PHOTO: Senator Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence
Senate President Pro Tempore, Nyonblee Karnga Lawrence who is referred to as the “Rescue Mother” is under pressure to lead Senators to return the thousands of United States dollars they collected from the recent Senate retreat in her home County, Grand Bassa.
They took the money under the canopy of using it for constituency visits and confirmation hearings, but one of the Senators, Amara Konneh of Gbarpolu County has since rejected the move and returned all funds received.
Sen. Konneh had earlier written this Facebook piece:
Demystifying the Senate Retreat: A Tale of Two Unrelated Senate Disbursements
– By Senator Amara Konneh, Chairman of Public Accounts & Audits
As you read this explanation, I would like all Liberians to understand and appreciate that the monies in question were paid for three distinct activities approved in the 2024 budget. It was not just for a four-day retreat:
- Constituency visits
- Committee functions
- Retreat domestic daily subsistence allowances
These are all legally approved and normal expenditure line items in the national budget for different purposes, except they were paid on and about the same time and so created the confusion. I understand that the media and the public not having this breakdown wrongly concluded that all the money was for a retreat, which, again, is not true as you will see in my explanation.
I also encourage civil society and citizen groups to use the Freedom of Information Act to request the budget and the documents I have posted as exhibits should you still have doubts.
That said, In its Tuesday, June 11, 2024 edition, Spoon TV Live broke a story alleging that the Liberian Senate had spent US$700,000 on a four-day retreat in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County. Other local media outlets picked up the story, feeding the social media frenzy that ensued. By the following day, the figure had deflated to US$275,000 but my colleague Senator Abraham Darius Dillon and I had become the principal targets for public scorn on the matter to illuminate the public’s desire for transparency and accountability.
Some critics said this was a matter of “Senators sharing money amongst themselves.” Others wrote that “Amara is now part of the Society Bush” suggesting I had accepted illegal money the same way criminals robbed people of their money.
Public insult comes with the territory of statecraft, and I am well able to respond to it. However, I deemed it wise to limit such a response to the media reports last week, announcing on my Facebook page that only US$50,000 was spent on the retreat. In the meantime, I needed to consult the stakeholders responsible for the Senate’s budget, namely the Ways, Means, and Finance (WMF) and the Rules, Order, and Administration (ROA) Committees.
I wanted to ensure my future public statements would represent their decisions correctly on this particular matter. I am neither a member of these Senate committees nor do I deal with the Ministry of Finance & Development Planning (MFDP) on Senate financial management. I spoke based on the limited information I had at the time. Thankfully, they swiftly and graciously answered my questions.
But this debate is not about Senator Abe Darius Dillon and me. It highlights the lack of trust in our country’s governance ecosystem because of the history of the lack of transparency and accountability, and the need to build public trust in the governance institution we are members of that is expected to hold the other two branches of our government accountable.
I write now, neither as a defendant in the court of public opinion nor as a defender of the Senate against the public it serves, but as Chairman of the Senate Public Accounts and Audits Committee, the Senate’s integrity body. I am duty bound, in this capacity, to assess the situation dispassionately, and then recommend and support reforms to prevent future misunderstandings.
As a result of the action of Sen. Konneh, who is former Liberian Finance Minister, a local pressure group, “People to People Campaign for Peace and Democracy” has called on Senate Pro Tempore Karnga Lawrence to do same and lead other Senators to return the money to the country’s Treasury.
SEE THE GROUP’S PRESS RELEASE BELOW
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE!!
June 20, 2024
Monrovia, Liberia
The People to People Campaign for Peace and Democracy in Liberia strongly urges members of the 55th Liberian Senate to follow Senator Amara Konneh’s exemplary lead, and promptly return all funds received from the Treasury for their retreat. The funds were specifically allocated for constituency visits; and confirmation hearings as outlined in the budget.
Furthermore, the Campaign vehemently asserts, that the Liberian Senate, must demonstrate prudence and responsibility in the use of the people’s funds under the Budgetary provisions. Any deviation from the Budget allocations is a breach of the public’s trust in financial accountability and transparency.
Finally, the Campaign demands, that Rescue Mother Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence and all Liberian Senate members; promptly return the funds to the Treasury.
Additionally, it is imperative to coordinate efforts to ensure the timely payment of instructors at the University of Liberia, thereby enabling our children to resume their studies.
Signed:
Deborah Walleh Kofa