14 November 2017

LIBERIA MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

Former Elections Commission Heads to Testify in Electoral Fraud Case, Source: FrontPage Africa

Two former chairpersons of the National Elections Commission (NEC) would be testifying against the electoral commission in the ongoing electoral fraud case. Cllr. Frances Johnson Allison chaired the NEC in 2005 and presided over the Presidential and General Elections that year while Mr. James Fromayan presided over the first round of the 2011 elections but resigned before the runoff due to the controversy over the first round results. The pair would be testifying for the ruling Unity Party (UP).

The two former commissioners had earlier announced their support for the presidential bid of Vice President Joseph Boakai of the governing party.

The ruling party which joined the opposition Liberty Party (LP) in claiming that the October 10 elections were fraudulent is poised to produce 15 witnesses to prove its case.

Over the weekend, the UP chairman, Wilmot Paye, testified on behalf of the party. The party’s vice chairman for NEC and Inter-Party Affairs, Cole Bangalu, and Josiah Joekai, the NEC former CVE director also testified against the Commission. In his testimony, Mr. Joekai told the hearing officer, Cllr. Muana Ville that the fraud and irregularities that marred the October 10 elections did not come by accident they were occurrences that were orchestrated by the leadership of the Commission. Read more

George Weah Could Have Supported Rob Sirleaf, If..., Source: FrontPage Africa

The standard bearer of the main opposition Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), Senator George Weah has denied rumors that Robert Sirleaf, third son of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is a CDC member. Speaking Sunday in an interview with the VOA, Senator Weah also denied reports that President Sirleaf is financing his campaign in exchange for some promises including supporting her son in his bid to become senator of Montserrado County if he is successful in his Presidential bid.

Weah said he and Robert Sirleaf are friends but there is no deal supporting Sirleaf’s senatorial bid. ”If Robert Sirleaf was in my party, CDC, and he goes through a convention, and he is qualified to be on our ticket, definitely as the political leader, that’s my candidate. I will be telling people to vote for him. But he’s not in my party.’’  Read more

Freeman Wants Imam Council, CSOs to Intervene in NEC-LP Legal Battle, Source: Daily OBSERVER

The standard bearer of the opposition Movement for Progress Change (MPC) Monday called on the leadership of the National Imam Council of Liberia, heads of political parties, representatives of CSOs, and members of the Liberia Council of Churches (LCC) to intervene in the ongoing legal dispute between the Liberty Party (LP) and the National Elections Commission (NEC) to pave the way for a smooth transition in January 2018.

Simeon Freeman made the appeal yesterday during a special consultative meeting that brought together women’s groups, officials of the Independent National Commission on Human Rights (INCHR), chiefs from the National Traditional Council of Liberia (NTCL), representatives of the Liberia Crusaders for Peace (LCP), the National Imam Council of Liberia, representatives of political parties, and CSOs.

Mr. Freeman said he believes that their intervention would help to resolve the current political impasse in order to move the country forward and protect Liberia’s hard-earned peace.

Monday’s meeting was intended to form a group or union that would engage the various contending parties whose legal actions have now kept the runoff election in limbo. Read more

Special Peace Panel Formed to Mitigate Elections Crisis, Source: FrontPage Africa

Several concerned Liberians on Monday after a successful meeting established a special peace panel to brainstorm and find solutions regarding the current political crisis in Liberia. The panel consists of eight groups including the National Traditional Council of Liberia (NTCL), Liberia Crusaders for Peace (LCP), National Imam Council of Liberia, the Women in Peacebuilding Network (WIPNET), and several others CSOs in the country. The meeting was organized by the opposition Movement for Progressive Change (MPC).

Members of the special peace panel are charged with the responsibility to hold peace talks with contending parties including the ruling Unity Party (UP), Liberty Party (LP), Alternative National Congress (ANC), All Liberian Party (ALP), and other parties that are also aggrieved to find a way forward in ending the political crisis. The panel is being headed by the LCP and Women NGO Secretariat of Liberia (WONGOSOL) followed by the National Imam Council of Liberia, NTCL among others. Read more

Rural Women Want Speedy Resolution of Electoral Crisis, Source: Daily OBSERVER

The National Rural Women (NRW) has called on the National Elections Commission (NEC) and politicians involved in the October 10 elections crisis to speedily resolve the issue at stake and conduct the runoff presidential election in the shortest possible time. According to the women, they want to see a peaceful transition of power from one elected president to another.

At a press conference Monday at its headquarters in Monrovia, NRW president Kebeh Mongar said they are interested in securing the future of their children because as mothers they are the supervisors of the country. “We are appealing to Liberty Party’s Charles W. Brumskine and other political parties to accept the results from the NEC so that the country can move forward,” she said. “We are asking our son Charles Brumskine to waive his right for the sake of peace and allow the elections to go on. We tell him ‘thank you’ for the peace that he holds by not putting people in the street,” Ms. Mongar continued. Read more

Senator Wesseh cautions politicians, NEC, Source: The New Dawn

Senator Conmany Wesseh has warned politicians and authorities at the National Elections Commission (NEC) to be mindful in handling the ongoing election fraud investigations or else, it might lead the country into serious constitutional crisis. Senator Wesseh speaking over the weekend in Paynesville says any delay in the current investigation at the NEC, which could cause the saga not being resolved within 30 days, might run the country into democratic assault.

He also warned that witnesses should not delay in making their case or the electoral commission should ensure the matter lives within the given constitutional timeframe.

On fears about formation of an interim government if the transitional timeframe elapses without an elected president, the River Gee lawmaker says it is impossible for anything such as interim, referring to Article 64 of the Liberian Constitution, which according to him, does not talk about failure of holding runoff election, and therefore, creates no room for power-sharing arrangement. Read more

NAYMOTE Intensifies Reconciliation Dialogue in Bong, Margibi, Source: FrontPage Africa

NAYMOTE Partners for Democratic Development has intensified its peace and reconciliation dialogues across several districts in Bong and Margibi Counties. The objective of the dialogues is to consolidate peace in Liberia during and after the 2017 presidential and legislative elections. A NAYMOTE release says the events have been implemented at the county, district, and community levels with the participation of diverse members of the county.

The project, NAYMOTE continues is intended to leverage ongoing peace and reconciliation efforts currently taking place in both Bong and Margibi as part of the National Peace Plan; and at the end of the project, a five-year peace and reconciliation vision and action plan will be developed in support of the county’s development initiatives. Read more

Election fraud was due to disorderliness, Sources: Daily OBSERVER and The New Dawn

Ruling Unity Party (UP's) second witness Josiah Joekai says disorderliness by authorities at the National Elections Commission (NEC) necessitated fraud and irregularities in the 10 October elections. Mr. Joekai who resigned as the NEC CVE director to contest a representative seat in October told a hearing at the electoral commission on Monday that his particulars were found on the NEC provisional registration roll but were missing on the final registration roll.

He testifies as the second witness for the ruling UP in the fraud and irregularities case filed by opposition Liberty Party (LP) in a challenge to the outcome of the October polls. “We are all aware of the disorderliness of the Elections Commission of the Voters Registration exercise that caused a delay from March 14 to March 17," Mr. Joekai says, adding that the Voters Registration (VR) exercise was characterized by omission. Read more

‘Judges Behave Like Cowards before Chief Justice’ –Judge Blamo Dixon, Source: Daily OBSERVER

Criminal Court ‘C’ Judge Blamo Dixon Monday publicly accused some of his colleagues of behaving like cowards in front of Chief Justice Francis Korkpor. Judge Dixon’s criticism of his colleagues followed repeated reports of disunity among members of the National Trial Judges Association of Liberia (NTJAL). Judge Dixon said those ‘cowardly behaving judges’ were constantly writing complaints against their colleagues to the chief justice without recognizing the existence of the association that is clothed with the authority to intervene in matters relating to judges.

Though Dixon did not mention any situation or letter against a particular judge to the chief justice, he maintained that the practice of finger pointing has opened a floodgate of complaints. He said instead of writing against other judges, it would be better for the judges to ‘wash their dirty linens out of the public glare.’

Dixon’s outburst against some of his colleagues came in a speech he delivered at the opening of the November (2017) Term of Criminal Courts, A, B, C, and D yesterday at the Temple of Justice in Monrovia. Read more

Liberian Health Workers Threaten Nationwide Strike over Delayed Salaries, Source: FrontPage Africa

FrontPage Africa has been hinted that some 91 district surveillance officers (DSOs) are planning a mass strike action because the Health Ministry has failed to pay them their incentives since the beginning this year. The DSOs are charged with the responsibilities of conducting active case search and making daily, weekly, and monthly report on priority diseases in all communities in Liberia. However, the DSOs throughout the country have resolved to start their strike action by first withholding their reports as an initial step to express their grief.

“The DSOs have reached an agreement to hold all surveillance reports usually sent to the Health Ministry, National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), WHO, Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and other international health organizations in Liberia,” a source informed FrontPage Africa. Read more

CIPS Level 3 Training Underway In Monrovia, Sources: Daily OBSERVER and FrontPage Africa

The Public Procurement Concessions Commission (PPCC), in collaboration with UNDP Monday commenced a five-day professional certification training in public procurement to complete the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) course.

According to PPCC executive director Dorbor Jallah, 37 procurement officers from government ministries and agencies as well as partner institutions are attending the training session, which runs from 13 – 17 November. Mr. Jallah said although the 37 officers previously attended and completed the CIPS Level 2 introductory course in public procurement, the present training is primarily designed to address the huge capacity deficit in the field of public procurement and prepare Liberia’s public sector procurement personnel to qualify for certificate awards in purchasing and supply from the UK based Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply. Read more

UL Receives Huge Consignment of Books, Source: Daily OBSERVER

A large consignment of textbooks on various academic subjects was received last Friday by the University of Liberia (UL). They include the latest editions of textbooks on law, political, social and natural sciences, and English literature. The UL administration has already dispatched some of the textbooks to the Straz-Sinje Technical and Vocational College in Grand Cape Mount County. Mrs. Thelma Doe, UL director of libraries said the textbooks were donated through the Kofi Annan Institute of Conflict Transformation (KAICT), a graduate program at the university. Read more

PBA Donates Assorted Items to Liberian Police, Source: FrontPage Africa

A local business organization, under the banner "Paynesville Business Association (PBA),” Monday donated several items to the Liberia National Police (LNP). The items include 100 bags of 25kg rice, 15 pieces of mattresses, 24 pieces of rubber chairs, and 15 dozens of bottled water for the upkeep of officers in the 15 counties. PBA president Sheik Jalloh said the donation is intended to acknowledge the services being provided by the LNP for the business community since the ascendency of Gregory Coleman as Inspector General of Police (IGP). Read more

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA ON LIBERIA

IMF Executive Board Completes Seventh and Eighth ECF Reviews for Liberia And Approves USD20.7 Million Disbursement, Source: International Monetary Fund

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today completed the seventh and eighth (final) reviews of Liberia’s economic performance under the program supported by the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement. Completion of these reviews enables the immediate disbursement of SDR 14.764 million (about US$20.7 million). This brings total disbursements under the arrangement to SDR 111.664 million (about US$ 156.7 million).

The Executive Board also approved the authorities’ request to waive the non-observance of performance criteria. The waivers pertain to the end-December 2016 floors on total revenue collection of the central government and ceiling on the present value of gross external borrowing by public sector, and to end-June 2017 floors on total revenue collection of the central government, net foreign exchange position of the Central Bank of Liberia, and the ceiling on the Central Bank of Liberia’s gross direct credit to the central government.

The ECF arrangement for Liberia was approved by the Board on November 19, 2012 (see Press Release No. 12/449) for SDR 51.68 million (about US$69.3 million or 40 percent of quota as of that date). In September 2014, as part of the response in the fight against Ebola, the Board approved an augmentation of access of SDR 32.3 million (about US$ 43.3 million or 25 percent of quota as of that date) under the ECF arrangement for Liberia. Read more

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This media summary consists of selected local media articles for the information of UN personnel. The public distribution of this media summary is a courtesy service extended by UNMIL on the understanding that the choice of articles included is exclusive, and the contents do not represent anything other than a selection of articles likely to be of interest to a United Nations readership. The inclusion of articles in this summary does not imply endorsement by UNMIL.

 

 

 

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