PHOTO: Scene minutes after the door of the court was opened after the not guilty verdict
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com
TEMPLE OF JUSTICE, Monrovia- Criminal Court ‘C presided over by Judge Yamie Quiqui Gbeisay says in his Tuesday, August 25, 2020 final ruling in the Central Bank of Liberia ( CBL) LD$16 billion case says the CDC government in itself has acquiesced in the wrongful printing of the enhanced notes and Benefited substantially.
Judge Gbessay said on Monday, the fact that Liberian Bank notes were printed, shipped to Liberia and received by the CBL and placed in the official vault of the CBL and infused the Liberian dollars banknotes into the Economy. The money the government claimed to have been illegally printed was openly and notoriously being used by the government, and therefore the former CBL officials cannot be held liable for the excess printing, the Criminal Court ‘C’ Judge said in his ruling.
The former CBL officials, who including former members of the Board of Governors and former Executive Governor Milton Weeks, were charged with Economic Sabotage, fraud on the internal revenue of Liberia, Misuse of public money, property or records, theft of property/ illegal disbursement of public money, Criminal Conspiracy and Criminal facilitation
But according to the Court, under the principle of acquiesce, when one benefit from an illegal act, he or she is stopped from repudiating his own act.
Therefore, the government of Liberia is no exception to this rule, because in the court of Justice, the government and any individual citizen are equal under the law.
In other words, the ruling said the action of the government in receiving the money and infusing it in the Economy, the government has ratified the wrongful act of the Central Bank of Liberia former Executive Governor and broad of Governors thereby erasing criminality, if any.
Criminal Court C presiding Judge Gbessay revealed that in contact law, the need for ratification can arise in two ways:
If the agent attempt to bind the principle despite lacking authority to do so and if the principle authorities the agent to make an agreement, but reserve the right to approved it. An example of the former situation of an employee not normally responsible for procuring supplies to do so on the employee’s behalf. The employer choice upon discovery is to ratify it or repudiate it.
The court said in the instance case, CBL as an agent of the government of Liberia elected to un-authorizingly print Liberian dollar Bank notes and have same infused in the Economy.
The said banknotes in question were brought to Liberia in billions openly in a clear view of the Executive and Legislature branches of the government and infused into the Economy; which money is being utilized today by the government.
Justice Gloria Musu Scott (Right) one of the Defense lawyers leaving the court
In the consider opinion of the court, and by law government’s action has ratified the wrongful or illegal printing of the Liberian dollar bank notes and as such it will be unfair, illegal and not prudent to criminally punish those who printed the money.
Judge Gbessay further ruled that they reiterated that the CBL authority including the Executive Governor and the board of Governor could be reprimanded civilly under the code of conduct for abusing their offices in the form malfeasance or nonfeasance since the prosecution sufficiently established and proved their guilt.
Section 15.1 of the code of conduct reads thus sanctions for any branch of this code of conduct shall be those prescribed by the standing orders of the civil service or any other laws governing the public service, notwithstanding, depending on the gravity of the offence or misconduct, one or more of the following penalties may apply:
- a) dismissal b) removal from office in public interest c) reprimanded d) fine or making good of the loss or damage of the public property/ assets e) demotion in rank f) seizure and forteiture to the state of any property acquired from abuse of office and g) interdiction/ suspension from duty with half pay.
Wherefore and in view of the forgoing, it is well calculated opinion of the court that from the evidence adduced at trial before court, it is L$10bn that was printed under the 2017 contact with an excess of 374,750,000 making a grand total of L$ 10,345,750,000.00 and that there no printing of an extra 2.645 billion Liberian Dollars and that no such L$ 2,645bn existed to be missing and or not accounted for the declared.
In its final ruling, the Criminal Court ‘C’ also maintained that it was the Presidential investigative Team (PIT) report that misled the prosecution into charging the defendants for the printing of L$ 13bn plus instead of L$10bn as contracted, thereby reaching an erroneous conclusion that L$2.645 bn was missing.
The defendants, having being found not guilty of the printing of the L$2.645bn and the court having established that the unauthorized printing by CBL is not a specific crime under the Liberian Criminal law, the charges of Economic Sabotage, fraud on the internal revenue of Liberia, Misuse of public money, property or records, theft of property/ illegal disbursement of public money, Criminal Conspiracy and Criminal facilitation not been proven the defendants were hereby adjudged not guilty; with the provision that they may be reprimanded under the code of conduct or the Legislature for the abuses of their offices.
The former CBL officials were therefor set free and the Criminal appearance bond ordered return and all traveling ban restriction lifted.
Meanwhile, state prosecutor took exception to Monday’s ruling and gave notice to court that it will take law controlling.
The case lasted for two years.
Those acquitted are Milton A. Weeks, former Executive Governor, and former CBL Board members David M. Farhat, Elsie Dossen Badio, Kollie Tamba.