In the ongoing claims and counterclaims by some individuals relative to their roles played in the circumstances surrounding the Japanese Institutional and Capacity Building Project Fund under the Department of International Cooperation and Economic Integration of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Public Affairs Department of the Foreign Ministry has noticed that some individuals have of late begun to direct accusations at the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Dean of the Cabinet, H.E. Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan. Their ulterior motive, as it has been seen from some of the media reports, including posts on the social media, is to impute misconduct to  the Minister and thereby blemish his reputation. Secondly,as the full -scale investigation, which the Minister is on record of personally advocating for, gets underway, it is not the Minister’s intention to prejudice the investigation.

This is not the point  to delve into much of the details as a lot of misinformation have been said over the last few days and weeks. As the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Liberia and the nation’s top Diplomat, Minister Ngafuan has chosen not to speak with the media on the evolving saga,because of his belief   that this  could only give incentives for claims and cunter claims.  Similarly,he is of the strong conviction that any comment of his,  while  being personally helpful,  may be counter productive and  could keep the ministry in a negative media spotlight.

 Unfortunately,Minister Ngafuan’s silence is now being construed by some as an indication  of either fear or guilt by complicity.   Let the record show that Minister Ngafuan has a history of being a campaigner for accountability, transparency and intergrity not only at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs but before and throughout his public service career and he remains consistent with these values.These values have earned him many friends and some enemies at the same time.

In a brief chat with the Public Affairs Bureau,Minister Ngafuan stated,”I will speak fully on this matter after the conclusion of the investigation.For now,let it be made categorically clear that I did not receive or take a dime from the Institutional and Capacity Building Project Funds; and I  challenge anyone to prove me wrong.I did not take a dime or did not shortchange my country when I managed nearly half a billion of my country’s finances in my capacity as Minister of Finance,so I will not behave differently  when it comes to a project fund  of 365 thousand  US dollars managed by a Department under my Ministry. It is my fervent wish that those culpable of defrauding the government  will be identified and duly prosecuted.No amount of unfounded mainstream or social media posts will make me  to flinch  an inch from this commitment.”