Liberia: 'There is More Corruption Than Before'
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The Inquirer (Monrovia)
8 October 2008
Posted to the web 9 October 2008
Liberty Party Standard Bearer, Cllr. Charles Walker Brumskine, says," corruption today in the Unity Party led government is more than ever in the history of the country, unrestrained and persistent, as average Liberians struggle for survival."
The LP political leader sounded that the existing corruption in the Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf led administration has denied average Liberians the kind of good jobs from foreign investment that they need to survive and maybe prosper.
He claimed that it is because of this corruption that many Liberians are beginning to feel that today they are worse off economically than they were three years ago.
Speaking at a well attended press briefing yesterday held at the party's headquarters on Benson Street, the Liberty party head claimed that it now seems that every interaction with the government has become transactional, with personal graft becoming more important than raising the national revenue as well as individual interest superseding the common good.
Cllr. Brumskine lamented that during the last two and a half years, allegations of corruption in the unity party led Government have been enormous and he named some as the issue of the Nigerian oil deal, rewarding a non-Liberian who worked during the President's campaign with an LPRC contract, the unlawful granting of duty/tax free exemption privileges to Buchanan Renewable Energies (BRE) and the awarding of rice importation contracts to political allies of the President without a public bidding process, contrary to the law.
He also pointed to the government's failure to use the rice stabilization fund to offset the high cost of rice or otherwise account for funds from that account, and millions of dollars paid by the finance Ministry to a purported vendor who suddenly disappeared as another high form of corruption existing in the government.
At the same time, the LP standard bearer claimed that because of the lack of action from the government on the alleged cases," corruption now permeates our society like never before."
Cllr. Brumskine who also spoke on a wide range of national issues asserted that the party has learnt of the establishment of a Dunn Commission created to investigate allegations contained in the e-mail.
According to him, the Dunn Commission is certainly a non-starter, stressing that the President must support a serious investigation by an independent, credible and qualified person or persons or rather 'treat these allegations of corruption like she has treated every other case of corruption that has occurred in her government that has done nothing.'
Cllr. Brumskine also questioned the credibility of the Dunn Commission on claims that if they had consisted of jurors or other investigatory experts, they should not have agreed to be amenable to or report to the President.
The Liberty party standard bearer further alleged that the presidency has been weakened in the fight against corruption and therefore called on the President to distance herself from the investigation.
He also said that the President has suspended negotiations with LISCR and voided results of the bidding process for the western cluster, but claimed that those who allegedly extorted or attempted to extort money from the investors remained untouched.
He however noted that the government officials who manipulated the bidding process remain in their positions, 'as this group that bungled the first bidding process now appears to be proceeding with re-bidding; how is that fighting corruption?'
Relevant Links
Meanwhile, the LP standard bearer has called on the President to dismiss all government officials linked with the western cluster and the Delta Mining and Tata steel bidding process.
Read comments. Write your own.
I am responding to a recent post by a (Liberian brother or sister) relative to a recent charge by Cllr. Brumskine of LP, that the Ellen government in Liberia is the most corrupt than any other government in our history. Let me make this clear, my response here is not personal; in other words, this is not a personal attack on whoever posted the response. First of all, Ellen herself, has in the past, called other governments she did not like, corrupt. Doe and Taylor come to mind. Remember the age-old Liberian saying? "Same thing you do to… [Read Full Text]
Georgette, you are half right and half wrong, maybe mostly wrong. what goes around comes around, madame johnson was a pain in the chest for the last 4 liberian leaders. doe, taylor, briant, tolbert and to some extend tumban. ellen tormented the living heaven out of those leaders, as a result, under no circumstances she will get a smooth sailing. afterall, what is good for the jews are also good for the gentiles. the day shall come when liberians shall rise and siezed from accusing their leaders as CORRUPT. that day is not here yet. until then, the struggle continues!
David Farhat does not have a credible track record to advise let alone criticize the Sirleaf government on financial management and promoting foreign investment. There is enough information via the internet about Farhat and the Doe government’s financial mess made in Liberia during the 1980s. Please read below excerpts and some of my analysis from an article by a renowned US news magazine in April 1987, the New York Times. In this country called Liberia on the west coast of Africa where ''eating money'' - stealing public funds - is a time-honored tradition, the United States has accepted a rare… [Read Full Text]
Cllr. Brumskine, the Standard Bearer of the Liberty Party was short of specifics in his accusations against the Unity Party led government to be the most corrupt government in the history of Liberia that is serving as a conduit for the poor living conditions of the massive. I will list some of his accusations and give specifics that he failed to provide. They are as follows: *The duty/tax free provided to BRE by the National Investment Commission was corrupt in nature. In respect to this, he failed to quote the Investment Law of Liberia that… [Read Full Text]
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With all the turmoil Liberians and Liberia have gone through, are Liberians NOT weary of instigating and conniving and steering things up to the point that could help to bring about hostility in the country AGAIN? Every person that has been elected to be president of Liberia has been accused by Liberians of being CORRUPT. When will Liberians STOP? According to Liberians, Tubman was corrupt, Tolbert was corrupt, Doe was corrupt, Taylor was corrupt now Liberians are on the back of the one who sacrificed her life to bring about some stability and sanity to that country and Liberians… [Read Full Text]