BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

CAPITOL HILL, MONROVIA

NEWS SUMMARY, Tuesday, November 17, 2020

Today’s edition of our daily summary captures stories about how President Weah has instructed Minister Tweah to make available US$2M to solve electricity problems, the dux of this year’s WASSCE Blessing Jalieba, hailing President George Manneh Weah for mandating the management of the NPA to underwrite her studies at tertiary level, NEC has commenced a two-day adjudication dispute workshop for 19 elections magistrates throughout the country, as well as the Minister of Mines and Energy has disclosed that a major milestone has been achieved to provide reliable and affordable electricity across Liberia

DORMINANT STORIES

NPA To Finance Dux of WASSCE Undergraduates Studies

The Managing Director of the National Port Authority (NPA) Dr. Bill Tweahway has announced that the institution’s fullest support to finance the undergraduate studies of Blessing Jalieba, dux of this year’s West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations (WASSCE). The NPA boss, a former classroom teacher, educator & humanitarian, subscribes to the view that “when you educate a woman/lady, you educate a nation,” a statement said. Continuing, the statement said “he’s a man with a heart of goal who believes in human capacity development, love for country and identifying with people of diverse background(s)”.  It can be recalled that the West African Examination Council (WAEC) Liberia office over the weekend released preliminary results from the just-ended West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations with about 63% of the 39,263 candidates who shining colors. According to the result, three female representing two schools in Montserrado County topped the 2020 WASSCE. Student Blessing Jalieba of the St. Teresa Convent Catholic High School tops the exam with a total of 647. 11 marks closely followed by her colleague Alice Wright from the same School with second position and Lela Wapoe in third place from the Light International School with 635.30, the News newspaper writes. Related Caption: NPA To Finance Dux of WASSCE Undergraduate Studies (The news)

OTHER STORIES

FORMER CHAIRPERSON  OF GHANA ELECTIONS COMMISSION IN MONROVIA To Lead ECOWAS Election Monitoring Team for the December 8 Senatorial Elections                                                                                   Following the formal request from H.E. George Manneh Weah , the President of the Republic of Liberia, the President of the ECOWAS Commission H.E. Jean-Claude Kassi Brou approved the deployment of a team of Elections and IT experts to assist the National Elections Commission (NEC) of Liberia in the cleaning of thee voter roll in preparation for the Senatorial Elections , Constitutional Referendum and bye Elections Schedule to hold on 8^th  December 2020, the former Chairperson of Ghana Elections Commission Madam Charlotte Osei arrives Monrovia on 15^th  November 2020 to join the technical team that has been on ground. This deployment is also in keeping with the provisions of Article 14 of the Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and good Governance as well as Article 53© of the ECOWAS Conflict prevention Framework and the Decision of the Authority of Heads of State to send timely pre-elections to ensure a credible and a free and fair electoral process, the FrontPage newspaper writes.

NCSUL Hails Weah’s Decision to Appoint Advisor on Islamic Affair                                                                             The national Civil Society Union of Liberia appreciates President George Manneh Weah for his farsighted and enviable leadership he continues to provide for the people of Liberia since he took over the affairs of the country three years ago. According to the Inquirer newspaper, the group said President Weah has proven to be a unifier, a reconciler and man great potential in promoting religious co-existence and religious tolerance among the people of Liberia. The NCSUL said as part of manifestation of his desire to ensure peaceful co-existence and balanced decision making for the dominant Christian and Muslim communities, appointed the advisor on Islamic Affairs in Sheikh Ousman Jalloh a committed and dedicated Muslim who is also working to ensure that Muslims, Christians and other religious groups co-exist and live in harmony.

NEC Dispute Office Holds Workshop F  or Magistrates                                                                                               The Independent Dispute Hearing office of the National Elections Commission (NEC) has commenced a two-day Adjudication Dispute workshop for 19 Elections Magistrates throughout the country, with a call for Elections workers to make responsibility of their actions. Marking the call day, Monday 16 November 2020 in the James M Fromayan Conference Hall, the Chairperson of the NEC Davidetta Browne Lansanah said gone are the days when the Board of commissioners of NEC will take full responsively of actions of Elections Magistrates. Chairperson Browne Lansanah said NEC Magistrates are very powerful group of people during election and must take full responsibility of their actions. The NEC Boss said this way the BOC take very seriously the ongoing investigation of three of its Elections Magistrates from Grand Cape Mount, Grand Gedeh and Bomi Counties on allegations of electoral irregularities mainly during the 2020 Voter Roll Update exercise, the Inquirer newspaper asserts.

Mines AND Energy Minister Announces Major Breakthrough

The Minister of Mines and Energy has disclosed that a major milestone has achieved by the Country through the CLSG Transco project which aims to provide reliable and affordable electricity across Liberia. During a guided inspection tour over the weekend to Yekepa, Buchanan, and Mount Coffee CLSG Substations, Mines and Energy Minister Gesler E. Murray gathered that contractors have made tremendous progress in getting the transmission facilities ready for full utilization. Minister Murray commended the CLSG team of technical experts, mainly the Country Manager, Jerry Taylor, for living up to the timeline of the project despite COVID-19 distraction. According to Heritage newspaper, Minister Murray, the completion level of the project is at 97 percent. He is meanwhile admonishing the contractors to focus on the finishing touches. When fully completed and energized, each of the five CLSG Substations will come connect thousands of homes and business entities to the cross-border stable and reliable electricity, which Minister Murray described as significant to President Weah’s achievement of the Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development (PAPD). The Minister noted that reliable power supply at a cost every customer can afford is a big boost to trade and sustainable macroeconomic growth and development across the country. President Weah is expected to commission and dedicate the CLSG Transco Substations in December of this year.

To Solve Electricity Problems President Weah Instructs Minister Tweah to Make Available USD$2M

“Electricity is life so let’s bring back life to our City, Monrovia,” the Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Nathaniel F. McGil, has disclosed. He stress that Monrovia is now a dark city, but it is about time to change the paradigm to ensure that the city looks like a real city like others cities of the globe. According to him, the Liberian Leader sees electricity as a very key pillar to the government’s macroeconomic development.  Speaking to reporters at his VOA Community Residence in Paynesville, outside Monrovia on Monday, November 16,2020, Minister McGill said, as part of the government’s quest to electrify the city and its environs, President Weah has instructed the Minister of Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP), Samuel D. Tweah, Jr. to make available  US$2M to ensure the problems of electricity, for which some communities are faced with, are addressed. In the coming days and weeks as part of the project, twenty-six communities will see 10 pieces of transformers in their respective areas while on December 10, 202 Additional 56 transformers will be made available, which will eventually total 82 transformers before the Christmas season. He told reporters that before the Christmas season over two hundred homes and or more will benefit from the initiative. As of the street lights under the electrification project, he disclosed that over 1500 poles will be made available from Morocco on November 20, 2020. The Minister of state for presidential indicated that following the arrival of the poles, Liberians will subsequently witness the massive installations of street lights by technicians, Heritage newspaper writes.

2020 WASSCE Dux Appreciates President Weah

The dux of this year’s West African Secondary School Certificate Council Exam (WASSCE), Blessing Jalieba, has hailed President George Manneh Weah for mandating the management of the National Port Authority (NPA) to underwrite her studies at tertiary level. Student Blessing Jalieba, speaking when she and her Uncle, Mr Varney Konuwa met in audience with NPA Managing Diretor, Mr. Bill Tweahway, on Monday, November 16, 2020, expressed excitement for such opportunity and described it as a dream come. “I’d like to use this medium to wholeheartedly appreciate the President for this golden gesture as I had always wished to become a medical doctor through diligence and hard studies to make my dream a reality,” she said. She further thanked the Liberian leader and informed MD Tweahway of her desire of attending the Mother Pattern Collage of Health Science to peruse her studies in biology as she envisioned rendering professional services to the country as a medical doctor. Her comments came after the NPA’s boss broke the news that the President had instructed the management of the NPA to fund the dux of 2020(WASSCE) Exam through undergraduate and graduate studies depending on higher academic demands for higher education, says the Heritage newspaper.

LDEA Confiscates Huge Quantity of Narcotic Drugs

The Liberia Drugs Enforcement Agency (LDEA) on November 12, 2020, confiscated huge quantity of narcotics substances from drug dealers in the country, a statement has disclosed. According to authorities of the LDEA, the recent arrest was followed by a tip-off by some informers of the LDEA that a Nigerian national, Joseph Nwajiaku, was carrying 23 tubes of heroin on board Kenya Airway flight # KQ508 upon his successful travel from Malawi to the Roberts Nwajiaku’s arrest was made possible by officers of the LDA assigned at the RIA. According to the News newspaper, authorities of the LDEA amounted the cost of the 23 tubes of heroin to L$3,220,000. In addition, the administration of the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency has disclosed that another person was arrested carrying huge quantity of substance in his stomach. Because of the situation, officers assigned at the airport forwarded him at the LDEA headquarters for more interrogation; there he passed out additional 11 tubes of raw heroin. Meanwhile, a Sierra Leonean national named Monie Massaley, age 35, along with her boyfriend Mohammed Jalloh, 30, were arrested by agents of the LDEA. Moreover, suspects Ifeanui Osadebe, 47, Chimedu Okwe, 25, Chisom Eze, 19, were recently arrested among other drug dealers. All suspect arrested have been forwarded to court for prosecution.