Parliament’s Director of Communications and Public Affairs Chris Obore has been forced out of office, Tower Post News reports.
This website understands that Obore was forced out of office because of accumulated “missed” leave of over 5 years.
According to a source at Parliament, the Sergeant at Arms Department on Friday, changed the locks at Obore’s office barring him from accessing it.
Earlier this week, the Clerk to Parliament wrote to Obore, asking to go for accumulated leave of 5 years.
“The Clerk wrote to him on Wednesday saying she has been directed to instruct him to go on accumulated leave,” said the source who preferred anonymity so as to speak freely.
Obore’s lawyers would thereafter reply the Clerk challenging the decision to send their client on leave. The lawyers argued that it is against the Public Service Standing Orders to give a public servant leave when he or she has not applied for it.
According to Obore’s lawyers, when public servant doesn’t apply for leave in a given calendar year, he/she forfeits it.
The lawyers also noted that the Public Service Standing Orders dont allow for someone to take leave of missed years in the current year.
IGG had written to Parliament a day before on March 18th 2019 recommending for the termination of Obore’s contract.
It will be remembered that in April this year, Obore was ordered to vacate office after the Inspector General of Government pointed out in later that he was irregularly recruited by Parliamentary Commission in 2015.
In the letter dated March 18th, IGG had written to Parliament recommending the termination of Obore’s contract.
The Clerk to Parliament in a March 19th letter asked Obore to vacate office or defend himself in 15 working days which were to expire on 5th April , 2019.
It is said that Parliament initially wasnted a director holding a master’s degree but later the Parliamentary Commission revised it’s minutes and accepted applicants with bachelor’s degrees, a reason Obore was able to get the job.
IGG added that the Parliamentary Commission didn’t publicly advertise for the jobs after revising it’s minutes but simply invited specific applicants individually.
