The Bureau of Public Affairs

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Monrovia, Liberia

DAILY NEWS SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY, APRIL 21, 2017

Today’s edition of our Summary of the local dailies highlights news of the National Bureau of Concessions retirement of six employees in recognition of their meaningful services to the Government and People of Liberia and in keeping with Civil Service Agency regulations and the pending signing of an MOU between the Female Journalists Association of Liberia and the Society of Women Engineers of Liberia for the construction of FeJAL headquarters.

DOMINANT STORIES

NBC Retires Six

The National Bureau of Concessions (NBC) has retired six employees in recognition of their meaningful services to the government and people of Liberia and in keeping with Civil Service Agency regulations. According to NBC Director General Ciata A. Bishop, the decision was taken with heavy heart but was necessary as retirement is based on age and tenure in public service. She praised the competence and commitment of the retirees with whom she promised to maintain close ties, especially in times of need for their expertise as consultants. Those retired are former Gbarpolu County Representative and NBC Deputy Director General for Administration, Dickson T. Yarsiah; Drayton K. Hinneh, Concession Advisor; Edwin W. Walker, Forestry Concession Advisor; Peter D. Kanbor, Senior Tax Analyst; Johnnie K. Tucker, Project Analyst and Boakai Kromah, Driver. “Today we retire six people who have worked in excess of 30 to 40 years, giving services to their country and people and so today have come to say thank you for your services, dedication and commitment that you have all made to your country,” the Heritage newspaper said.

Related Captions: NBC Honors, Retires Six Employees (In Profile Daily), NBC Retires 6 Employees (The New Dawn)

FeJAL, SWEL To Sign MOU For Headquarters

The Female Journalists Association of Liberia (FeJAL) will on Thursday, April 27, sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Society of Women Engineers of Liberia (SWEL). According to FEJAL, the MOU will give exclusive rights to the Women Engineers to build its headquarters in Monrovia. According to the Daily Observer, the decision was reached at a meeting between the two associations on Thursday April 20 at FeJAL’S office in Monrovia. The project, which is to commence in June, when completed, will have a resource center, computer lab, mini offices, cafeteria and a conference room to host at least 250 people. FeJAL is a non-governmental with a mandate to advocate for social Justice and empower women in the media and those in the society.

Related Captions: FeJAL, SWEL To Sign MOU (In Profile Daily), FeJAL, SWEL to Sign MoU Thursday (The INQUIRER)

OTHER STORIES

‘Air France-KLM Back,’ KLM Regional Director Asserts

After 26 years away from Liberia, the Regional Director of Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij (KLM) Royal Dutch Airlines has disclosed that the airline is back in the country and here to stay for good. Speaking Thursday, April 20, 2017 at the official launch of the airline services in the country, Philippe Barbieri said the return of the airline means a lot to the country and its people. According to the FrontPage Africanewspaper, the airlines left the country during the inception of the civil unrest which claimed human capital and infrastructures leaving the country in a shattering state. Mr. Barbieri said based on the receptions from Liberians and others in the country since the arrival of the first flight on March 26, 2017, it showed that Liberians were waiting for them. According to the KLM Regional Director for Liberia, Sierra Leon, Benin, Togo, Ivory Coast, Guinea and Senegal, he is very confident that the new weekly air travel or service will bring positive benefits to Liberia.

VP Boakai Wants Media To Expose Societal Ills

Vice President, Joseph N. Boakai has urged the Liberian media to be robust and objective in exposing societal ills by reporting nothing but the truth. He said truth telling based on research and verification of facts by journalists in their coverage of happenings in the country is critical for unbiased and accurate reporting. The Daily Observer quoting a press release issued by the Association of Liberian Journalists in the Americas (ALJA) on April 19, said Vice President Boakai made the statement last Tuesday in Washington, D.C. when he granted audience to a four-man delegation of the Association, led by its President, Moses D. Sandy. The Vice President and the ALJA delegates discussed the Association’s role in sustaining the prevailing peace and stability in Liberia, government-media relations, and the current political situation in the country, with particular focus on the 2017 general and presidential elections. ALJA is a US based 501c (3) non-profit media advocacy group that brings together current and retired Liberian journalists residing in the Americas. It was founded in 1998 in Washington, D.C.

Related Caption: Media Needs To Be Rebust Vice President Boakai Frowns On Smear Campaign In Liberian Media (FrontPage Africa)

Equip-Liberia Donates Filter Buckets

A non-governmental organization, Equip-Liberia has donated 100 filter cleaning instruction buckets to over one hundred households in several villages, including Menlah, Jerry, and Mary villages, in lower Nimba County. Equip-Liberia Program Manager for Nimba, Mr. Joseph K. Kilikpo, said, the donation came as a result of recent outbreak of cholera in lower Nimba. He says the filter cleaning instruction buckets will be utilized by affected communities to purify water for safe drinking in order to avoid falling victims to water borne diseases. He disclosed that the buckets were donated to Equip-Liberia by an organization based in America, Last Well, according to the New Dawn newspaper.

Public Defenders Attend Judicial Training

Public Defenders from across Liberia are currently attending a quarterly judicial training in Kakata, Margibi County. The training is being facilitated by the James A. A. Pierre Judicial Institute in collaboration with the Legal Professional Development and Anti-Corruption Project under the auspice of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The training which is taking place at the Booker Washington Institute (BWI) is aimed at enhancing the capacity of Public Defenders. The Training Coordinator of the James A. A. Pierre Judicial Institute, Attorney William B. Kollie, said the workshop is meant to continue the legal education of the participants, adding that the exercise is usually conducted four times yearly, reads the New Dawn newspaper.

Related Caption: Public Defenders Attend Quarterly Judicial Training (In Profile Daily)

Draft Whistle Blower And Witness Protection Bills Validated

Integrity institutions, Government functionaries and Civil Society Organizations Thursday, April 20, 2017, validated that draft Whistle-blower and Witness Protection bills. The draft bills are expected to be submitted to the National Legislature for enactment into law. The two bills were validated at the end of a one-day validation workshop held at the Corina Hotel in Sinkor the bills were earlier drafted by participants at a three-day workshop which took place from March 1-3, 2017. The validation workshop which was organized by the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) in collaboration with integrity institutions, government functionaries and CSOs, brought together Key state actors drawn from the Ministry of Justice, Governance Commission, Liberia National Bar Association, Law Reform Commission, UNMIL, Catholic Justice and Peace Commission, CENTAL as well as the National Integrity Forum, the Heritage newspaper reads.

Related Caption: Whistle Blowers, Witnesses to Be Protected (The INQUIRER)

No Political Police Deputy IG Kromah  Warns LNP Officers

Authorities of the Liberia National Police (LNP) have warned Police Officers across the country not to get involved in political activities during these electioneering periods. According to Deputy Police Inspector General for Operations, Abraham Kromah they will not hesitate to dismiss any officer who will get involved with political activities. Col. Kromah said Police officers are not politicians, but urged Police officers wanting to get involved in political activities to resign, or take leave of absence to enable them do their politicking.  The Deputy Police Inspector General for Operations also assured that the Police will not get involved in election activities. He noted that the Police is responsible to ensure that the process is secure, and the Liberian people are protected while carrying out their campaign activities. The FrontPage Africanewspaper reports that the LNP official spoke Wednesday at the start of a three day election dispute management training organized by the  Peace Building Office of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in collaboration with the African Center for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD).

Related Caption: Resign or Else… Police Officers Warned Against Politics (Heritage)

MOCI Commences Quarterly Inspection Exercise

According to the Daily Observer, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MOCI) will commence a regular quarterly inspection exercise of businesses across Liberia on Monday, April 24 that will end on May 23, 2017. According to a release from MOCI, the objective of the inspection exercise is to provide protection for consumers and to ensure continuous compliance with standard regulations across the country. The inspection will also certify that products found on the Liberian market are tested by the National Standards Laboratory (NSL) to meet international standards and to conform to the General Business Law of Liberia. According to the ministry, the inspections will cover several businesses, including mini and supermarkets, grocery stores, cold storages, convenience stores, electronic stores and water companies. The senior management said it remains committed to creating a vibrant and reliable commercial atmosphere for the people of Liberia.

Related Caption: Commerce Ministry Begins Inspection of Businesses April 24 (INSIGHT)

LDEA Receives Logistical Support from UNODC

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) in Liberia yesterday donated assorted office equipment and logistical support to authorities of the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA). The donated items included one 50KVA Perkins generator; five brand new Suzuki off-road motorbikes; scales to measure illegal drugs; forensic equipment; four laptops; four desktop computers; and four printers. Other items are three photocopiers; three cameras; two audio recorders; one video recorder; and 100 crime fighting-related gadgets, with cases of outer-security belts. The items, according to William T. Thompson, the UNODC national project officer, are valued at about US$25,000. The items, Thompson said, are to help the LDEA strengthen and decentralize its reporting capacity between headquarters and the leeward counties. The donation, he said, were made possible with the support of the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) through its advisor assigned with the LDEA, Rom Fleming of the US Embassy in Monrovia, writes the Daily Observer.

Related Caption: UNODC Empowers LDEA (In Profile Daily)

WFP Official Urges Joint Efforts for “Zero Hunger” Goal In Liberia

The World Food Program (WFP) Regional Director for West and Central Africa, Abdou Dieng, has called for collaborative efforts by Liberians to achieve the “Zero Hunger” goal in the country by 2030. He also stressed the need for continuous teamwork between the Government of Liberia and partners in these endeavors pursuant to the United Nations mandate. Dieng made the Call when he toured the Orphan Grain Farmers’ Cooperative agricultural project, one of many farm projects supported by the WFP to address food insecurity in Liberia, in Lower Johnsonville outside Monrovia Wednesday, the Heritage newspaper reads.

LEC Turns On Light In Grand Gedeh

The management of the Liberia Electricity Corporation has begun extending its activities in Grand Gedeh County and other parts of the southeast in Liberia. The Corporation has started lighting up several parts of Grand Gedeh County as part of its electrification project in the country. Toe Town and other places in Grand Gedeh, Nimba and Maryland have been connected, LEC Management has disclosed. LEC has begun erecting poles and turning on street lights in Toe Town, Zwedru in the southeastern county of Grand Gedeh. The Corporation is working with the West African Power Pool in providing electricity in northern and southern Liberia. In a recent interview in Grand Gedeh County, LEC Interim Managing Director, Foday Soko Sackor disclosed that serious work is ongoing in Grand Gedeh County to ensure that electricity is restored in that part of the country, the INQUIRER writes.

LPRC Oilers Wins Basketball Championship

Liberia Petroleum Refining Company (LPRC) Oilers has been crowned champions of the Liberia Basketball Association (LBA) 2017 season after a hard earned 73-70 point’s winner over Mighty Barrolle on Monday, April 16, 2017 at the Sports Commission on Broad Street. Both teams won two of the first four matches in the best out of five finals before Oilers clinched the narrow victory on a Monrovia night in the last encounter. The victory marked LPRC Oilers’ 4^th trophy in five years after snatching the crown in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 15 respectively to become the highest carrier in contemporary Liberian basketball, the INQUIRER newspaper reads.

LMHRA Warns Medicine Sellers

The Liberia Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Authority (LMHRA) has warned individuals who are importing and selling medicines in the streets. Speaking at a press conference in Monrovia, the Managing Director of LMHRA, Mr. David Sumo said people who are selling medicines in the streets endanger their lives of the Liberian people because those medicines are sub-standard. According to him, those who are selling medicines in the streets put people’s lives at risk, appealing to the Liberia National Police, Liberia Immigration Services and the Drug Enforcement Agency to arrest people who are selling medicines in the streets, the INQUIRER newspaper writes.

Stakeholders Take Steps To Protect Liberia’s Forest

Environment experts in Liberia and international partners have launched a program aimed at strengthening the capacity of non-state actors to protect the country’s rich forest sector. The program which is being supported by the European Union in collaboration with the government of Liberia was recently launched at the Headquarters if the Forestry Development Authority, reports the INSIGHT newspaper.