-Call for immediate arrests of Finance Min. Tweah and CBL Governor Patray
-And Welcome arrests of 5 past and current CBL officials
By Augustine Octavius
The Collaborating Political Parties (CPP), which include the former ruling Unity Party of Joseph Boakai, has threatened to organize mass action across Liberia in protest against bad governance and the growing economic hardship.
Other collaborating parties include Charles Brumskine’s Liberty Party (LP), the Alternative National Congress (ANC) of Alexander Cummings and All Liberia Party (ALP) of Benonai Urey.
The four opposition parties announced their threat on Wednesday, March 6, 2019 at a news conference held at the headquarters of the ALP in Monrovia’s Sinkor suburb.
Their joint position comes after the four parties formally signed a Memorandum of Understanding in Monrovia recently, pledging to field a common slate of candidates in both the 2020 Special Senatorial election and the 2023 presidential and general elections to democratically end the ruling CDC rule at one six-year term.
The opposition parties called for the immediate arrest of the Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Samuel Tweah and the Governor of the Central Bank of Liberia, Nathaniel Patray in connection to the alleged scandal in the usage of the 25 million United States Dollars MopUp exercise last year.
They described the ongoing economic hardship in the country as artificial, something they said was imposed on the Liberian people due to bad governance, adding that Liberians are growing impatient by the day.
CPP demanded for a speedy trial of former and current officials of government who may be culpable, as per the Koll Associate Incorporate and Presidential Investigative Team investigations.
“The wave of looting by senior members of the Weah’s administration while ordinary citizens are struggling to survive must stop,” adding : “we call on the civil society organizations, the religious community, the business community, labor and trade unions , the Liberia Marketing Association, youth and students organizations and partisans and auxiliary groups of the four Collaborating Political Parties and other political parties and all peace loving Liberians at home and abroad to take concrete steps in protecting the integrity of our country and to hold the government accountable to the people.”
“Our move is deliberate and is intended to prevent the governance situation from degenerating into crisis of cataclysmic proportions.”
“We cannot sit supinely as laws are broken with impunity and innocent lives and destroyed either through fanaticism or under mysterious circumstances. This is the time to act, and act we must as a people to save Liberia.”
The CPP welcomed the arrest of the former CBL Governor Milton Weeks, Deputy Governor Charles Sirleaf, and the Director of Banking, Dorbor Hagba, Joseph Dennis and Richard Walker.
“Because of the gravity of this matter and the extent to which some senior members of this government were involved in what is undoubtedly the biggest financial scandal in Liberia, this action is still grossly inadequate,” the statement said
“President Weah should avoid the temptation to shield officials of his administration mentioned in the reports as time pursuing former officials for criminal prosecution.”
Recently, five present and former officials of the Central Bank of Liberia were arrested in connection to the release of the Kroll Associate Incorporated report on the investigation on the alleged “missing” 16 United States Dollars.
The press conference is the first reaction of the collaborating Political parties since the release of the report by the Presidential Investigation Team and the Kroll Associate Incorporate on the alleged 16 million Liberian Dollars and the 25 million United States Dollars given the economic management team for MopUp operation
But there has massive calls from a cross section of the Liberian society for Finance and Development Planning Minister Samuel Tweah to face investigation in connection to the 25 million United States Dollars released by the government for mop up operation in the country; Augustine Octavius.