The position of the Attorney General was advertised on the Public Service Commission website, the PSC said in a statement explaining the process for appointing Mauga Precious Chang.

PSC said that since 2013, the Office of the Attorney General has been established as an independent constitutional office and is not governed by the Public Service Act 2004.

"Public Service recruitment guidelines do not legally apply to the appointment of the Attorney General or to officers within that Office. The PSC’s involvement in this instance was undertaken solely to support the Government’s decision to adopt an open and transparent advertising process," the statement said.

PSC stated that the appointment of the Attorney General is governed exclusively by Article 41(1) of the Constitution of the Independent State of Samoa 1960, which provides that: “The Head of State acting on the advice of the Prime Minister shall appoint an Attorney General, who shall be a person qualified to be a Judge of the Supreme Court.” Under Article 41(1), the responsibility for advising the Head of State on the appointment of the AG rests solely with the Honourable Prime Minister. 

PSC said the constitutional requirement is that the appointee must be eligible to be appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court — namely, a person who has been in practice as a barrister in Samoa or another country for not less than 10 years. 

"There are no additional procedural requirements prescribed under the Constitution for this appointment.  Notwithstanding the constitutional position, and in keeping with the principles of good governance, transparency, and due process, it was determined that the position would be publicly advertised."

"On the instructions of the Honourable Prime Minister, the PSC facilitated an open recruitment process consistent with the procedures generally applied to Chief Executive Officer-level appointments. The position was publicly advertised through the PSC’s Public Service Official Circular (Special Issue # 20) published on the PSC website (www.psc.gov.ws) and shared online through the PSC’s digital media platforms. The position was open for applications for a period of twenty (20) working days, from 11 December 2025 to 23 January 2026," stated the PSC.

PSC added that the advertisement clearly stipulated that late or incomplete applications would not be considered and that PSC received three applications.

 "Following a preliminary compliance assessment against the eligibility requirements stated in the advertisement, it was determined that one (1) applicant fully satisfied the prescribed criteria. Consistent with its facilitative role, the PSC submitted the assessment outcome to the Honourable Prime Minister and Cabinet to support the Prime Minister in the exercise of his constitutional advisory function under Article 41(1). In accordance with the Constitution, the Honourable Prime Minister advised the Head of State, and the appointment of Mauga Precious Chang as Attorney General was duly made by the Head of State pursuant to Article 41(1)."