Details emerging from recent public-school students protests here suggest that the protests were more than just a demand for an increment in public school teachers’ salaries.
By: Kruah Thompson
Monrovia, March 27, 2025 – The Civil Service Agency (CSA) has launched a forensic investigation into the recent student protest at the Monrovia Consolidated School System (MCSS) to determine the underlying causes of the unrest.
Earlier this week, a group of students from the MCSS in Monrovia blocked the streets in protest over their teachers’ absence from classrooms.
The demonstration followed a press statement from the teachers’ association, in which educators announced a “go-slow” strike until their salary demands and other concerns were addressed.
However, speaking at the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs, and Tourism (MICAT) on Thursday, the Director General of the Civil Service Agency (CSA), Josiah Joekai, suggested that the protest was not solely about salary increments and working conditions, but instead, there were other factors that might have influenced the demonstration.
During the press briefing, Joekai displayed a WhatsApp message that allegedly contained threats from some of the instructors against any attempt to halt the Faculty Representative Council’s activities.
He argued that this message suggested the protest was not a spontaneous reaction to the teachers’ strike but was fuelled by external influences.
To address the concerns, the CSA has committed to conducting a forensic investigation into MCSS, using its Employment Status Regularization Project System.
According to Joekai, the system is designed to detect irregularities, such as payroll duplication, and to enhance the integrity of the centralized payroll.
He revealed that the CSA, in collaboration with Dr. Jallah and Hon. Gaphwan, will conduct a comprehensive audit of the MCSS workforce and this will include a Forensic payroll verification to establish an accurate and verifiable database of all employees.
He added that educational credential verification will be carried out to confirm the qualifications of teachers at MCSS.
Additionally, he says a physical verification test will be consulted to ensure that only legitimate and active teachers are on the MCSS payroll.
Joekai emphasized that any volunteer teachers who are not verified will be removed from the system.
He stated that the CSA would use data analytics and field verification to identify and eliminate “ghost employees” from the payroll, thereby reducing wasteful expenditures.
The CSA chief further noted that the agency’s efforts would inform policy decisions on recruitment, deployment, and classroom resource allocation, This, he said, is part of a broader initiative to create an equitable and effective learning environment within MCSS schools.
Meanwhile, Joekai confirmed that the CSA would launch a full investigation into the events surrounding the protest and share the findings with the public.
He assured that the agency would collaborate with MCSS management, the Ministry of Education, and other relevant stakeholders to get to the bottom of the situation.
Speaking on the salary top-up exercise, CSA Director General Gosefor Gocard stated that under the initiative, the government has hired 73 agricultural station officers and increased the salaries of teachers under the Ministry of Education, while further noting that the process is still ongoing in some parts of the country.
“So far, we have increased the salaries of 5,613 employees within the Ministry of Health,” he announced.
Joekai emphasized that the government is taking necessary steps to improve governance and salary structures, but these changes will be implemented progressively over time.
Additionally, he revealed that more than 120 doctors have been reclassified, with salary adjustments ranging from $2,300 to $3,500 per month, amounting to a total annual increase of $3.9 million USD, noting that the minimum salary in the health sector is now $180 USD.
Furthermore, he says the CSA is currently processing 139 personnel action plan notices for 39 newly licensed doctors and 21 pharmacists, totalling $300,000 USD.
According to him, the agency is also working with the Ministry of Health and county officials from all 15 counties to address the status of volunteer health workers who have been serving for over six years.
He claimed that the county health officers across the 15 counties have compiled lists of legitimate volunteers working in different health centers and the lists are currently under review and verification by the Ministry of Health.
He added that once completed, the CSA will conduct its own verification to ensure that only qualified individuals are placed on the government payroll.
He also assured that funding for this initiative has already been made available by the Ministry of Finance, and that some volunteer health workers will be directly recruited to replace retirees within the sector.
” Our projection of the health sector this year is 369 new hires, including 81 specialists in various fields. And we know that We are to be mindful of these specialists because their expertise may be needed in the future,” Joekai stated, further revealing that The Ministry of Health is carefully planning replacements for these professionals to prevent a personnel gap within the health sector.
Joekai also revealed that 479 employees will be retired from the health sector, with 81 of them being specialists. He emphasized that these retirements will only proceed once suitable replacements are identified to ensure a smooth transition without disruptions to healthcare services.
Meanwhile, he says CSA remains committed to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of government payroll management, ensuring that only legitimate employees receive salaries while working to enhance salary structures across key sectors.
