The Bureau of Public Affairs

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Monrovia, Liberia

NEWS SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY, MARCH 16, 2018

The postponement of candidate’s nomination for the pending senatorial by-elections in Montserrado and Bong Counties; the nearly five thousand LD fine imposed by the House on the management of the Farmington Hotel following an allegation of bad labor practice at that entity and the tribute paid by President Weah to fallen Liberian heroes, heroines and beloved family members on the observance of the National Decoration Day are stories dominating today’s editions of the summary of local dallies.  

DOMINANT STORIES  

Liberia’s Elections Commission Postpones By-Elections Due To Lack Of Funds 

The National Elections Commission (NEC) has announced the postponement of the date for candidate nomination for the pending senatorial by-elections to be held in Montserrado and Bong Counties. The void necessitating the by-election was created by the election of President George Weah who served as Senator of Montserrado County and Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor who also served as Senator of Bong County. According to NEC chairman Jerome Korkoya, the NEC the decision is based on the lack of funding for the by-elections. President George Manneh Weah in his first Annual Message to the Legislature stemmed that he inherited a “broke country and a broken economy. Nomination for contestants was set to begin on Thursday, March 15, 2018, according to the FrontPage Africa newspaper.

Related Captions: Montserrado, Bong By-Elections Postponed Until… (INSIGHT), NEC Postpones Nomination Of By-Elections’ Candidates…Draws Government Attention For 3.9M By-Elections Budget (The INQUIRER)

House Fines Farmington Hotel

Related Captions: Farmington Hotel Management Escapes House’s Contempt Charge But… (INSIGHT), House Fines Farmington Hotel LD4900.99 (The INQUIRER)  

President Weah Pays Tribute To Fallen Liberians 

President George Manneh Weah has paid tribute to fallen Liberian heroes, heroines and beloved on the occasion of National Decoration Day. President Weah, on Wednesday, March 14, 2018, visited the grave sites of the late President William V.S. Tubman and his loved ones, including some prominent members of the CDC. According to a release from the Ministry of State, the President commenced the observance of Decoration Day with a visit to the Thinkers’ Village Cemetery, where he used the occasion to pay homage to a friend indeed, according to an Executive Mansion press release yesterday. President Weah later paid respect at the Du-port Road Massacre Monument to those that lost their lives as a result of the Duport road massacre and visited the grave of the late Kladee Nagbe, the departed wife of Information Minister Eugene Lenn Nagbe. He then laid a wreath and offered prayers on the graves of the departed souls. President Weah also made a stop at Voka Mission Cemetery, where he honored his late Mother and Grandmother Anna Quaye-Weah and Emman Klon-Jlaleh Brown, his aunt. He then pay a visit to Barnesville Estate, where he visited the grave sites of two fallen partisans of the CDC, the late Papie Solo and Col. Blackie, reports the Daily Observer.

Related Captions: Weah Pays Tribute To Fallen National Heroe Heroines, Beloved (In Profile Daily); Weah Pays Tribute To Fallen Liberian Heroes (The New Dawn); President Weah Pays Tribute To Fallen National Heroes, Heroines (The INQUIRER)

In a related development the Daily Observer reads under the caption “Hundreds Observe Decoration Day at Palm Grove Cemetery Several Express Anger and Disappointment at Desecration of Graves” reads that most of the people at the Palm Grove Cemetery said they were angry at the desecration of the cemetery claiming it is being used as a waste dump site. They also complained about bodies that were dumped there without being properly disposed, despite the Monrovia City Corporation’s (MCC) effort to provide a semblance of sanity at a location that has been the resting place of thousands of Liberian dead, including several presidents such as Arthur Barclay, Daniel E. Howard, Joseph Jenkins Roberts, William R. Tolbert, and other government officials amongst others.

Related Caption: Liberia Observes “Decoration Day” (INSIGHT), Citizens Frown On Misuse Of Cemeteries (The INQUIRER)

OTHER STORIES  

President Weah Makes Additional Nominations 

According to the INQUIRER newspaper, President George Manneh Weah has made additional nominations /appointments in government affecting the Ministries of Justice, Finance and Development Planning, the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). The daily reads that the nominations and appointments are subject to confirmation by the Honorable Liberian Senate where applicable.

Related Caption: President Weah Makes More Appointment (In Profile Daily)

UN Is ready To Expand Its Support To Liberia-SG

The In Profile Daily reads that United nations Deputy Secretary General Amina Mohammed has announced that the United Nations Peacebuilding fund is ready to expand its support to Liberia as the country transitions from peacekeeping to peacebuilding. Speaking Tuesday at an informal meeting of Liberia’s Peacebuilding Configuration in New York, DSG Mohammed said “the Peace Building Fund has been a committed partner to Liberia, lending a support of 10 million dollars in 2017 and is ready to expand its support”. She however said much more is needed from development partners to realize Liberia’s ambitions. A dispatch from Liberia’s Permanent Mission to the UN quotes Madam Mohammed as saying that a UN Country team headed by a strengthened Regional Coordinator will take over from the United National Mission in Liberia (UNMIL to ensure a more supportive and responsive presence in the country.

Related Caption: UN To Expand Support Here (The New Dawn)

For Selling Expired Meat, Other Associated Products: Commerce Ministry Slams US$75, 000 Fine On Abi Jaoudi

The Ministry of Commerce has fined the Abi Jaoudi Azar Trading Company US$ 75,000 to be paid into Government revenue within 72 hours for selling expired meat and associated products. The Ministry said the act was in violation of section 26.2 of the Public Health Law of Liberia and Section 1.12 of the General Business Law of Liberia. Making the disclosure at a press conference in Monrovia, Commerce Minister Wilson Tarpeh said the expired goods were discovered and confiscated from the warehouses of the entity by Inspectors of the ministry few weeks ago during one of their routine inspection exercises.

Related Caption: Commerce Disposes Of Expired Goods Today…Fines Abi Jaoudi US$75, 000 (The INQUIRER)

House, Senate Approve Recast Budget

The House of Representatives and the Senate have approved a Recast Budget of US$536.2million, with several austerity measures, including cutting off 100% of other goods and services amounting to US$27.4 million. About US$181million is estimated to be raised for the remaining four months, March 1 – June 30, 2018. In its 17th day sitting on Tuesday, the House approved the Recast Budget and immediately forwarded it to the Liberian Senate for concurrence. Montserrado County District # 11 Representative Richard N. Koon voted against the passage of the budget, insisting that the Recast Budget must be discussed to know the “details.” He argued that the swift passage of the budget without it being “opened for discussion” would be troubling. “Amid the bad economy, the budget needs to be discussed and some of us can help to give our inputs,” Rep. Koon said. He is a full instructor at the Accounting Department, College of Business and Public Administration, University of Liberia. He has been teaching accounting for over 11 years, pens the Daily Observer.

Related Caption: House Passes Recast National Budget At US$536M (FrontPage Africa)

LRA Commissioner Tamba Receives 2 Distinguished Awards

Elfrieda Stewart Tamba, Commissioner General (CG) of the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA), has received two separate awards from university student groups for her ‘outstanding services’ to the country’s revenue sector, a release has said. The Concerned Students Movement of Liberia in late February presented the “Most Outstanding Public Servant Award of 2017” to Mrs. Tamba, while the Liberia Mass Communications Students Union also honored her recently as “Outstanding Champion of Integrity in Public Service Delivery.” The Award was presented to Mrs. Tamba by James D. Carter, National Chairman of the Concerned Students Movement on February 20 at the LRA Headquarters in Paynesville. Mr. Carter then commended Mrs. Tamba for her great role played in strengthening the country’s revenue sector, especially leading the initiative to legislate the Act that legally established the LRA. The group represents students from the University of Liberia (UL), United Methodist University (UMU) and the African Methodist Episcopal Zion University (AMEZU), reports theDaily Observer.

Transfer of Knowledge-National Staff Empowered To Take Lead

The FrontPage Africa newspaper reports that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and its partners from the Ministries of Commerce and Internal Affairs have been taking stock of achievements and challenges over a one-year period under the UNDP funded Business Opportunities and Support Services (BOSS) project. The project is also going through a transition as international volunteers recruited to provide services are turning over to nationals who have benefited from several months of mentorship. At a transition meeting held in Buchanan Grand Bassa County, 12th-14th March, with Stakeholders and partners as well as Coordinators from County Service Centers in the four counties where the Boss Project is being piloted (Bong, Nimba, Margibi and Grand Bassa), participants discussed progress, threats and plans for the future. Discussants highlighted issues of sustainability, value chain, national ownership, networking, coordination, best practices among others.