Monrovia – The Lebanese and Indians have dominated almost all sector of the Liberian economy, making it difficult for Liberian entrepreneur to survive in their own economy.
Report by Al-Varney Rogers alvarney.rogersfrontpageonline.com
“He did not go as non-Liberian to register his business. He manipulated the process through some Liberians and you may be aware besides ice cream, there are 16 businesses set aside for Liberians, some unscrupulous Liberians have been fronting for non-Liberians,” Mitchell Jones, Public Affairs
The government crafted the Liberianization Policy whose aim is to create an exclusive space in the private sector for certain businesses to be owned exclusively partially by Liberians to enable them succeed without competitive interference from wealthy foreign-owned businesses.
Section 16.2 of the Investment Act of 2010 says “Foreign investors may invest in the following business activities provided that where such of the listed enterprises is owned exclusively by non-Liberians, the total Capital invested shall not be less than US$500,000;
And, where such of the listed enterprises is owned by non-Liberians in partnership with Liberians and the aggregate shareholding of the Liberians is at least 25%, the total Capital invested shall not be less than US$300,000.”
The law holds the same for production and supply of stone and granite, ice cream manufacturing and commercial printing etc.
In an effort to strengthen the Liberalization law, the Ministry of Commerce & Industry on Thursday shut down a newly opened business, Nice Ice Cream.
“We are here by the order of the court, as you can see, the sheriff is here from the court to shut down this business until otherwise ordered,” the Ministry of Commerce Director of Public Affairs Mitchell Jones said Thursday evening as the sheriff began locking the offices Nice Ice Cream on 9th Street, Sinkor.
Jones said the Ministry’s action to close the business was because it violated the Liberian Investment Code. The code prohibits non-Liberians from engaging in the production and sale of ice cream.
Nice Ice Cream Tax and Accountant Consultant, Eric Nagbe said his entity would also use the law to prove the Ministry wrong in court.
“We haven’t violated any law, it is incumbent upon the Ministry of Commerce to show the law these people have violated.
Our hands are clean; the investment act shows the business that are listed for Liberians to do exclusively they do not include ice cream. This law does not stop foreigners from doing ice cream business,” Nagbe said.
Nagbe said closing of the ice cream shop has the propensity to scare investors. “I feel very bad because this is spoiling the image of the country, already we have a bad economy,” he asserted.
Nagbe pointed fingers at the owner of Sharks as the person behind the closure of Nice Ice Cream.
Nagbe says: “The owner of Sharks is standing on the principle that she managed to somehow close Era Super market when they ventured into Ice Cream. She harassed them until they closed down, so she thinks she got monopoly over the business.”
According to Nagbe, Nice Ice Cream is registered as a Liberian-owned business and not owned by foreigners as speculated.
Nagbe: “It the Liberian business that is producing the ice cream and selling to them, these people are not producing the ice cream.
“I can show copy of the business registration and the Input Permit Declarations (IPDs) that was signed by the Ministry of commerce and copy of all of their importation documents, copy of taxes they pay.”
The Director of Public Affairs of the Commerce Ministry alleged that owner of Nice Ice Cream manipulated the business registration process.
“He did not go as non-Liberian to register his business. He manipulated the process through some Liberians and you may be aware besides ice cream, there are 16 businesses set aside for Liberians, some unscrupulous Liberians have been fronting for non-Liberians,” Jones added.
Jones: “Those Liberians that are involved in fronting, the Ministry will deal with them according to the law. For now we have come here to close this entity. We do not have money to have inspectors all over the country.”
Liberian ice cream manufacturer and owners of Sharks Ice Cream, Eyvonne Bright Harding had filed a complaint that Nice Ice Cream was not owned by a Liberian.
Eyvonne said that it was frustrating for the government to allow foreigners to compete with Liberians in businesses that are set aside for Liberians.
Harding in 2015 filed a similar complaint against Era Supermarket, which led the Ministry of Commerce to shut down the production of ice cream at the supermarket.
Eyvonne: “We have been around for 20 plus year. We have been in manufacturing and retailing and we are talking about opening a factory – this is one of those businesses set aside for Liberians.
Of late, we have to engage the commerce ministry in order to up hold the law. In couple of months, we see another ice cream shop on 9th Street; we’ve been trying through the government to know why they are operating.”
Eyvonne’s Shark’s Ice Cream is unarguable the largest producer of ice cream in Liberia.
“The government says it intends to make Liberian entrepreneurs millionaire, but how can that be happening when foreigners are doing business set aside for Liberians?” she asked rhetorically.
She, however, indicated that the current operation allegedly carried out by some foreign nationals on 9th Street was not without consent of some officials of the Ministry.
She argued that importing materials for such a business into the country requires having an Import Permit Document (IPD) from the Ministry of Commerce, and those operators of the ice cream shop might have gotten the permit from there to import the materials.
“We filed our complaint about these people’s plan of operation since June, and the ministry said it was going to look into it. But what happened was that they are in full swing operating this business they are prohibited from doing under our law,” she asserted.
Eyvvonne vowed to continuously engage the Ministry of Commerce until the matter was resolved. She is confident that the Ministry of commerce will halt the Nice Ice Cream from operating.
However, some expressed sympathy for the closure of Nice Ice Cream.
A resident of Sinkor Juliet Dennis said she enjoyed the taste of Nice Ice Cream, adding that other business should be given the opportunity to produce ice cream.
“We cannot have only one person producing ice cream,” when there is competition we will get the worth of our money,” Dennis said.
Dennis added that she Liberian ice cream producers were doing well but there was a need for competition.
Dennis: “For me, I don’t see why foreigners can sell imported ice cream and cannot produce it here, I don’t get it.”
Prince Kollie, a resident of Paynesville said that if the law provides that non Liberians should produce ice cream, such should be respected.
“For whether they can produce the best ice cream in the world it doesn’t matter, what matters right now is following the law,” Kollie said.
“If we continue with this attitude, we will remain poor in this country while the Lebanese and Indians will turn to millionaire in our country.”