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 LAW & ORDER  News Extra

VOL 8 NO.614 THURSDAY, JUNE 12, 2014

     I     N     S     I     D     E

CENTRAL BANK OF LIBERIA

MARKET BUYING AND SELLING RATES

LIBERIAN DOLLARS PER US DOLLAR 

These are indicative rates based on results of daily surveys of

the foreign exchange market in Monrovia and its environs. The

rates are collected from the Forex Bureaux and the commercials

banks. The rates are not set by the Central Bank of Liberia.

Source: Research, Policy and Planning Department, Central Bank Liberia, Monrovia, Liberia

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4, 2014 L$87.00/US$1 L$88.00/US$1

BUYING SELLING

L$88.00/US$1 L$89.00/US$1

L$89.50/US$1L$88.00/US$1

TUESDAY, JUNE 1 0, 2014

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10, 2014

NIGERIA’SSTRENGTH

COMMENTARY  News Extra 

Finance Minister Appears in Court  Defense Lawyer Questions Guilty

 Ruling in mercenary case

WRONGFUL

DISMISSAL?

OVERNIGHT CHURCH

SERVICE MAY POSE

'HEALTH RISKS' AMOS SAWYER SAYS STRENGTH OF NIGERIA`SFEDERALISM LIES IN GOOD GOVERNANCE 

‘EVIDENCECONTRARY

TO VERDICT’

 

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 Page 2 |   Frontpage Thursday, June 12, 2014

General rubbishes the allegations.“I don’t understand what people are calling NPP cards. Where isthe NPP card coming from? Jimmy Anderson is not a member of

 NPP,” he said.Continued Mcgill: “That’s just foolish argument. My view isanywhere we have problem and there is controversy; if the

 party’s national executive committee reviews it and sees that thecontroversy requires a rerun, there should be a rerun. I am just onemember of the party, how can I overturn an entire election rulingthat is supported by the entire party. For anybody to believe thatI am overturning it, that is complete rubbish and foolishness. Iam not going to give credence to all these small children makingnoise around here saying this and that.”

The CDC Gbarpolu County candidate for the senate in theupcoming special election said that claims that he and other

 party ofcials took bribes to tangle the process and make mattersdifcult for Chambers is not true.Said Mcgill: “That’s complete nonsense; I have not seen Andersonfor a complete six months. I never went to Maryland; they whowent to Maryland are not talking about taking money? Is callingfor a rerun the wrong thing to do?”He said the CDC as a democratic institution that champions thecause of fairness in election processes, will not engage in a processthat would be replete with fraud.“We accused the NEC of cheating; we have argued that in fact theelection commission has problem, there must be an independenttribunal to investigate issues of the NEC,” he said.“If the national executive committee of our party believes thatthe ad-hoc commission that we set up has become a party to theconict, the executive committee believes that there is a need forinvestigation which the Chairman said; we will investigate, letthem wait for the outcome of the investigation. If the outcome of

the investigation determines or provides reasons for a rerun, theexecutive committee will make that decision.”

Decision in two days

Amidst the wrangling over the southeastern vote, CDC chairmanis promising to complete an investigation in two days and come outwith a decision on what the Party will do to rectify the situation.He said though there were some white ballot situation in thatregion, CDCians should not panic as these will be treated as partof the investigation.

Rerun possible

Solo has hinted that a possible rerun citing situations where the party nds it difcult to nd a clear winner because the CDC doesnot want to come out of a process where partisans feel they werenot properly representedHe frowned on those who obstructed the process of primary in

other areas by intimidating people conducting the process and saidthe party will not investigate complaints from those individuals because the party will not tolerate such acts and called on aspirants both winners and losers to exhibit high level of maturity.Responding to question about receiving money from the rulingUnity party to deny Chambers the opportunity to representthe party in the special senatorial election, Solo described theallegation as an elementary cartoon character that needs not to begiven credence.Said Solo: “For someone to suggest that we (CDC) receivedmoney for Chambers not to represent the Party in the comingelection, I mean are we going back to elementary cartoon?”“I will stand for people who speak against the government, so whywill I do that? What I have said consistently is that if you are aCDCian and being here, you should go for primary and win andif I nd evidence that the process was not fair, I will redo it. If Idon’t nd evidence the result or any result from my committeewill stand.”Though Chambers chose to reserve comments on the matter as

he told ForntPageAfrica that he had been cautioned by the partyto do so, early Wednesday morning on a local Radio station SKYFM, Rep. Chambers accused McGill and other Party leadersof receiving money from the ruling Unity Party to deny himthe opportunity to represent the Party in the pending specialssenatorial election.Rep. Chambers a former partisan of the ruling UP has been a strongcritics of the executive and also vocal against some concessionsoperating in Maryland County.

Monrovia-

The just ended opposition Congress for DemocraticChange (CDC) primary that took place across thecountry continues to smell foul, especially with resultsfrom the entire southeast and Bomi County being placed

on hold.

Facts about what happened in the Maryland Primary are scanty, assome CDC ofcials who spoke to FrontPageAfrica on conditionof anonymity, but witnessed the polls over the weekend, areclaiming that Rep. Bhofal Chambers led the vote 17-15 againstJames (also known as Jimmy) Anderson the other contender.Sources say the disruption of the Maryland polls by some high-ranking members of the CDC Executive Committee, includingthe party’s Secretary-General Nathaniel McGill, Chairman forMobilization and Operations Mulbah Morlu and Chairman GeorgeSolo has led to a big split in the party’s executive committee, thelegislative caucus and the partisans. The CDC caucus is said to

 be in support of Chambers especially Rep. Acarous Moses Gray(Montserrado District #8).

Results placed on hold

The party Wednesday released nal results from two of the threeregions where the primary was carried out.Party Chairman Solo at a news conference told reporters that

the nal report from the primary are from region one and two,which were held in Buchanan, Grand Bassa and Gbarnga, BongCounties.Solo named Ambassador George Weah elected to contest forthe Montserrado County senatorial seat as he went unopposed.Mr. Nathaniel McGill clinched the Gbapolu County seat also ona white ballot. Others are: Mr. Solomon Morris (Grand BassaCounty), Ms. Teeplah Reeves (Rivercess County), Dr. FodayKromah (Grand Cape Mount County), Mr. August Flomo (BongCounty), Mr. Galakpai Kortima (Lofa County) and Cllr. YarminGbesay (Nimba County) as CDC preferred candidates to competein the above counties for the senatorial race.Said Solo: “With Bomi, we had an issue of power failure, andwe will put all efforts to ensure that we complete Bomi County.In the next week, we will bring down the aspirants and ask themto please forgive our national power problem and reengage in the

 process to get a CDC preference for that County.“In region three which is Sinoe, River Gee, Grand Gedeh,Maryland, Grand Kru counties, I received a full report fromthe election committee that went out there to do the primary; Ihave also received a lot of information from the aspirants inregards to what went on there. My understanding is that thereis lot of misrepresentation in the press but region three is underinvestigation.”

Investigation required

Solo maintained that because of the situation surrounding theSoutheast vote, it would be important to investigate the matter

so as to sustain the integrity of the party’s democratic tenets, asthe party is always holding the feet of the National ElectionsCommission to the re on transparency.

Nullifcation call

Sources say that some members of the CDC executive committeeare calling for the nullication of the votes from the entire southeastand that the wrangling is because of the National Patriotic Party(NPP) factor as the current senator Dan Morias (Maryland, NPP)is an archrival to Rep. Bhofal Chambers and might ght to ensurethat Chambers is not successful in the county political process.FrontPageAfrica has learned that the entire result from the primaryin the southeast was placed on hold because the party is trying tocover-up the Maryland County vote asco with some accusing

 party executives of allegedly taking money to rattle the processand give the seat to Anderson.

Blatant lie

But McGill the man in the middle of the accusations says theallegations are false and something that is being carried out bydetractors of the party, who want to sow seeds of discord withinthe ranks and les of the entire CDC executive committee.“It is a malicious lie, a propaganda that is coming from the belly

of the devil. Let’s face the facts; I supported Bhofal Chambers in2011. Bhofal Chambers in 2011 was a member of the Unity Party,I was supporting Winston Tubman; I talked to Bhofal Chambers togo and join the CDC when he resigned from the Unity Party,” saidMcGill in a mobile phone conversation with FrontPageAfrica.“Bhofal Chambers never contested the CDC primary yet and stillwe supported Bhofal when a CDC person won. When Bhofal wonthe elections, I supported Bhofal to be deputy speaker though hewas not member of CDC at the time against Tokpa Mulbah. I’vealways supported Bhofal’s ambition; for somebody to say that I’magainst Bhofal is appalling.”McGill said all he is pushing for is for the process of selecting

 party candidates for the senatorial race to be transparent andnothing more or less.“I have said, that in the face of the controversy that is comingfrom Maryland, there is a need for us to investigate,” he said.“If Bhofal says he won the election and Jimmy Anderson sayshe won the election and the independent observers in Maryland

 believe the election was not free and fair and the people rigged the process, my view is, let us have a rerun of the process; that’s allI’ve said. Is Bhofal afraid of a rerun? If Bhofal wins I will supporthim.”

Glaring NPP card

Critics are accusing McGill of trying to play the NPP card againstthe candidacy of Chambers because of his afliation with the

 party and that he would rather support Anderson than Chambersfor the slot in the upcoming election. But the CDC Secretary

“It is a malicious lie, a propaganda that is coming from the belly of the devil. Let’s

 face the facts; I supported Bhofal Chambers in 2011. Bhofal Chambers in 2011

was a member of the Unity Party, I was supporting Winston Tubman; I talked

to Bhofal Chambers to go and join the CDC when he resigned from the Unity

 Party,” - Nathaniel McGill, Secretary-General - CDC 

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v

It was a long day. Running errands around Monrovia

including stints on crowded Bushrod Island was exhausting.

Driving in a black sport utility vehicle, with black leather

seats, and black tinted windows without air conditioner in a

 blazing 93 degree temperature took its toll.

I retired sooner than usual, crashing on the bed just as soon as I

walked in the room. But,

I awoke even earlier to spiritual shouts, trumpeting from loud

speakers. Not sure what time it was, so I rolled over and checked

the timepiece on my mobile phone. It was three o’clock in the

early morning. The loud noise had clearly hampered my sleeping pattern.

I stepped outside to identify the direction of the pulsating chants.

I walked around the neighborhood, still pitched dark under a light

rain drizzle, trying to visit the church to ask the pastor to stop, or

at least, signicantly lower the volume. After a few blocks, I was

halted by a large mangrove swamp

separating my apartment and the church, but the thumbing noise

of singing and drumming pierce through the damped morning air

unabated.

 Not knowing where to go in the dark, I retreated to my residence

and decided to take up the issue with the authorities instead of

confronting a church packed with overzealous prayer warriors.

Two weeks earlier, a similar incident occurred when a self-

declared “evangelist” and “man-of-God” named, Will Smith,

 berated a young woman who had asked him to turn down the

volume emanating from his ‘apartment-chapel’ next door. He

responded by throwing the “F” bomb and hurling other offensive

words at her.The woman was chosen by a small band of men as an emissary

to this one-man prayer band operator who disturbs the Aireld –

Lakpazee neighborhood most mornings with his cult-like rants.

The entire sub-division is at the mercy of this foul-mouth wannabe

cleric. Most people I talked to said they were uncomfortable

challenging him because “in Liberia, no one confronts a pastor,”

even if he is a phony who disturbs the public peace.

I searched around and found no one who could tell me where to go

for redress. It is time that Monrovia city ofcials, law enforcement

authorities, and community leaders stop looking the other way

why tolerating the impunity of those who claim to be born-again

 pastors. Yet, in reality, many of these

 preachers are indulging in ungodly behaviors – their utter

disregard for the

rights of their neighbors to sleep at night.

Clearly, these all-night church services and tarries are causing

sleepless nights to many Liberians but most people are helpless

to go up against these Christian leaders because it would seem

sacrilegious. Another problem is no one knows who to contact or

which government agency has jurisdiction over enforcing noise

ordinance or eliminating loud church revivals that sometime goes

well beyond 50 decibels at night.

 Noise pollution has an adverse effect on our hearing; exposure

to loud levels of noise can easily result in the damage of our ear

drums and loss of hearing, according to medical practitioners.

Other health issues resulting from noise pollution, say doctors,

include sleeping disorders and cardiovascular conditions.

I have spoken to Liberians from across the city and all of them have

increasingly indicated that the problem of all night church service

is a menace throughout the country. It seems more prevalent in

densely populated Monrovia, but no one apparently has an answer

on how to close down churches guilty of noise pollution. These

churches are destroying community life!

Religious institutions have just as much rights as the average

citizen and should be regulated. These overnight church revivals

 pose a risk to their attendants’ health. Many people think that byattending church overnight can offer solutions to unemployment,

 poverty and sickness. But many of these church goers are not

getting enough sleep and may not adequately perform on a job,

even if they

were to nd work.

These church services over the years have proliferated, especially

during Christmas and New Year’s holiday, even in countries like

the United States (though, churches operate on set sound level and

will be heavily ned, if they violated noise ordinances).

You can have your all night tarries but control the sound to the

connes of the building. Blaring loud speakers in the middle of

the night why people are generally asleep is unacceptable and

unhealthy.

But, why are these marathon church services on the rise? Is it

 because many people believe in superstition and think that God

would provide them whatever they ask for during these revivals?

Whatever the motivation, the same God that is worshipped sets

time for everything in the Bible: Atime to work and a time to play, a time to eat, and a time to sleep,

which requires eight hours.

 Noise pollution is a major problem in Monrovia and it is not

restricted to churches or spaces of worship – from the constant

honking of horns, to loud music from the city’s omnipresent

entertainment centers, bars, video clubs, and cars with loud

speakers in the trunk trumpeting all sorts of commercial

 promotions.

What is the decibel level allowed under the city’s noise ordinance,

or is there such a thing in Monrovia? Loud noise has public health

implications and is a menace that needs to be controlled. The

 problem is now at a crisis level.

The solution to this problem is rather simple. Controlling the

noise pollution in the country will only be successful if it doesn’t

come across like the authorities are picking on some religious

institutions. All those entities mentioned above need to be

regulated and given dened decibel level for operating in the city.

Worship centers could utilize sound proof equipment to reduce

noise during their religious services.

 I nally dozed off at about 6:30 a.m., only to be awaken again

after 30 minutes by the chant of a petty seller: “Buy your sweet

doughnut here!”

Wynfred Russell can be contacted at wnrussell@hotmail.com.

Photo credit: iStockphoto

OVERNIGHT CHURCH SERVICEMAY POSE 'HEALTH RISKS'

FrontPagev

CommentaryEDITORIAL

WITH THREE YEARS to the end of the tenure of President

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberians are already looking to

life beyond the imminent 12 years rule of Africa’s first

democratically elected female President.FOR MANY THE remaining three years is a like a century and

seeing Sirleaf out is the best option, with some not caring about

her replacement but anticipating a new regime with a new wayof doing things.

SIRLEAF HERSELF HAS so far remained kind on her

successor although a while ago she bluntly stated that she will

 play a role i n who succeeds her and will turn over to an elected

government, dashing the hope of some who think she is too

old to continue steering the affairs of the country and should

therefore step aside and leave her Vice President Joseph Boakai

in charge.

WHILE OPPOSITION POLITICAL parties are breathing

sign of relief in the absence of a strong and internationally

concocted Sirleaf, the President’s ruling party and her kitchen

cabinet are on the other hand maneuvering to maintain grip on

 power. Some pundits think they are doing so to protect their

 business and other interes t which will be at stake when Sirl eafis no more in power.

SIRLEAF’S RULING UNITY Party has renewed its bond inrecent weeks with regular holding of executive meetings many

of which are attended by Vice President Boakai who is been

tipped to replace Sirleaf.

THE REGIME HAS grown unpopular in the eyes of the

Liberian public for numerous promises unfilled and a successor

like Boakai is seen as a replica of the current regime, igniting

the need for a strong opposition to add new vigor to the

management of the state rather than a senior player in the

regime that has become so unpopular.

CHANGE OF REGIME comes with so many implications

and senior officials of the current regime some of whom haveacquired so much wealth in eight years will do all they can to

have one of their kind hold unto to power, avoiding the scenario

of former National Transitional Government of Liberia officials

who were prosecuted by the current regime on allegations of

corruption.

ALTHOUGH ALL THE NTGL officials were acquitted but

due to the trial, they were publicly vilified, creating trauma

and image problem for them, something many officials of theSirleaf regime will want to avoid as they might not be fortunate

to be acquitted like the case of others.

WITH ALL THESE varying interest at stake, in order to have

a new team to lead Liberia as is been envisioned by Liberians

during discussions in public places, on radio stations and other

 places, there is a need for strong, formidable and responsibl eopposition to break the cohesiveness of ruling party has been

in power for over eight years and will reach 12 years in three

years.

FORERUNNERS TO THE Unity Party in the 2011 elections

including the Congress for Democratic Change, the National

Union Democratic Progress (NUDP), the Liberty Party

and others appear not to be sensing the danger posed by

disorganization which will means the ruling party could still

maintain its hold unto state power.

THE SECOND TO the UP in 2011, the CDC is currently

embroiled in dispute over results of primary conducted in

some counties, pointing to some sign of disorganization which

 perhaps could grow further come 2017 where there will bemore seats up for contest during primary instead of the currentone seat primary.

THE CDC HAS already cancelled the primary results from the

entire southeastern region and Bomi with looming suspicion of

money changing hands during the conduct of primary in some

counties.

THIS SPEAKS VOLUMES and is an indicator to what might

come out of the CDC in 2017 if nothing is done to put the party

in order.

COMMENTARY

FILLINGSIRLEAF’S

 VOIDORGANIZED OPPOSITION

 MUST STEP UP 

Wynfred Russell, Contributing Writer, wnrussell@hotmail.com

 NUDP WHICH MANAGED third spot in 2011 has been

dissolved as the National elections Commission through a

 petition filed befo re the Civ il Law Court seeking the revoca tion

of the registration and accreditation of 20 registered political

 parties succeeded in deregister ing 15 politica l parti es including

the NUDP.

FOURTH PLACE LIBERTY Party has not made any significant

mobilization over the last two years with the exception of a few

crossovers of individuals.THIS SHOWS HOW the first three main opposition parties to

the ruling party might not just be getting the tactics right to

unseat the regime at the polls in 2017.

WHILE THE RULING party might not be popular in Monrovia

and a few urban cities, it is no doubt that Liberians in rural areasdo not care much about how much jobs is creating in Monrovia

and are pleased with the few road construction taking place in

their towns and villages and so cherish the regime so much.

THOSE SEEKING WHITE collar jobs in Monrovia and

other cities are no doubt bitter with the regime for lack of job

opportunities, poor education and health sectors but the ordinary

farmers in the towns and villages do not a job and so their

 perception for the government is quite di fferent.

IN 2011, THE politics was the same lack of jobs, corruption

and poor health care delivery and education sectors but still

Sirleaf triumph during the first round of polling before winning

a boycotted runoff election.

2017 MIGHT JUST the same, failure to fight corruption, lack of jobs, amongst others but how does not change the minds of t he

electorates in the rural parts of the country who atleast now have

access to feeder roads remains a question.

THIS IS WHY filling Sirleaf’s void requires a strong and

responsible opposition that will not be Monrovia based but willmake its presence felt in towns and villages across Liberia head

of 2017.

IN THE ABSENCE of such opposition, Liberians might get a

shock at the polls come 2017.

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 Page 4 |   Frontpage Thursday, June 12, 2014

MINISTER

WEEKS SHOWSCONTEMPT AGAIN

WHERE IS THE

HOUSE ETHICS

COMMITTEE WHEN

 YOU NEED THEM?

FrontPage Send your letters and comments to:

editor@frontpageafricaonline.comYOU WRITE; WE PUBLISH; THEY READ!

COMMENTS FROM

FPA ONLINE

DISCLAIMER The comments expressed here are those of our online readers and

 bloggers and do no represent the views of FrontPageAfrica

Rodney D. Sieh, Managing Editor, 0886-738-666;

077-936-138, editor@FrontPageAfricaonline.com;

rodney.sieh@FrontPageAfricaonline.com

Wade C. L. Williams,  News Desk Chief, wade.

williams@frontpageafricaonline.com; 0880664793

Sports Editor, Danesius Marteh, danesius.marteh@

frontpageafricaonline.com, 0886236528Henry Karmo, henry.karmo@frontpageafricaonline.

comAl-varney Rogers al.rogers@frontpageafricaonline.

com, 0886-304498

Sports Reporter, A. Macaulay Sombai,macaulay.

sombai@FrontpageAfricaonline.com, 077217428

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frontpageafricaonline.com0886257528

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EDITORIAL TEAM

WHAT READERS ARE SAYINGABOUT OUR STORIES ON THE

WORLDWIDE WEB

The Reader's Page 

SYLVESTER MOSES · TOP COMMENTER 

In their 2013 book on campaign reporting and political science

entitled “THE GAMBLE: Choice and Chance in the 2012 PresidentialElection”, John Sides and Lynn Vavreck devoted a section to the three

stages of media coverage many candidates go through during primarieson the road to the American presidency; they are as follows: discovery,

scrutiny and decline.

As a result of his charisma, and the adulation of a rising population of

soccer crazy youths and young adults, our legend, Ambassador GeorgeWeah, didn’t have to go through the stage of “discovery”. And apart

from the issue of education which he overcame, the popular candidatehasn’t yet undergone a serious ”scrutiny” by the press on his integrity,

except now.

Despite his defense, would these emails be the smoking gun to trigger

a “decline”, and an end to his thrilling trek to the presidency? if Weah’smeteoric rise from rags to riches through determination, hard work and

competitive advantage is any guide, it would take more than emails toslow down his ambition. Time will tell, we thank FPA for breaking the

story.

SELTUE R KARWEAYE SR. · TOP COMMENTER · METRO STATE

· 183 SUBSCRIBERSThe revelation of George Weah is sickening. It seem everyone is a

fatherly gure to confused Weah. First Sapp Blatter and now BinHammam. It was Sapp Blatter who appointed Weah to the Pretigious

FIFA Committee which also includes Members like Roger Milla andPele. Blatter even Weah continue to used his fame for corruptible

 practices in order to maximize wealth-from the back door dealing

in Liberia politics to the international footballing stage. He should be ashamed of himself! Unfortunately, the Brother have no Ethical

 principles or Standards. Accepting mere 30 British pound for so-calledschool fees is sad. I believe it's God revealing the true color of Weah and

criminal enterprise. We beat on Ellen's led government for corruptionand malpractices and yet Weah and his compatriots are catched with

their pant down and folks want to justied Weah dealing in the FIFA

Scandal. Let called Spade a Spade. Sometime, I wondered if WeLiberian are Cursed People or just Wicked and Selsh People.

JOHN WILLIAMS · TOP COMMENTER · EASTERN UNIVERSITY,

ST. DAVIDS, PA

Football made Weah and helped to propel him to the national political

scene. I hope football does not help to destroy his political career.The elections in 2017 will be completely different from 2005 or any

 presidential elections Liberia has ever seen. There will be rigorousscrutiny of candidates like never before. In the past it was easy for

anyone to claim that "America or the UN sent me" and people would buy it. After Ellen's performance that propaganda will not easily

work. Similarly, after the performance of the legislature and cabinetministers, just being a "country" man or woman will not earn anyone

automatic acceptance. Too many people have died and the Liberian

 people have a responsibility to ensure that those hundreds of thousandsof innocent people who were killed did not die in vain. Liberians have a

responsibility to ensure that they elect people, from the lowest positionto the presidency, who will seek the interest of the country. I have

always maintained that academic excellence and international contactsare good but they do not guarantee patriotism and good governance.

Liberians must search for competent and incorruptible people to move

the country forward. The state of Liberia is shameful and leaders whoare prepared to sacrice for the country to make the great leap must be

identied and given the opportunity to lead. As this story has shown,there are people with money in the world who are prepared to buy

anything. If Liberia has not already been sold, Liberians have a dutyto ensure that the integrity of the country is retained and maintained!

EDWARD ROYE · TOP COMMENTER · LIBERIA COLLEGE

World best player turned BM? this is unfortunate. for sure, the rumorthat lone star sold her chance of going to worldcup in 2002 seem to

 be real. if weah of all personalities who played for millions of dollarscan come so low as to take $50,000.00 to inuence vote in liberia, just

shows how unserious this guy who want to lead Liberia is. all of his

 predecessors(renown world class footballers) are linked to positivitiesnot criminality; from King pele, Abdi Pele, Platini, kanu, abu trikha,

etc. why should it be our Weah?it is time for Amb. Weah to step outof public domain and clear his name at the FIFA saga. it is time for

the CDC to ask amb. Weah to clear his name before being considered political leader of his party. i m sure CDC would dare ask weah to do

such.

The Editor,

This is where the rubber meets the road, as the

expression goes. Would FPA please go back into

its les and reprint the story,--either after "DR."

Antoinette Weeks was appointed or when she went

for her Senate conrmation hearings--to read again her resume,

degrees earned and ENGINEERING PROJECTS she claimed

that she supervised, managed and or completed. I wrote then

and asked for verication of those engineering projects listed on

her resume. Classroom accomplishment as in schools attended

and degrees earned is not equivalent to work experience or work

history, and veriable work references. But in the Senate did

they dare question the stated accomplishments of a DR. WEEKS,an arrogant congua who rained insults on her native deputy as a

"country ass?"

Weeks has even shown her contempt for constituted authorities

to the Senate when she rst refused to appear to answer to the

deplorable state of the roads in Liberia. Not only that, she was a

no-show when her boss the president surprisingly showed up at

her ofce recently, and not once but twice. Does Weeks cares?

No, she is a Weeks whose father and Ellen worked together and

were "b-friend-g-friend" back in the good old days at Finance

in the TWP era. So "Cousin" Ellen must look out for "Cousin/

Uncle" Weeks' children and siblings. Hence, the presence of three

WEEKS in Ellen's government

with top lucrative positions,---Dr. Antoinette Weeks, Minister

of Public Works; ANGILIQUE WEEKS, Chair of the Board,

Liberia Telecommunications Authority; and KIMMI WEEKS,

Chair of the Board of the Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation--

and justiably the reason for their corrupt and arrogant behavior,to a point where Angelique, in violation of the law engineered a

US$1 million building leasing ponzi scam and could not be red

by the president.

So Antoinette now wants to use Ko Woods as a scapegoat for

her incompetent handling of the giant Public Works Ministry. But

Ko is not a pushover and has challenged the government to sue

him if it suspects he was a crook. All because Ko is a lawyer

who defended Rodney Sieh and Woods could harbor presidential

dreams in 2017.

But for Ellen who is an "economist" from Havard, long term

strategic planning for our roads is necessary instead of the annual

temporary band aid solution of resurfacing rather than paving

if one takes into consideration our annual six months of heavy

tropical rain. But then again, I did not go to Havard University.

But this problem of the rainfall has been around as long as

the beginning of time, and will always be with us unless some

powerful magical forces move Liberia physically to somewhere

in all yearlong hot climate region like the Middle East.Fantasy dream.

Why trade our fertile soil and virgin rain forest for yearlong hot

weather because we lack the genius to plan? So our government

must think and plan long-term solutions.

Maybe we need to ask the United States for help with its best

engineers and the best road networks of any country in the world

to help design and build our roads. Tradeoffs would be some

WEAH DEFENDS ‘FATHERFIGURE’ ADMITS PROBED

IN FIFA SAGA 

natural resources: iron ore and now OIL. It would be a win-

win for both Liberia and the US which has been babysitting and

breastfeeding us since birth in 1847. Didn't the US literally stop

the war, and when President George W. Bush told Charles Taylor

its time to pack up and leave and Taylor ed into Nigeria? The UShas pumped billions of dollars into Liberia and what have we got

to show for that money? Liberians can have rst class all weather

roads if we put our ego on one side and ask the country with the

best roads and best road construction engineers in the world, the

United States of America.

Ellen, you should have made me one of your advisors. See what

I just suggested? I am awaiting a call from you President Ellen

Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia. My number is: 301-789-7786. Trust

me, it will work and can be done, ONLY if we ask. It is called

technical agreement/aid. The Chinese are doing it all over Africa.

I just rather put my money on American road engineers.

Jerry Wehtee Wion

Washington, DC, USA....

The Editor,

How many times will this goon (Rep. Acarous Gray)

get away with felony? (Re "Acarous Gray Denies

Phone Theft" Daily Observer Online)

Representative Acarous Gray has ALL the markings

of a felon!!!.. But will you ever see Gray in an orange jumpsuit??

Please. In Liberia, lawmakers are entitled to legislative immunity

for felony!

In case your short term memory has failed you, let's recap some of

Gray's felonious activities, shall we??

#1) Have you forgotten how Gray and his goons threw stones at

3 year old school children and blocked productive citizens from

going to work during their (CDC) so called "peace march" on

March 25, 2011???

#2) Have you forgotten how Gray dressed up in a military fatigue

to intimidate elections ofcials and incite election violence

because a CDC candidate was correctly disqualied from a the

by-election (Re "CDC By-Elections Disqualication Leads to

Another Violent Turn in Monrovia")???

3) Have you ever seen a picture of Rep. Gray on the internet

(FPA website)?? Gray is an opium smoker.. Look at his red eyes!

Red eyes are an indicator of heavy marijuana use, but our public

servants not required to take drug test, so Gray gets high and does

all kinds of crazy shit to law-abiding citizens!

Look. When you assault school children; incite election violence;

smoke pot on the job; and steal other people property-- you belongin the jail house, not in the House of Representatives!

Where the hell is the damn House Ethics committee when you

need them?

Martin Scott

Atlanta, Georgia

martyretire@yahoo.com

8/15/2019 Thursday, June 12, 2014 Edition

5/20

FrontpageThursday, June 12, 2014  Page 5

TRANSITIONING OUT: MAKING THE MOST OF LIFE

AFTER OFFICE

KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY H.E. PROFESSOR AMOS SAWYER,

FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE INTERIM GOVERNMENT

OF LIBERIA, AT 4TH RETREAT OF NIGERIA GOVERNORS’FORUM IN PORT HARCOURT, NIGERIA ON 6TH JUNE,

2014

Chairman of the Forum

Distinguished Governors

Former Governors Present

The Media

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen

I want to thank you, Mr. Chairman, and your distinguished colleagues

for inviting me to this retreat and for the warm welcome accorded me

since my arrival in Nigeria but especially in Port Harcourt. I thank

you also for the opportunity to engage in these deliberations, to learn

from the fountain of knowledge and experience of the distinguished participants and to share my views.

I had looked forward to the participation also of President Mbeki,

the former President of South Africa, a distinguished world leader

who regrettably is not here but who has contributed so much to the

development of his country South Africa and to the advancement

of global peace and security and international cooperation. We in

Africa owe an enormous debt of gratitude to President Mbeki forhis extraordinary leadership both while in ofce and after ofce. His

conceptualization of the African Renaissance and the establishment

of continental institutions for the promotion of good governance are

among his legacy to Africa. Since his retirement, he has been just as

active. His tireless quest for peaceful solutions to African conicts

and for the enhancement of accountability and transparency in

regional as well as global economic governance remains outstandingon our continent. As a Liberian, let me also recall that it was through

the leadership of President Obasanjo and President Mbeki that in

2003 the Liberian conict was brought to an end when the two leaders

leading a high power team were able to persuade President Taylor to

resign and depart Liberia; thereby providing an enabled environment

for the nal resolution of the conict, putting Liberia on a course

of peace and post-conict reconstruction. We Liberians owe bothleaders a debt of gratitude.

I want to congratulate this august body for taking time off to reect

on some critical areas of governance and development in Nigeria,

 particularly at the level of state governance. The strength of Nigeria

as a federation lies not only in good governance at the federal level but also at the level of state and local governance. The federal system

of governance works best when there are strong institutions ofgovernance at all levels and when the interaction among them works

smoothly, especially in the delivery of public goods and services to

the people.

There are always challenges in the relationships between federal

and state levels of governance. Contentions over jurisdictional

responsibilities and prerogatives, resource allocation and budgets,

among others will always exist and solutions to these challengesmight not always satisfy all parties. What is most important, however,

is that there should always exist a spirit of cooperation between

federal and state governments and a willingness to nd solutions

together. Quite frequently adequate solutions to contentions about

 jurisdictional issues can be found when the search for solutions is

guided by the principle of subsidiarity. Solutions to contentions about

resource allocations are best guided by principle of commensurabilitysuch that the nature and magnitude of service to be provided at the

level of state governance have bearing on the nature and magnitude

of the resources allocated for the provision of the service. Successin addressing the challenges between federal and state governments

can involve high transaction cost. Sometimes the level of transaction

cost is as high as that needed for condence building. But if there is

a spirit of cooperation the environment for reaching understandingswill exist.

Mr. Chairman, I am not telling you things you do not already know.

As Governors, a good portion of your time is taken up in building

consensus among diverse constituencies and negotiating with the

federal government to reach productive outcomes to challenges.

This is what governance is about—reaching common understandings

about how to address dilemmas and challenges of development.Mr. Chairman, the issue under consideration at this session is of

critical importance to successful public service. Preparation for

transitioning out of public service and the question of the quality of

life we would like to live after public service are issues which should

 be considered by all public ofce holders while they are preparing to

hold ofce or shortly after they are installed in ofce. If we carefully

think about what quality of life we want to live after ofce, the answerto that question will help to shape the quality of service we provide

when in ofce.I submit to you that most if not all public ofce holders would

like to live life after ofce in dignity and with relevance. Concerns

about security, especially physical and nancial security, and about

maintaining social standing and public respect and approbation are

key elements of the concern about living life in dignity. Concernsabout a relevant life often have to do with life that gives us a

 productive niche and appreciation in society.

How do we ensure that we transition out of public ofce to a life

in dignity and relevance after ofce? Mr. Chairman, my personal

NIGERIA’S STRENGTH AMOS SAWYER SAYS STRENGTH OF NIGERIA`S FEDERALISM LIES IN GOOD GOVERNANCE 

experience has in part guided my views on this question. In

September 1990, at the peak of the Liberian civil war, I was chosen

to serve as Interim President. Although under conditions of hardship,

I functioned both as ceremonial as well as substantive head of the

government. This included all the trappings of ofce. In March 1994,

a new transitional government was formed and I stepped down,

returning to life as a private citizen. How did I cope with my newcircumstance? No retinue of state security, assistants and advisors;

no bullet-proof limousine, and no crowds attending my every

appearance! My preparation for exiting ofce began at the time when

I was inducted into ofce. Let me share with you how I prepared forlife after ofce. And I recommend this to all leaders.

First, whether appointed or elected, it is important to see public

service as a privilege: We must see public service as a privilege and because it is a privilege, we should be appreciative of the opportunity

given us to serve and we must be humble by this opportunity.

Second, we must remind ourselves every day that public service is

an assignment and not an entitlement. We must be mindful that as an

assignment, public service is of time-bound duration. We enter, we

serve and we exit.

Third, we must be mindful also that others are to follow us andmost often we would have had predecessors. As holders of public

ofce, we are in a chain of actors and we have a responsibility to

 build upon the good things that were done by our predecessors and to

leave our footprints for our successors to follow. One of the personal

challenges of holding public ofce, especially elected ofce, is the

temptation to condemn what our predecessors have done and to seek

to present ourselves as the rst ever to do the right thing. We are toooften reluctant to give due credit to our predecessors. This orientation

does not enhance development; it does not help us to build from

strength to strength. Moreover, it breeds enmity and an adversarialrelationship between incumbents and predecessors. It is not healthy

for life after ofce.

Fourth, it is good for us to come to public ofce with a vision. It is

even more helpful if that vision is to manage public affairs in a waythat changes things for the better, by developing and using the human

resources of the society in a manner that is inclusive of all, including

former leaders. An agenda for transformation cannot be implemented

 by the government alone. The stature and experience of former

leaders who leave ofce in good standing can prove invaluable in

 promoting development objectives at all levels of governance where

human and material resources need to be mobilized and deployed.Fifth, while in ofce, select and undertake a legacy project from the

 broader development agenda. People do remember leaders who make

a positive difference in their lives. Projects advancing education,

health care, roads, housing, water works and sanitation are among

 projects that make a difference in the lives of people and serve as a

legacy of the leader.

While all of these steps would contribute to preparing a conducive

environment for transitioning out of ofce and to life after ofce,there is a need to ensure that retirement packages are formulated as

 part of the transition process. These packages are more likely to be

supported by the population when they are prepared as part of the

overall governing process with the advice of experts and in an open

and transparent manner. They can be resisted by the public when

they are perceived as acts of desperation by out-going incumbents;or when seen to be unreasonable feather-bedding. An expert team can

 be hired to study the circumstance of life after ofce and provide

some guidance for enactment of legislation. This could be a project

for the secretariat of this Forum. In this way, individuals are spared

the arguments and insinuations which in themselves can detract from

 public respect as one leaves ofce. So it is better to institutionalize the

 process of determining the retirement package of out-going leaders.

Mr. Chairman, let me mention some personal issues of preparation

associated with life after ofce. We in Africa live in societies where

 people can be generous to each other, respectful of their leaders, bringgifts to them and expect gifts from them. Out-going leaders should

expect a shift in the balance: More people are likely to seek you out

as a former leader to see what you can do for them, than those who

would want to know in what ways they can be helpful to you. Fewer people will be available in your retinue. Convoys of cars will not be

available to you. Wives, children and relatives must be sensitized to

this reality as part of the preparation of a happy life after ofce. Oneof the ways to address the demands for nancial and material help

is to engage in social and charitable work as part of a collectivity or

through a foundation or charitable institution. Leaders who exit ofce

with goodwill are usually able to work with others in establishing or

strengthening community-based and other types of nongovernmental

organizations, strengthening scholarship programs and microcredit

and savings and loans associations, among others. An institutionalapproach to the provision of charitable assistance is often more

sustainable than the individual approach.

Mr. Chairman as I end these remarks allow me to think aloud about

a few areas in which retiring governors could be helpful to our sub-

region and perhaps our region after their retirement from ofce.

As many African countries embark upon deepening their processes

of decentralization, the experience of retired governors becomesinvaluable assets to assist countries that are struggling with the

challenges of decentralization and power-sharing. In Liberia, we

are in the process of establishing a system of local governance asa means of involving local people in the provision and delivery of

certain public services. Decentralization is new to us. The experience

of leaders who have served at the state level can be helpful.

African universities can benet from the experience and insights offormer governors about the management of state affairs in a multi-

level system of governance in the African context. My sense, Mr.

Chairman, is the highly competent technical staff of the National

Governors Forum and others associated with them can be tasked to

 put forward realistic and implementable recommendations.

There are numerous excellent examples of how former African

leaders, not only presidents and heads of government but also judges, parliamentarians and heads of economic and educational institutions

have been able to assist in the promotion of local, national, and

regional development initiatives mediate conicts engage in post-

conict peacebuilding and recovery and social and economic

development. For example, several retired judges from African

countries serve as members of regional and global tribunes; former

 parliamentarians serve as election observers and advisers in the

orientation of new parliamentarians both in their own countries aswell as in other African countries. More former governors need to be

among their ranks.

Mr. Chairman, permit me now to close and in doing so say that I

am sure each of you will nd the exchange of ideas in this retreat

invaluable. Peer learning is a very effective form of capacity building

and I trust that by 2015 your exchanges will be broader involving allof your colleagues and equally rewarding.

Thank you.

 

8/15/2019 Thursday, June 12, 2014 Edition

6/20

 Page 6 |   Frontpage Thursday, June 12, 2014

Monrovia-

D

efense lead lawyer inthe mercenary trialwhere 13 defendants

were found guiltyof mercenarism Cllr. TiawonGongloe says that the jurors’guilty verdict that dashed hishopes Tuesday was contrary tothe evidence adduced at the trial.

Cllr.Gongloe also a formerSolicitor General of Liberia whohad throughout the three months

of trial accused the state of notestablishing any prima facieevidence against the defendants,told reporters outside the courtshortly after the guilty verdictthat the jurors’ verdict was farfrom the truth.“The evidence which the jurorsrelied upon to convict the

defendants was contrary to theverdict,” said the human rights

lawyer. Cllr. Gongloe who

closed the nal argument onbehalf of the defense counseltold jury ahead of the verdict,not to bring down the defendantsguilty because the testimonies ofthe prosecution witnesses werecharacterized by lies.At the same time

FrontPageAfrica has reliablylearnt that lawyers representing

the 13 guilty defendants haveplanned to le a motion of re-trial against the jurors’ verdict,which was greeted with weeping

from family members of theguilty defendants.Sources hinted FPA that thedefense counsel wants a motionof re-trial because the six-member trial jury ignored severalconvincing legal issues raised bythe defense, that if consideredcould have led to the acquittal ofthe defendants.Cllr. Gongloe said he will outlinethese legal issues when the

motion is led before the courtahead of the nal ruling by theJudge set for June 17, 2014.If the motion for re-trial is ledand accepted by the court, it willbe the third time to hold hearing

into the mercenary case againstthe 13 defendants, who havebeen in detention for nearly three

years since their arrest in 2011and subsequent charge with the

crime of mercenarism whichthey have all denied.The rst time the defendantswent on trial was during May2013 term of court where thecase was ordered cutoff mid-way to the close of the trial byJudge Yussif Kaba when one of

FRONTPAGE

HEALTH

‘EVIDENCE CONTRARY TO VERDICT’

MIDWIFERY DEFICITUNFPA Report 73 Countries in the Red

 Defense Lawyer Questions Guilty Ruling in mercenary case

 

the jurors Jeremy Dweh alarmedthat he was been approached

by the prosecution to bribe himto render verdict in favor of theprosecution. But prosecutionlawyer Daku Mulbah denied theclaim.The last time the case resumed

was during the 2014 FebruaryTerm of court, where the 18defendants at the time of the trialwere tried and ve walked freefor lack of evidence leaving13others on trial.

The crime allegedly occurredin Ivory Coast during election

violence in that country, whichleft several properties destroyedand several other persons killed

including an ambush of sevenUnited Nations Peace Keepersfrom Niger.The election violence inthe Ivory Coast had ensued

between supporters of formerPresident Laurent Gbagbo whoresolved not to relinquish power

because the Supreme Court hadoverturned the results in favor ofcurrent leader Alassane Ouattara.

Kennedy L.Yangian kennedylyangian@frontpageafricaonline.com 077296781

FRONTPAGE

LAW & ORDER

PRAGUE, CZECH

REPUBLIC-

Areport released on

June 4, 2014 by

the United Nations

Population Fund

UNFPA, together with the

International Confederation of

Midwives (ICM), the World

Health Organization (WHO)

and partners reveals that major

decits in the midwifery

workforce occur in 73 countries

where these services are most

desperately needed. The report

recommends new strategies to

address these decits and save

millions of lives of women and

newborns.

The 73 African, Asian and

Latin American countries

represented in the State of

the World’s Midwifery 2014:

A Universal Pathway – A

Woman’s Right to Health

suffer 96 per cent of the global

 burden of maternal deaths, 91

 per cent of stillbirths and 93

 per cent of newborn deaths,

 but have only 42 per cent of the

world’s midwives, nurses and

doctors.

The report urges countries to

invest in midwifery education

and training to contribute to

closing the glaring gaps that

exist. Investments in midwifery

education and training at

agreed international standards

can yield – as a study from

Bangladesh shows – a 1,600

 per cent return on investment.

"Midwives make enormous

contributions to the health

of mothers and newborns

and the well-being of entire

communities. Access to quality

health care is a basic human

right. Greater investment

in midwifery is key to

making this right a reality for

women everywhere," said

Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin,

UNFPA Executive Director.

Midwives have a crucial role

to play in the achievement of

the Millennium Development

Goals (MDGs) 4 (decrease

child death) and 5 (increase

maternal health). When

educated to international

standards and within a fully

functional health system,

they can provide about 90 per

cent of the essential care to

women and newborns and can

 potentially reduce maternal

and newborn deaths by two

thirds. Despite a steady decline

in maternal deaths in the 73

countries that are covered in

the report – dropping yearly

 by 3 per cent since 1990 – and

newborn deaths – decreasing

 by 1.9 per cent per year

since 1990 – there is more

these countries need to do to

address the severe shortage of

midwifery care.

“Midwives are central to

midwifery care and the lives

of women and newborn babies.

The report precedes the Lancet

Special Series on Midwifery,

which together with the report

will provide the evidence to

guide all policy-makers in

their quest to end preventablematernal and newborn deaths,”

said ICM President Frances

Day-Stirk.

The report, launched at the

30th ICM Triennial Congress

in Prague, Czech Republic

highlights the progress made

since the inaugural 2011 report

and solutions to the barriers

outlined in four key areas:

availability, accessibility,

acceptability and quality of

midwifery services: A number

of countries have effectively

strengthened midwifery and

improved access: Nearly half

(45 per cent) of the 73 countries

have implemented measuresto retain midwives in remote

areas and 28 per cent are

increasing the recruitment and

deployment of midwives, while

20 per cent have implemented

new codes of practice

1and 71 per cent have improved

information collection enabling

countries to address shortages

and education standards.

Despite progress, inequities

such as lack of access to

services and poverty have

increased within and among

countries. There are still not

enough adequately educated

midwives to support the health

of women and newborns, and

this contributes to hundredsof thousands of preventable

deaths annually. Today, only

22 per cent of countries have

 potentially enough midwives

to provide life-saving

interventions to meet the needs

of women and newborns,

which leaves over three-fourths

(78 per cent) of the countries

with severe shortages in propercare. As the population grows,

so does the gap in critical

resources and infrastructure,

unless urgent action is taken.

The 2014 report includes

recommendations to close

these gaps and to ensure all

women have access to sexual,

reproductive, maternal and

newborn services. These

includes issues such as

 preventive and supportive care

from a collaborative midwifery

team, immediate access to

emergency services when

needed, and completing post-

secondary education. From a

 broader perspective, womenshould delay marriage, have

access to healthy nutrition

and receive four pre-birth care

visits.

“This report, like the Every

 Newborn Action Plan recently

adopted by the World Health

Assembly, sets a clear way

forward. Both aim to encourage

governments to allocate

adequate resources for maternal

and newborn health services

within national health sector

 plans. This should include

funds for the education and

retention of midwives. We will

continue to support countries

to develop and strengthen their

midwifery services as a criticalintervention to save the lives

of women and newborns,”

said Dr. Flavia Bustreo, WHO

Assistant Director-General

for Family, Women's and

Children's Health.

8/15/2019 Thursday, June 12, 2014 Edition

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FrontpageThursday, June 12, 2014  Page 7 

FRONTPAGE

POLITICS

 By: Al-varney Rogers alrogers2008@gmail.com

Monrovia-

Amember of the

Congress for

Democratic Change

USA chapter Ms.

Fatuma Zinnah has called for

the immediate resignation of

Mr. Nathaniel McGill Secretary

general of the CDC to avoid

what she termed conict of

interest.

Ms. Zinnah who is also an

aspirant in Gbapolu County

recently resigned from the

 party after refusing to contest

in the party’s primary becauseaccording to her, she did not

trust the process.

In her letter of resignation

a copy of which is in the

 possession of FrontPageAfrica

she states: “In keeping with the

Preamble of our Constitution’s

rst paragraph which states:

‘MCGILL MUST RESIGN’

FRONTPAGE

NEWS EXTRA 

Monrovia-

T

he Minister of

Finance Amara

Konneh and his

deputies, Assistant

Ministers and comptroller have been summoned to appear

 before the sixth Judicial Circuit

Court at the Temple of Justice.

His honor Yussif D. Kaba

ordered that the Finance

Minister and his team appear

on June 16, 2014 to answer to

complaint led by eight former

employees of the Ministry,

namely Henry Sele, Elder

Jallah, Byron Trokon Geply,

Duyan Pewee, Siafa Kemokai,

and Benedict Browne.

The writ of summon states

that failure on the part of the

Finance Minister and his team

to appear before the court will

automatically lead to judgment by default against them.

The dismissed employees in

their complaint to the court are

claiming US$ 175,520.00 and

$L 1, 923,039.00 as damages

for the press conference held

 by the Ministry announcing

their dismissal without the

due process of law. They are

claiming that the allegations

 brought against them have no

iota of truth and are therefore

 praying the court to ensure that

their salaries for the period

commencing from the date

of their dismissal up to and

including the 31th of May

2014 are paid in full.

The complaint furthered

that the Minister of Finance

should give the dismissed

employees not less than US$

8,000,000.00[United States

Eight Million Dollars] as

general damages as well as

 punitive damages in discretion

of the court to serve as a

deterrent.

"Plaintiffs [eight dismissed

WRONGFUL DISMISSAL?

employees] averred that

as a consequence of rst

defendant's [Minister

Konneh]’s action, plaintiffs

suffered mental anguish,

injuries to their reputation and physical injuries and therefore

entitled to general damages,"

the complaint states.

According to the dismissed

employees’ complaint, the

Finance Minister hosted a press

conference stating that the

 plaintiffs made unauthorized

 payments in the tune of over

US$11.2 million, which caused

a decit in the national Budget.

The complaint states that the

Ministry of Finance dismissed

them as a result of allegations

the employees argued are

untrue.

The employees through thecomplaint led by their legal

counsel Nyenati Tuan said,

on the 6th of December 2012,

the Solicitor General Wilkins

Wright wrote a letter to Hon.

Angela Cassell Bush, Deputy

Minister for Expenditure and

Debt Management, returning

the les to the effect that

no criminal opinion was

formulated due to the lack

of cooperation from the task

force.

Cllr. Tuan said based on the

communication sent to deputy

minister Bush by the solicitor

General, he wrote to deputyminister for administration

Jordan Sulunteh to reinstate the

dismissed employees but the

directive was not adhered to.

It can be recalled that on

April 13, 2012 Finance

Minister Konneh dismissed

eight employees for single

or collective negligence. The

dismissal was a result of gross

negligence in the management

of the national payroll, which

emerged out of an investigation

 by the Special Wage Bill

Management Task Force

according to the dismissal

letter.The letter of dismissal stated:

"The task force has discovered

the unauthorized payment of

over US$ 11.2 Million which

have caused a decit in the

national budget."

According to the dismissed

employees, the US$ 11.2

Million would-be decit at

the time was a projection done

 by Mr. Sele, former Deputy

Finance Minister Appears in Court

-CDC USA member demands SG Exit

Comptroller & Accountant

General for Payroll to the

Department of Budget

informing them that a potentialdecit would have occurred

at the close of FY 2011/2012

if the trend of payment in the

Ministry of Education budget

continued.

Speaking at a press conference

held at the Ministry’s edice

on Friday April 13, 2012 the

Finance Minister disclosed that

there exist overspending of

salaries across the government,

 but what was occurring at the

ministry of education at the

time was especially alarming.

 “So therefore fellow Liberians,

if you are presiding over a

system with these known

deciencies and weaknesses

that land themselves tocriminal exploitation with the

 potential to cause national

upheaval and civil disturbance

and you don’t feel the urgency

to act decisively, you leave

room for unlimited questions,”

he said.

Quizzed by FrontPage

Africa at the International

Monetary Fund headquarters

in Washington D. C. in 2012,

Minister Konneh encouraged

those who feel dissatised by

his actions to go to court as the

decision he took was endorsed

 by auxiliary government arms

including the civil service and

the ministry of justice.“My actions will affect

colleagues, families and

friends, but my inaction will

affect the entire nation and

many poor people who place

their trust and condence in us

to do the right thing no matter

the personal cost,” he stated.

 

 Henry Karmo (0886522495) henrykarmo47@gmail.com

”Having endured over a century

of bad governance, misrule,

and corruption which have

deprived our people of a decent

standard of living, national

development,….; I bring to your

attention again the complaint in

relations to the unfairness in the

2014 Congress for Democratic

Change (CDC), Gbarpolu

County Primary that I have

experienced and foreseen.”

She disclosed that she On

February 13, 2014, led an

ofcial complaint to both

(Chairman Isaac Tukpah

and Chairman George Solo

regarding the role of Secretary

General McGill at the partylevel, and his declaration to vie

for the 2014 Gbarpolu County

Senatorial Election and other

 partisans including herself who

also have interest to vie for the

same position.

Ms. Zinnah in her resignation

letter stated that if McGill is

willing to continue his ambition,

it will be of best practice to

submit his resignation as

 National Secretary General of

CDC.

She warned that if McGill does

not resign his present position at

the leadership level, she would

 be unable to participate in any

 primary in Gbarpolu County.

“In the letter also, I mentioned

that Sec. McGill conducted a

short interview regarding my

interest and connections to the

county,” she said. “I provided

to Hon. McGill a full detail

of my establishments and

achievements with my district

over the years.”

Zinnah claims the CDC SGencouraged her to come home

and contest for the Gbarpolu seat

when she made her intention

known to him only to nd out

that he was himself vying for

the slot on the party’s ticket.

“From my opinion, the

conversation was well

acknowledged by Hon. McGill

at which time he encouraged

me to make a trip to Liberia

to familiarize myself with the

 party and its leadership,” she

said. “Now as you are aware,

he is contesting which is also

not in conformity with the Code

of Conduct Rule 5.b (creating

division within its ranks or

membership) and d. (doing any

other act which undermines its

effectiveness as a Party).”

Continued Zinnah: “CDC

has the biggest dream that its

leadership has option to offer

Mama Liberia. How can this

dream become a reality when

its leadership is not for and

of the people? Adhering to

Article 4 Sec. 24 and 25, we,

the masses, are entitled to a

democratic leadership of good

governance, transparency,

accountability, fairness, respect,

and about all else, love across

its spectrum. From my view,

some of the ofcials within

the CDC have a dictatorship

style of leadership— removing

county ofcials without the due

 process.”

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 Page 8 |   Frontpage Thursday, June 12, 2014

 PRESIDENT SIRLEAF DEDICATES THE CHIEF SUAKOKO

CENTER FOR RURAL WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT;

FRONTPAGE

UN NEWSFRONTPAGE

COUNTY NEWS

Suakoko, Bong County – 

President Ellen

Johnson Sirleaf has

challenged Liberian

women to rise up to

the challenge by empowering

themselves now that the

 pace has been set for self-

actualization.

According to an Executive

Mansion release, the Liberian

leader, speaking at the launch

of the Chief Suah Koko

Center for Rural Women’s

Empowerment in Bong

County, said the launch of the

Center was a promise fullled

on a commitment to improvingtheir lives.

The Chief Suah Koko

Center for Rural Women’s

Empowerment, located on the

main campus of the Cuttington

University in Suakoko, is

named in honor of former

 paramount chief Madam

Suah Koko for her role in the

annexation of north-western

region to Liberia in the late

19th century which includes

today’s Lofa, Bong and Nimba

Counties.

President Sirleaf said the

honoring of Madam Suah Koko

was the rural women’s version

of the same honor bestowed on

Madam Angie Brooks Randall

in whose name the Angie

Brooks Randall International

Center at the University of

Liberia Fendell Campus is

established which came as

the result of the International

Women Colloquium held in

Liberia in March of 2009.

She challenged the rural

women to seize the opportunity

that the Center will offer,

which include but not limited

to training, research and

advocacy for their common

good.

President Sirleaf said she

was happy for the level of

involvement of Liberianwomen in decision-making

and leadership which has come

as the result of changing times

and gender equality.

Speaking earlier, the national

head of the Angie Brooks

Randall International Center,

Cllr. Yvette Chessen Wureh,

UN PANEL OF EXPERTS

Liberia’s Refusal to Enact Small Arms law

Dampening Efforts to lift Arms Embargo

RURAL WOMEN BOOST

 paid tribute to President

Sirleaf for leading the way for

sustained women advocacy in

Liberia as demonstrated by the

creation of women advocacy

centers and at the same time

honoring the two great Liberian

women.

She informed the Liberianleader that her involvement

in the establishment of the

Centers have further motivated

women to get involved in

leadership roles, decision-

making, advocacy, and

 physical work though most of

them are either half lettered or

completely illiterate.

“Most of the work you see

Madam President in the

construction of this Center

was done by females who are

students of the LOIC Gbarnga

Satellite,” as Cllr. Wureh

called on stage the young

girls in demonstration of how

enthusiastic the women are

with the establishment of aninstitution that is exclusively

about them and their

empowerment.

Cllr. Wureh than announced

that the giant pot in which the

honoree cooked her food to

offer strangers would be on

display at the Center.

The President of Cuttington

University, Dr. Henrique

Tokpa, renewed his institution’s

commitment to supporting

the Center, women rights and

empowerment as evidence by

the donation of the land on

which the Center is built.

He joined President Sirleafand other speakers in urging

the rural women to make use

of the facility in advancing

themselves through training

and empowerment.

Bong County Senator Jewel

Howard Taylor expressed

excitement that a Center is now

named in honor of someone

she had honored before now.

Senator Taylor named her

scholarship in honor of Madam

Suah Koko and gave a facelift

of her grave in Sergeant Kollie

Town (SKT) near Gbarnga.

President Sirleaf’s one day

visit to Bong County also took

her to a Leprosy Rehabilitation

Center in Suakoko to acquaintherself with conditions there

for possible intervention by

Government.

At the center, the Liberian

leader promised government’s

intervention upon the passage

of the 2014/2015 Fiscal Budget

in which they will be included

in social service delivery

category.

President Sirleaf thanked

the caretaker of the center,

Mr. Steve Kennedy and

admonished him to continue

his service to humanity.

She was responding to Mr.

Kennedy’s request, on behalfof the lepers, who pleaded

with President Sirleaf to reach

out to the Center as they feel

abandoned.

He complained of severe

leakages in the school building

and the lack of safe drinking

water at the Center which

President Sirleaf promised to

intervene immediately.

Mr. Kennedy, though not

a leper, after obtaining a

Bachelor of Science (BSc.)

Degree in Economics from the

Cuttington University returned

to the Center to pay back

to the community where he

 began his primary education.President Sirleaf termed this

as an excellent example of

community service. She then

 promised him a motorbike to

enhance his movement as he

serves his people.

Monrovia-

The United Nations Panel of Experts said in its May 2014 report to the

Security Council that the government of Liberia is dragging its feeton the enactment of national rearms legislation.The Panel said the law is critical to providing the legal framework

and institutional mechanism to ensure effective small arms control in Liberia,a country that has in the past been controversial as it relates to arms trafcking

in the region.“The Panel is of the opinion that, if and when passed, the legislation will

establish adequate judicial regulations pertaining to the trafcking and possession of rearms,” stated the Panel in its report released on May 23,2014.

“The Panel notes that the failure to enact the rearms legislation also meansthat there is no database of privately owned guns in the country.”

The Panel also stated that there is a genuine danger of rearms proliferationin the country if such legal framework for regulating the importation and

 personal acquisition of rearms is not urgently approved adding that evengovernment ofcials have expressed concern about the slow pace of enactinga law to regulate small arms.

“The Constitution of 1847 enshrines the right of Liberian citizens to keep and bear arms for the common defense,” stated the Panel in its report.

“Government ofcials, civil society activists and United Nations ofcials withwhom the Panel spoke in Liberia persistently lamented the growing number

of violent incidents involving rearms. Such rearms are mostly single rieshotguns and sometimes pistols, many of them smuggled into the country fromGuinea through the country’s porous borders.”

The Panel stated that with the number of rearms landing in the hands ofthe wrong people due to the lack of a legislation governing the possession

of small arms is troubling as these guns have in the past been used in cross- border attacks by militia elements, making them a potential threat to peace

and security in Liberia and the region adding that the unregulated trafcking

across borders constitutes a violation of the arms embargo currently in place.The Panel stated that the agency responsible to maintain centralized weapons

registration information and oversee markings of the objects in accordance withthe standard of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS),

the Liberia National Commission on Small Arms, has been operating with alone commissioner since September 2013, even though it is supposed to havethree, one of whom is supposed to have a security background.

“This is presumably in order to be able to perform the task above effectively.As it is currently constituted, the Commission appears not to be properly

equipped, even when the rearms legislation is passed, to perform itsfunctions,” stated the Panel in its report.

“The Panel urges the Government and its partners to have the Commission properly resourced in order for it to be able to carry out its mandate.”The Panel observed that the absence of this law creates an avenue for the

increase in the trafcking of rearms and it puts Liberia in a difcult positionespecially as the arms embargo is still in place.

“Until this legislation is passed, however, there is no national legislation in place to regulate the purchase, possession and control of small arms, possibly

creating incentives for illicit trafcking of arms,” stated the Panel“This has been the case since Presidential Executive Order No. 34, which

 banned the importation and possession of rearms and ammunition, except

hunting shotguns, expired in October 2012 (S/2013/316, para. 5).”

The Panel noted that the Commission informed it that that there was intentto have the draft submitted to the Legislature in April 2014, with the aim ofhaving it passed before the Legislature went into recess in July.

The Panel notes that, at the time of submission of the present report, the draftlaw had not been submitted to the Legislature.“The Panel is concerned that the Legislature is unlikely to enact the legislation

in 2014, given the compressed timeline, its poor record of passing importantlegislation and the fact that some key legislators are already focused on their

2014 re-election campaigns,” stated the Panel.“The Panel reviewed the version of the draft legislation that was being

considered by the Commission in March. The draft differs from the 1956Firearms Trafc Act in several signicant respects, which could have animpact on the proliferation of rearms. In the draft, the Inspector General of

the national police is invested with sole authority for the registration, licensingand control of small arms and light weapons, ammunition and other related

materiel.” The Panel stated that during its review of the Liberia National Police and

UNMIL police crime statistics and for the past two years and found that in2012, there were 379 arrests for illegal possession of rearms, compared with178 in 2013.

“The Panel was told that, the decline in 2013 notwithstanding, greater vigilance by the police had led to an increase in such arrests in 2014. From 1 January to 7

March 2014, there were 38 arrests for illegal possession of rearms, indicatingan upward trend,” stated the report.

Continued the Panel: “An alarming trend is the growing incidence of homicidesinvolving rearms. In 2012, the police recorded 367 homicides, a third ofwhich involved the use of rearms. The gure was higher in 2013 (133), with

more than a third involving the use of rearms. Some of the homicides resultedfrom armed robbery, the occurrence of which peaked in 2012 (465 incidents).

In 2013, there were 259 incidents of armed robbery, pointing to a downwardtrend. From 1 January to 7 March 2014, however, the police recorded 42 cases

of armed robbery, an upward trend. Such crimes test the limited capacity oflaw enforcement agencies and underscore the continuing fragility of Liberia.”

8/15/2019 Thursday, June 12, 2014 Edition

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FrontpageThursday, June 12, 2014  Page 9

FRONTPAGE

GENDER ISSUES

FRONT

PAGE

LIFESTYLE

A

s world experts

gather in London

for the Global

Summit to EndSexual Violence in Conict,

the UK’s leading development

think-tank warns that mothers

raped during conicts now

face the trauma of seeing their

daughters also become victims

of sexual assault, as the ‘hyper-

masculinity’ sparked by war

 persists into peacetime.

Researchers from the Overseas

Development Institute (ODI)

interviewed survivors in

Liberia, where the civil war

ended in 2003. During the war,

it is estimated that up to 77%

of women experienced sexual

violence, but today Liberia

continues to have one of the

highest incidences of sexualassault in the world, and most

of the survivors are teenage

girls.

ODI experts say that aid donors

at the London summit must take

the unusual step of committing

to long-term approaches -

 perhaps as long as 20 years – if

sexual violence with impunity

normalised during war-time is

to be reversed.

Amongst the cases highlighted

 by ODI researchers are:

· A thirteen year old girl

from Bomi County, “My

mother and this lady used to be

close friends. But that evening

she was not at home and herhusband forced me to have

sex – when I tried to scream

he threatened to kill me. After

it had happened I managed to

run home. …. I’ve been to the

hospital and had the tests but

I’m too scared to complain to

the police…. At school now

I’m aware other children are

talking about it. I look away

and only talk to my mother

about my feelings.”

· A Liberian welfare

ofcer, “A woman recently

came to our unit with a heart-

‘HYPER-MASCULINITY’ DRIVES SEXUAL VIOLENCE

 HARMING TEENAGE GIRLS, WARNS THINK TANK 

LEGACY OF WAR

 breaking story – her two year-

old had been raped by a male

acquaintance.... When she got back home her daughter was

screaming and screaming when

she went to change the infant’s

diaper she discovered that the

 baby had blood all over her

legs and private parts.”

ODI’s research released today,

‘The Fall-out of Rape as a

Weapon of War’, highlights

how mothers - and now

daughters - are living through

the nightmare of sexual

violence as Liberian society

struggles to re-adjust to peace.

Dr Nicola Jones, a Research

Fellow at ODI, said: “War

can lead to an environment

in which sexual violence is

normalised. After the war, menare often aggressive, ‘hyper-

masculine’ and struggle to

adapt to peacetime; the legacy

of sexual violence can have

devastating impacts not only

on individuals and families but

also on whole communities.”

Dr Janice Cooper of the Carter

Centre Liberia which works

with survivors of sexual

violence in its mental health

 programming said “During

the war men faced the daily

threat of death, but women

had to go out into the elds, to

work, to fetch water, to keep

families fed, and they endured

horric sexual violence. Over a

decade on, men no longer facethe threat of being killed, but

women and girls still face the

risk of rape and sexual assault;

for them, the war continues.”

Rape and sexual assault

have long-lasting physical,

 psychological, social and

economic consequences,

many of which persist for

decades says ODI. “Fistula,

infertility, risk of HIV and

other sexually-transmitted

diseases, post-traumatic stress

disorder and suicidal thoughts

are commonplace amongst

survivors. Some survivors also

face stigma that forces them out

of families, leaving individuals

abandoned - branded as‘damaged goods’ - and left to

deal with the effects of rape on

their own,” said Dr Jones.

According to ODI, ndings in

Liberia mirror those from other

 post-conict settings around

the world, such as Sri Lanka

and the Democratic Republic

of Congo. Whilst there are no

quick-x solutions, the report

highlights some promising

initiatives:

· Tackling hyper-

masculinity with initiatives

helping men to adjust to their

new roles in peacetime society

and developing community

 programmes so rape isn’t seen

as the fault of the victim· Provision of adequate

mental health services, such

as those run by the Liberia

government with support from

the Carter Centre in Liberia.

“These are not a western

luxury”, say ODI’s authors.

· Development of justice

systems which support the

reporting, and prosecution

of sexual violence: often the

stigma around rape is such that

women and girls feel unable to

seek justice.

A CULTURE OF CHILD RAPE IN LIBERIA

HUGE CRIMES IN ‘SMALL SMALL

THING: THE OLIVIA ZINNAH STORY’

Looking for a villain in Jessica

Vale’s documentary? There’s

competition. Obviously, in

“Small Small Thing: The Olivia

Zinnah Story,” about a 7-year-old rape

victim in Liberia, there is the man who

attacked her so brutally that her genitals

were mangled and covered in scar tissue.

He was a 20-year-old cousin. She was left

with a stula requiring numerous surgeries

to repair, if it could be xed at all.

But there are so many others. Olivia’s

father leaves. Her grandfather, a tribal

chief, sides with the rapist. Even her

mother doubts her (“If I had been there, I

would know.”) and does the wrong thing.

A driver declares her “useless, useless.”

Some women who work at the hospital

seem compassionate, but others reveal

hard hearts. Like many women in the lm,

they are horrifyingly cavalier about the

male culture that endorses this behavior