An ASG employee whose contract was terminated by Chief of Staff Leonard Seumanutafa has been reinstated by Lt. Governor Pulumataala Ae Ae Jr.
Enele Lefano, Manu’a Director of Operations, was informed in a May 30 letter from the Chief of Staff that the Governor’s Office no longer needed his services and that his employment was terminated.
He was told that he would be paid 80 hours as severance, along with unused annual leave. But if he disputed the termination, he would not receive these benefits.
On Tuesday, Lt. Governor Pulumataala advised the Chief of Staff that he was notifying Lefano to continue his services and for Seumanutafa to rescind the letter of termination for the Manu’a Director of Operations.
The Lt. Governor questioned the Chief of Staff’s authority to terminate a political appointee.
“I find it inappropriate that you, as the Chief of Staff, issued and signed off with the termination of Enele Lefano when the agreement, as a political appointee with the ASG, “is at the will of the Govemor,” Pulu wrote in a June 10 letter to Seumanutafa. “Nowhere in this Political Appointee At-Will Contract, mentions a delegation of the Governor and Lt. Governor’s authority [allowing] for you to terminate a Contract that was signed by the Governor and discussed with me, as the Lt. Governor.”
He told Seumanutafa that such an action was creating a liability for the Governor and Lt. Governor.
Pulu vouched for Lefano, describing him as a loyal member of the Pula and Pulu campaign who helped elevate the HOPE platform. He noted that Lefano was instrumental in coordinating site visits by the Lt. Governor to the Manu’a islands to ensure ASG departments and contractors were meeting deadlines for the ARPA projects.
