PHOTO: Anti-Nwabudike protesters
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com
In the wake of unconfirmed report that the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) head, Ndubusi Nwabudike is being forced to resign, the Liberia Civil Society Organization’s Anti- corruption coalition on Monday staged a peaceful protest at the offices of the LACC in Monrovia’s Congo Town suburb.
The protest was held in collaboration with the National CSO Council in Liberia, with mainly youths chanting anti-Nwabudie slogans and carrying placards and demanding that he quits the post or be sacked by President George Weah for failing to prove his Liberian citizenship.
Inscriptions on the placards read: “Corruption is a national cancer, where is the US25m report, Nwabudike must go now,” among other things.
The Anti- corruption group was later joined by the Student Unification Party, who earlier last week carried out a violent protest, ransacking the offices of the country’s anti-graft commission, calling started the protest last week..
The Liberia Civil Society Organization Anti-corruption coalition head, Mr. James Koryor told Journalists on February 1, 2021, that their peaceful protest is just one of a series of peaceful actions to press for the removal of the LACC boss.
He said Lawyer Nwabudike, who has since been removed from the Liberian National Bar Association (LNBA) for failing to provide legal documents to prove his Liberian citizenship before the Liberia Senate during a confirmation hearing last year, is not fit to preside over the country’s anti-corruption commission.
Mr. Koryor also told Journalists during Monday’s protest that the presence of the embattled LACC boss, Nwabudike at this key Commission grossly undermines the fight against corruption, especially when he fraudulently obtained citizenship without the relevant institutions responsible for acquiring citizenship are not in the know of how he acquired it.
The head of the National Civil Society Anti-Corruption coalition further said their action was also meant to protest against the refusal of the LACC to publish the US $25 million mop up exercise linking Finance Minister Samuel Tweah and the CBL in 2018.
According to him, the LACC is an integrity institution and as such it should it should be headed by people who have integrity, adding that the ACT that established the LACC says that only a Liberian national should head such institution.
For their part, protesting officials and supporters of Student Unification Party (SUP) at the University of Liberia said, they will continue to stage an uncounted protest on the ground of the LACC its chairperson can be dismissed or resign.
SUP Militants joining Monday’s protest
Meanwhile, the LACC boss, Nwabudike has promised to hold a press conference shortly to address mounting calls for his resignation.