The Ministry of Public Service has said that the responsibility to advertise the post of Commissioner of Police is with the Ministry of Police and National Security.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Service told the Express that the directive from the Police and Prison Services Commission in July to advertise the post was directed at the Minister of Police and National Security.The Ministry of Public Service made the clarifications when sources within the police questioned why the post has not been advertised locally.
The Express was unable to get the Ministry of Police and National Security to comment on the story last night.
The police source also expressed reservations about the Government's decision to recruit a police commissioner from UK.
He said that the Government should consider getting a local person in now so that he or she would have the opportunity to be trained while RAMSI is till here.
This was announced by the Police Minister Sam Manetoali at the last meeting of Parliament.
Minister Manetoali said this when questioned about the choice of police commissioner after the Governor General Sir Nathaniel Waena announced it in a radio address during this years Queen's birthday day celebrations at Lawson Tama.
The Express understands that the decision to recruit a police commissioner from UK was made by Cabinet.
It is not clear however, whether or not the EU would be prepared to provide the funding required meeting the salary and other conditions of an UK police commissioner.
It is believed that the funds used to fund the salary of the former UK police commissioner William Morrel came from EU funding allocated for police training in UK but was not being used during the ethnic tension years.
National Express