Liberia: House Passes Stand-alone County and Social Development Fund (CSDF) Bill
MONROVIA – After nearly four years of advocacy by civil society groups under the umbrella of the Natural Resources Management (NRM) coalition, the House of Representatives has overwhelmingly passed the County and Social Development Fund (CSDF) standalone bill. In response to citizens’ concerns, the Legislature amended the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 National Budget Law and promised to continue working on the proposed standalone CSDF bill. Larry Nyanquoi (District 8, Nimba County), Francis Saidy Dopoh II, (District 3, Rivergee County) and Edward Karfiah, (District 5, Bong County. “The key point of the bill is to ensure that the social development funds of the counties are not used by the central government as the case is,’’ Dopoh said. Members are: Liberia Media Center (LMC), Partner for Democratic Platform (P4DP), Institute for Research & Democratic Development (IREDD), Partnership for Sustainable Development (PaSD) Development Education Network Liberia (DEN-L), Sustainable Development Institute (SDI), Rural Human Rights Activists Program (RHRAP) and NAYMOTE.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 17:48 UTC
Liberia: Dillon Committee Provides Progress report on Earmarked Projects; Receives Additional US$10k
MONROVIA – The special committee setup by Senator Darius Dillon says it has earmarked several projects in Montserrado that would shortly be undertaken by the committee funded with money provided by the office of the Montserrado County Senator Darius Dillon. There are people of different parties who voted Senator Dillon. Dillon campaign promiseIn keeping with promises made to his people during the campaign period in Montserrado County, Senator Abraham Darius Dillon made public his asset on his official Facebook page. The Montserrado County Senator during his campaign promised to declare his assets and make known his salary to the people of the county and country. Senator Dillon in his declaration declared Twenty thousand Liberian dollars in his account, a UBA account number 530360015618 with the amount of $3.50, a Toyota MR of 229G01688359 worth US$40,000.00 and a house valued at US$35,000.00 76,000.00 USD.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 17:48 UTC
Liberia: Legislature Yet to Consider Precautionary Health Measures at Capitol
CAPITOL HILL – Even as health authorities report a first case COVID-19 in Liberia, the premises of the Legislature is still without handwashing buckets and containers despite, a basic preventive measure. In his national address, President George Weah advised the public and private business places to take precautionary measures which include washing of hands and avoid handshaking but visitors to the premises of the Capitol Building access the building without going any such health protocol. “This is scaring and disappointing that as big as this legislature is there is no hand washing bucket for visitors and employees,” a staff said to FrontPageAfrica. Because of the absence of these buckets and containers at entries of the Capitol, visitors, and staff have been urged to use a single entry to access the building. Parts of the many preventive measures provided by President Weah include; a strong focus on hygiene from every individual and organization, hand washing, the use of hand sanitizers, refraining from shaking hands, reducing staff at workplaces, temporarily shutting down of schools, among others.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 17:26 UTC
Liberia: LINU Calls for Solidarity amid Dr. Blama’s Ailment; Condemns ANC for Demanding His Dismissal
“LINU joins the President to urge all Liberians coming in the country and those residing within our territorial limit to observe all the precautionary measures put in place by the requisite government’s functionaries.”The political party emphatically stated that its Chairman; Dr. Blama upon returning from Switzerland on the 13th of March 2020 went through the screening protocols at the Robert International Airport, dispelling claims that he by-passed protocol. “In furtherance of that, Dr. Blama kept very close contact with the authorities of the Ministry of Health and the National Public Health Institute through Dr. Francis Karteh, the Chief Medical Officer and Dr. Mosoka, Executive Director of the National Public Health Institute for their professional guidance relative to his unfortunate situation up to and including the point of his evacuation to the quarantine center. “LINU wishes to clarify that Dr. Blama as an individual person in his sound mind would never and can never risk his life neither the future of his family or the lives of others by bringing a virus that has challenged the developing world to especially a vulnerable state like ours. “In concluding, LINU wish to remind the Liberian people that this global menace has transcended political lines everywhere in the world and would like to, therefore, request all well-meaning Liberians to join hands in praying for the country at large and the recovery of Dr. Blama and those who have come out as well as those who are still not known as is only then that the truth surrounding this hold episode can be told. “We pray that Dr. Blama recovers from this very unfortunate nightmare and ask all Liberians including the government to give him all the necessary support for his recovery.”
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 17:03 UTC
Liberia: Calling the Names of Those Coming Down with COVID-19 Is Wrong; Stop the Stigma, Mr. President, Min. Nagbe & NPHIL
MR. BLAMA REFUTED the allegations that were passed onto the President. IN AN AUDIO RECORDING obtained by FrontPageAfrica, Mr. Blama said, “I want to urge you guys to stay calm; I’m not doing anything out of protocol. The man is already traumatized; he and his family are now being stigmatized, why did you add more injury to him, Mr. President? Social media became flooded with insults and condemnation toward, especially towards Mr. Blama. SO, MR. PRESIDENT, Min.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 08:00 UTC
Liberia: The Fear of Grief
It was the fear of experiencing my first birthday without Teeyah, my rare mom who left us on June 10, 2019. It’s an excruciating pain that continues to haunt my very existence; a wild, crippling pain that knows no bounds. By March 11, my fear of being consumed by grief had further escalated. No wonder my fear of feeling abandoned on my birthday soared as my day drew closer. It was a truly beautiful party, which inspired me to face my fear, and endure the pain.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 07:52 UTC
Liberia: NPHIL Report Raises Eyebrow on Pres. Weah’s Stance on Nathaniel Blama
MONROVIA – The narratives on Dr. Nathaniel Blama breaching health protocols at the Roberts International Airport and subsequently refusing to be quarantined are changing as new details emanating from the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL) show that he voluntarily requested testing. Mr. Blama was also suspended by the President for allegedly refusing to be quarantined and breaching health protocols. Within 12hours, the case-patient had been isolated, contact identification, listing, and monitoring commenced, and National Public Health Emergency declared and WHO notified,” NPHIL report stated. The National Public Health Institute also developed an outbreak case definition, surveillance surge team to commence active search and contact tracing and updated its standard operating procedure. Gbalee George If this story is true, then NPHIL and MOH response team needs to be investigated and restructured.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 07:46 UTC
Liberia: Providence Baptist Church Suspends Church Activities, Urges Members to Pay Tithe Via Mobile Money
In a statement released on Tuesday, March 17 by the Senior Pastor of the Providence Baptist Church, Rev. Samuel B. Reeves, Jr. requested all members to stay away from divine worship service, Bible studies, and others at its premises. Despite the situation, the Providence Baptist Church has admonished its members to live to the Biblical reference of giving God one-tenth of their monthly income or blessings. Pastor Reeves encouraged members to pay their tithes via mobile money service, amid the new measures taken by the church authorities. The latest measure put in place by the church comes at the time Baptists are celebrating the 199 years of Transformational Service and 15 years of Leadership of the Providence Baptist Church.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 07:30 UTC
Liberia: Coronavirus Renews ‘Big Shot’ Syndrome Debate Amid Circumstances Surrounding Index Case
Monrovia – Under the Vehicle and Traffic Laws of Liberia, the President, vice president and emergency vehicles have the right to use sirens in traffic and change lanes. 11, Unity Party) was seen bulldozing his way through incoming traffic and ordering motorists in the Freeport-area bound Vai Town-Claratown Road right lane to get out of his way. Former Inspector General, Col. Chris Massaquoi himself was summoned and held in contempt by the legislature for simply discharging his statutory duty enshrined in the Vehicle and Traffic Laws of Liberia. The problem is, aside from the socioeconomic profiling that stems from corruption, that no one really knows the traffic law. The problem is, aside from the socioeconomic profiling that stems from corruption, that no one really knows the traffic law.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 07:22 UTC
Liberia: Children Express Worry over Sudden Disappearance of Their Father
Mr. Johnson KoyeahMONROVIA – The children of Mr. Johnson Koyeah, 60, have expressed disdained over the continuous search of their father by the Liberia National Police (LNP). Mr. Koyeah- a businessman, reportedly when missing since 2018 and is yet to be found. He is somewhere alive but that needs to be properly investigated,” one of the children of the missing father intoned. The six children of missing businessman Koyeah includes Mel. K. Johnson, Kelvin Meman Johnson, Junior Alexander Johnson, Prince Zahyean Johnson and Lucas Bobbinho Johnson.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 06:56 UTC
Liberia: Jonathan Williams Found Liable of Killing Journalist Tyron Brown
The court found Mr. Jonathan Williams guilty of murder despite his plea that he was only defending himselfTUBMANBURG, Bomi County – Mr. Jonathan Williams, the man accused of killing Journalist Tyron Brown has been found guilty by the 11th Judicial Circuit Court in Tubmanburg, Bomi County. During the trial, Williams told the court he stabbed the deceased three times after they got into a fistfight and he was being overpowered by Super FM journalist. Defendant Williams told the Court that his niece, Alice, had informed him that an unknown person was knocking at their window which led to him coming outside with a knife on his side because their community is crime-prone. He said journalist Brown was standing near the well in the compound which prompted him (Williams) to inquire who was in the compound. According to him, Brown in response rather rained insults at him which resorted to a fistfight between them.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 06:56 UTC
MCA-Liberia Hires TATA Power to Strengthen LEC’s Technical Capacity
Tata Power is part of a 150-year-old Tata Group of Companies, which is based in India and operates in more than 100 countries across the Asian and African continents. Tata Power will also assess staff capacity and develop a medium to long-term master and strategic plan for training and capacity building at LEC. Tata Power will directly train LEC’s supervisors, engineers, and technicians in core technical areas such as transmission and distribution, generation (hydroelectric and thermal), health, safety, and the environment. Non-technical and soft skills training will cover areas such as customer relationship management, inventory control and logistics management, revenue cycle management, revenue mobilization and revenue protection. As part of its obligations, Tata Power will supervise the construction of an outdoor training center at the Mt.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 06:52 UTC
Toddler Goes Missing From LAC Hospital in Grand Bassa County
G. Nelson Gbotoe, a relative of the mother told FrontPageAfrica, “We took our daughter and her baby to the LAC hospital for treatment but on Monday morning we got a call that the baby got missing from the hospital”. He stressed that the government of Liberia have played deaf ears to the “evil deeds” that have happened on the LAC plantation. The Human Resource Manager of the Company told a reporter that the company’s action to ban the journalists was due to the Coronavirus outbreak. When contacted the County Superintendent Janjay Baikpah promised to visit LAC plantation to get more details before commenting on the issue. In 2019, Fayiah Kettor, 40, who was an employee of the Company, went missing while he was undergoing treatment at the same hospital.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 18, 2020 06:45 UTC
Liberia: Health Authorities Search for MoE Official for Quarantine
The health team remained at the residence of Asst. Minister Dominic Dormenla Nanda Kweme up to the time this report was publishedMONROVIA – Authorities from the Margibi County Health Team and the Liberia National Police are at the home Assistant Minister of Planning and Research of the Education Ministry, Mr. Dominic Dormenla Nanda Kweme in Kakata, to have him quarantined. He is one of the officials known to have been on the same flight with Dr. Nathaniel Blama who is the first to test positive to Coronavirus in Liberia. The wife of minister Dominic Kweme reportedly resisted the health workers on grounds that her husband was not home. The team remained at the home of the Mr. Kweme up to the time this story was published.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 17, 2020 23:41 UTC
Liberia Grossly Affected by Cancellation of International Flights
SN Brussels canceled its flights due to restrictions being put in place by governments to curtail COVID-19MONROVIA – Two major airlines making international trips to Liberia have suspended all flights, now making traveling to Liberia from overseas difficult than ever. Air Maroc and SN Brussels are two of the most relied upon airlines when making international trips to and from Liberia. In a release, SN Brussels disclosed that it is suspending all flights until April 19. “Given the extraordinary circumstances caused by the worldwide Coronavirus crisis, Brussels Airlines has decided to temporarily suspend its flight operations from 21 March 2020. The Belgian carrier will continue to keep a minimal capacity on standby base for repatriation flights should this be required.
Source:Front Page Africa
March 17, 2020 19:14 UTC