019/2020.
The Associate Justices in the 2018/2019 budget were allocated US$1,071,753, and there was a reduction of US$907,253.
It is clear that the reduction also affected the worker’s salaries.
Leroy Ponpon, the aggrieved spokesperson, told journalists at the protest site that they were informed at a mass meeting with Justice Korkpor and other justices that their Liberian dollar portion of the salaries was badly affected by the harmonization exercise.
Ponpon said, “Since October 2019, up to present, we have not received our Liberian dollars component of our salaries.”
Ponpon claimed that it was recently they discovered that their Liberian dollar salaries was not affected by the harmonization process; instead, it was the Judiciary’s operational fund that was affected.
“We noticed this after holding discussion with some senior employees at the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP), who told us that our Liberian dollar portion of our salaries was still in progress, and we should contact our comptroller and the Chief Justice,” Ponpon noted.
He said they are counting from October 2019 and including August 2020, which amounts to over US$3 million, and that they are demanding refund of the money or they will continue with their action until the Chief Justice can tell them the status of their deducted salaries.
The aggrieved workers’ spokesperson vowed to continue the protest until their eleven months salaries be given to them.
According to Ponpon, they are talking about over 9,000 employees throughout the country who have been affected with the deduction.
Ponpon stated that the least employee makes L$18,000, as a take-home salary, and they have not received the Liberian dollars portion due to harmonization exercise.
The aggrieved workers told journalists that they will not return to work until their just salaries was paid by the Judiciary.
According to the Judiciary employees, since June 2020, they have instituted series of discussions with the Chief Justice, Francis Korkpor, but to no avail, prompting the protest.