Monrovia – Members of the House of Representatives have unanimously voted to temporarily stop the interim management team of the Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC) from all further contractual negotiations pending completion of investigation into the company’s alleged financial malpractices.
Report by Henry Karmo – [email protected]
Plenary took the decision on Thursday, June 8, 2017, following hours of debate on the LEC’s alleged financial malpractices which grew out of a communication from Montserrado County District #13 Representative, Hon. Saah Joseph last week.
The Montserrado lawmaker’s communication said the LEC along with their Board of Directors, and officials of the Ministry of Lands, Mines, and Energy proceeded wrongly in the execution of a contract with the Manitoba Hydro International.
Representative Joseph argued that a procurement audit carried out by the General Auditing Commission against the Manitoba International unearthed serious irregularities that needed to be addressed.
In his communication, Hon Joseph also demanded to know what had become of the General Auditing Commission’s audit report on the LEC regarding how US$42 million was expended from its coffers.
Meanwhile, the plenary has also voted to reinforce their earlier call for the appearance of officials from the Ministry of Lands, Mines and Energy before them next Tuesday, June 13, 2017.
A hearing before the House plenary did not go on Thursday because the Ministry of Lands, Mines, and Energy was absent from the hearing.
Rep. Joseph did not provide specific details about his claim but said the five-year contract with the Canadian firm was contrary to the aim to expand electricity production on the national power grid.
In a letter to House Speaker J. Emmanuel Nuquay, Rep. Joseph claimed that the management of MHI has performed dismally and wants the Legislature to abort the signing of any new agreement with MHI to manage the LEC.
“The dismal performance of MHI under the then management contractual agreement is clearly visible for all to see as evidenced by the constant falling of poles with livewire which pose death threats in residential areas; the prolonged power cuts and the relatively slow rate of connecting households in Monrovia and its environs.”
“These are some of the problems left behind by MHI under the multi-million dollar agreement to manage the LEC,” Rep. Joseph wrote.
Without making reference to the gradual installation of turbines at the Mount Coffee Hydro Plant, Rep. Joseph added that: “Compounded with the problems listed above, MHI exhausted the LEC coffers of 42 million United States Dollars, leaving the current interim management team cash-strapped to properly manage the entity effectively.
In his letter, Rep. Joseph further informed his colleagues that the Board of Directors of the LEC is poised to enter into a new agreement with the Manitoba Hydro International (MHI).
He acknowledged “the competence of the Interim Management Team and the high level of professionalism which it has exhibited in such a short period since the MHI management agreement expired.
“I am of the strong opinion that this step is ill-timed and it does not serve the best interest of our people,” Saah Joseph stated in his letter.