Leone Dock Labour Company calls for Shareholders, Govt’s. Intervention
The administration of the Leone Dock Labour Company at Client Town is calling on government and shareholder’s intervention to save the company from its present predicament and to as well encourage the Company’s chairman to allow management do its work.
Acting General Manager, Tasuri Njai built a strong financial status for the company to over Le 1 Billion within a year , minimized strike actions and able to pay salaries of workers on time but it seems that the Board Chairman, James E. Levers is bent on frustrating the management.
The Company was established by an Act of Parliament in 2011 to provide labour force to service all vessels among other services due to the privatization of the Queen Elizabeth II Quay to Bollore collecting dues and managing the port.
This medium gathered that the Leone Dock Board Chairman, James Ebenezer Levers is trying to bring back the former Accountant, Ifalaja Pratt who has resigned from his position twice whenever a General Manager demand a clarification of the account.
The has seen the Finance Officer sacked all bent on bringing reinstating Pratt just because the Board Chairman is signatory to the account and a relative of Pratt.
Sources further revealed to this medium that since the establishment of the company, the first interview was conducted on 1st October, 2011 while acceptance and confirmation letters were issued to successful applicants in 2012. The same Board Chairman ordered the General Manager to re- advertise all senior management positions in 2012 and gave acceptance and only to later issue confirmation letters to successful applicants in 2013.
It was further revealed to this medium that again the Board Chairman has called for another re – advertisement for all positions which seems to anger management describing the Board Chairman as a dictator overruling the company’s administration.
According to sources, recently a man whose name was not even on the list of successful applicants just appeared and said that he has been appointed by the Board Chairman as the new General Manager of the company to the dismay of the Acting General Manager who was part of the interview.
He then called one of the Board members to enquire if he was aware of the appointment who replied that he was not aware.
In his response, the Board Chairman, James Ebenezer Levers stated that all staff including Directors and former Board Chairmen and Members of the company were handpicked by the former National Privatization Commission (NCP) Commissioner, Abu Bangura as the company is a public entity with shareholders which he is part of.
James Ebenezer Levers said that he took limited shares to enhance the development of the company as several shareholders had taken theirs as according to them things are not going right in the company.
He stated that he would replace the General Manager without an Annual General Meeting (AGM) as the previous General Manager was sacked without benefit stating that the present Acting General Manager was an Accountant of the company and has no administrative knowledge to run it.
The reason the company in various newspapers advertised for the positions of General Manager, Accountant Manager and Human Resource Manager and interviewed has been conducted although no acceptance letter has been issued.
James Ebenezer Levers revealed that the Board needs a substantive General Manager in the case of strikes and other managerial matters, adding, “I always attend as the Ag. GM is not suitable for the position. He was an Accountant as we don’t have quorum to discuss. I appointed the man myself for Board ratification”.
He further stated that indeed the former Accountant, Ifalaja Pratt has resigned twice but was recalled by the Board to help the auditors reconcile the company’s account which the Ag. GM failed to do, noting, “a worker of the company lost his three fingers onboard a ship the Ag. GM did nothing towards that only for me to intervene and also a proforma for a generator takes month for his response. I nominated the man myself for the Board’s ratification as he was a Bank Manager and the Ag. GM failed to bring issues to the Board as I have received several letters of complaints for him and even strikes Directors always keep away thinking of their pockets as they are all handpicked by the former NCP Commissioner, Abu Bangura”.
James Ebenezer Levers stated that he has served the country in different capacities for over eighteen years in higher positions, adding, “due to my strict measures people think am bad. Am a man of discipline”.
By Abdul R. Bedor Kamara
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