Parliament passes bill to remove AG Office from Civil Service

Parliament passed a bill that would remove the Attorney General's Office from the Civil Service umbrella, and allow employees who have served 20 consecutive years to retire honorably with an allowance.

The bill, which was proposed by PNC member Andulla Rifau on behalf of the government, was passed by a unanimous vote of 64 members. Although the bill was called for a vote yesterday, it was sent back for revision.

The subsequent judiciary committee meeting brought two main amendments to the bill. The first change brought down the honourable retirement requirement from 25 to 20 years. Employees who served 10 years at the Attorney General's Office and another 20 years at another government office would also be eligible for retirement.

The second revision decommissioned the position of Solicitor General, requiring only a deputy attorney general instead. This position would be appointed and removed by the president upon the recommendation of the Attorney General.

Another amendment was made at the parliamentary floor, which determined the AG Office employees as the deputy attorney general, legal service and administrative service employees.

Although the office has been operating under the Civil Service. However, offices such as the Prosecutor General's Office and other independent institutions mentioned in the constitution similar to the AG Office under their respective laws.

Although the Attorney General's Office is defined in the Constitution as an independent body, it faces issues due to being under the Civil Service umbrella, such as difficulties in of finding lawyers.

Compared to the salaries of the Prosecutor's Office and other independent institutions, the salaries of the AG Office are lower as well since they are paid under the civil service payment structure. Because of this, the government has introduced a new bill called the Attorney General's Office Bill.

The bill passed today allocates the AG Office staff into two categories; the legal service and administrative service . According to the bill, the salaries and allowances of the employees would be determined by the Minister of Finance in accordance with the policies and regulations prescribed by the National Pay Commission under the National Pay Policy Act.

The bill also provides for the Attorney General's Office employees to participate in a health insurance scheme, and receive a retirement allowance determined in accordance with the retirement regulations.

The Attorney General's Office Bill also details the conditions, responsibilities and duties of the Attorney General as set out in the Constitution, and outlines the responsibilities of the Attorney General's Office, the responsibilities of its employees and the regulations on performing their duties.