Monrovia – An investigative panel set up by the Press Union of Liberia (PUL) has said its findings into a complaint filed by Senate Pro-Tempore Albert Chie against Obed S. Gibah and Emmanuel Darzee – two lead commentators on Joy FM radio – established that the Senator was in no way soliciting bribe during a telephone conversation with an assistant minister of finance as claimed by the two journalists.
According to its findings, the PUL said Pro-Tempore Chie’s request during the telephone conversation for the payment of funds from the Senate’s budget and the budget of the pro-Tempore’s office was lawful because it’s by law that there be budgetary allocations for the legislature to be more effective and efficient.
It can be recalled on May 12, Pro-tempore Chie wrote a communication to the PUL complaining Gibah and Darzee, accusing the two journalists of a scandalous commentary, which according to the senator, they were running on Joy FM radio and other stations.
In the complaint, Senator Chie said Gibah and Darzee were playing a recording in which he (Chie) was inquiring information on the status of a legitimate budgetary allocation appropriated to the Liberian Senate and the office of the president pro-tempore as operational funds.
Pro tempore Chie also accused Gibah and Darzee of rolling ‘distorted version’ of the recording on their station and using same to incriminate his discussion wrongly, suggesting that he (Chie) was making a deal or inducing an assistant minister of the ministry of finance to make some illegitimate or shady payment to his office, accusing Chie of corruption, even though the recording in their possession “doesn’t back such outlandish claim”.
Gibah and Darzee’s response
In their response to the PUL’s investigative panel, the two journalists confirmed playing a recording containing the voice of Pro-tempore Chie, but denied accusing the senator of soliciting money for passage of the budget.
Gibah and Darzee also confirmed discussing the printing of the new bank notes, but denied the Pro-tempore of directly or indirectly of seeking money from an assistant minister of the ministry of finance for the purpose of authorizing the printing of the new Liberian bank notes.
However, the two Joy FM journalists alleged that the Executive Branch of Government was lobbying with the legislature to place the picture of president George Manneh Weah on the $1,000 new family bank notes.
The two journalists also confirmed that the audio was obtained last year, and not a new recording as being reported by some media institutions. They further indicated that during their radio show, reference was made to the recording in which they blamed the pro-tempore of only advocating for the Senate, not the public.
However, Gibah and Darzee acknowledged Senator Chie’s complaint and vowed to endeavor in different capacities to drive the growth and development of Liberia. They reiterated that the recording in question didn’t reference such thing regarding a shady as mentioned.
However, to authenticate the fact, the president of the PUL Charles Coffey Gibah and Darzee to provide the entire audio of their radio discussion under review. In compliance with Coffey’s mandate, the two journalists produced the audio which was live on their Facebook page.
According to Coffey, the audio was professionally auditioned in line with best journalistic principles. The PUL president said the audio confirmed that the Joy FM radio show discussion was about the payment of funds from the Senate’s budget, requested by Pro-tempore Chie.
Coffey, however, said the manner in which it was discussed by the two journalists, or the style of their presentation appears that the Pro-tempore was doing something wrong.
The two Joy FM reporters told the PUL Investigative Panel that their decisions were in no way intended to execute embedded motives aimed at tarnishing the reputation of Pro-tempore Chie, as he indicated in his letter of complaint. According to them, the discussion on their station was aimed at enlightening the public about critical national issues, thereby putting pressure on public officials to fully prioritize the public’s interest.
PUL’s findings
“They have misinformed the public that the President Pro-tempore of the Senate was inducing an assistant minister for the Senate to authorize the printing of new Liberian bank notes, whereby the audio in question was about 2020 budget in which payment of funds from the Senate’s budget and the budget of the President Pro-Tempore office were being requested. Every discussion heard in Senator Chie’s audio was about budget, which has since been passed.”
– Press Union of Liberia Investigative Report
But the PUL said it discovered in its finding that per the recording auditioned by its investigative panel, the two journalists brought the Pro-tempore’s audio to the public sphere, and that in the audio the senator was heard discussing the budget of the Liberian Senate, inquiring information, demanding the payment of unlawful budgetary allocations to the Liberian Senate and his office.
Coffey said the Pro-tempore’s discussion in the audio provided an indication of his responsibility to ensure the smooth running of the Senate.
However, the PUL president said the discussion held by the two journalists didn’t link the pro-tempore to corruption, but added that they felt short of only playing a 2020 recording without outstanding issues relating to the 2020 budget.
Coffey also said the two Joy FM journalists failed to make follow-ups on new issues they were raising in their discussion, such as the alleged lobbying of the Executive Branch of Government with the Liberian Senate to place President Weah’s picture on the $1,000 of new family bank notes.
The PUL president further said there was nothing wrong with the pro-tempore reminding state financial institutions responsible to conform to the constitutional provision and provide payments of funds from the Senate’s budget. Coffey added that during the investigation, it was further revealed that few of the stations that have played the voice or audio of the pro-tempore didn’t fairly obtain the recording. “From what the panel listened to from Joy FM radio recording, it was cleared that the audio other stations were playing was said to have been distorted,” Coffey said.
He added: “They have misinformed the public that the President Pro-tempore of the Senate was inducing an assistant minister for the Senate to authorize the printing of new Liberian bank notes, whereby the audio in question was about 2020 budget in which payment of funds from the Senate’s budget and the budget of the President Pro-tempore office were being requested. Every discussion heard in Senator Chie’s audio was about (2020) budget, which has since been passed.”
Meanwhile, the PUL has warned the two Joy FM journalists, other stations to stop playing the old recording of President Pro-tempore, adding that violators will be dealt with in line with the PUL’s Code of Ethics.