On July 8, 2024, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) claimed that President Joseph Boakai earns US$8,000 monthly after 40% is deducted from his salary.
“Mr Boakai revealed in February that his annual salary was $13,400. The cut will bring it down to $8,000.”
Deutsche Welle (DW) News also published a similar amount on January 9, 2024, in an article.
These two publications came after Boakai announced a 40% salary reduction in his salary.
In an Executive Mansion press release, “In fulfillment of his commitment to fiscal integrity and national financial security, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr. has announced a voluntary 40% reduction in his salary.”
“According to the President, the announcement reflects his determination to lead by example in strengthening government accountability and demonstrating solidarity with the people of the nation.
The Liberian Leader said the move is aimed at setting a precedent for responsible governance and nation-building.
In addition to his own salary reduction, Boakai has pledged to empower the Civil Service Agency (CSA) to ensure that public servants’ salaries are in line with the current state of the nation and that workers receive fair compensation for their contributions to the country.”
Boakai pledged his commitment to financial responsibility and fair compensation for public servants from various sectors of society as a positive step towards fostering a culture of accountability and equity within the government.”
It can be recalled that in February, Boakai declared his assets, which were then published.
We look to see if Boakai’s salary is US$13,400 and, after the 40% cut, if he will receive $8,040, as stated by both the BBC, DW News, and here.
In Boakai’s asset declaration, he declared his gross salary per year as US$13,400, which raised a lot of debate.
We contacted Solo Kelgbeh, former Presidential Press Secretary, who said former president, George Weah was paid US$14,000 in 2018, and after the harmonization, he received US$11,000.
Like Boakai, Weah announced a deduction of 25% from his salary, something Kelgbeh confirmed but failed to disclose the details of concrete evidence and outcomes from Weah’s salary cut.
Our researcher then contacted the current presidential secretary, Kula Fofana, who reiterated a 40% cut as announced from Boakai’s gross salary.
Fofana said, “The salary declared on the declaration form represented what he was making as former vice president.”
Samuel Jackson, an economist, said the deduction by Boakai is not the first and should have been done across the three branches of government. “It is a good public gesture but it won’t have any economic impact because it was not done across the board.”
Jackson claims that Boakai’s asset declaration is not disaggregated; Vice President Jeremiah Koung Assets stated, “There is a need to relook at the asset declaration form because even real estate or liabilities are not determined by real values; the data placed on the form is based on suggestions.”
Conclusion: The BBC, DW News, and TRT data published on Boakai’s salary were from his declaration form, which amounts to when he was Vice President between 2006-2017.
Therefore, Boakai’s current gross salary is US$25,000 and not US$13,400, as reported by the media outlets.
