Monrovia – The Montgomery family has accused Mary Broh, the current head of the General Services Agency (GSA) and Grace T. Kpaan, former Superintendent of Montserrado County of signing a shady deal with an American NGO, More Than Me, to confiscate their property.
Report by Augustine Tweh, [email protected]
Speaking on behalf of the family, Madam Matu Montgomery Davis claimed that the property was given to the Government of Liberia in the 1960s by her mother out of empathy to only be used and not confiscated.
She said about eight years ago she contacted Madam Broh to help remove individuals who were occupying the property after the government had decided to evacuate it.
But to her utmost surprise, she said the building was later given to an American NGO, More Than Me through a Memorandum of Understanding between the government, represented by Broh and Kpaan and the NGO represented by Katie Meyler, the CEO.
The MOU granted the organization’s rights to occupy the land.
“Almost eight years ago, I asked Mary Broh to help me move the junkies who were on our property after the government had given them place on Front Street and when they saw that this property was ours, just for them to take it, she jumped in and they got the APM Terminal to come and clean it up, clear the place up.”
“I went to the court to stop them. After stopping them, I went back there, as you always know that Mary Broh has a way of going to the court during her own time.
She went to the court to stop everything and she started doing whatsoever they wanted to do,” Montgomery said.
Madam Davis accused Broh and Kpaan for engineering the “shady deal” for their own benefit at the expense of her family.
“We need our property and we have no issue with the government, and she’s (Broh) is saying that we should take the government to court but we have no issue with the government, we want our property back.”
“We need our property, we are not supposed to be going to the court’s house and fighting, we are tired with the mess, we need our property.”
She continued: “I ‘m asking the government to please step into it, and we want our property back. If she wants to give More Then Me property, she should give More Than Me her property.
According to the MOU, a copy of which is in the possession of FrontPageAfrica, shows that the agreement was reached on August 9, 2012 between the Government of Liberia, represented by the office of the then superintendent of Montserrado County and the CEO of the More Than Me with the aim of providing quality education for young girls in West Point and other slum communities.
A document obtained from the Land Commission explaining its intervention into the case revealed that the government has no deed, lease agreement or any document to substantiate its ownership to the property while the GSA could not tell the investigation how government acquired the property.
The document also acknowledged that the deed submitted by Madam Matu Montgomery Davis is genuine and authentic.
The commission recommends that the Ministry of Justice and Madam Davies amicably resolve the issue on a round table discussion.
In a release, the organization (More Than Me), said the property was given to it by the government of Liberia through a MOU and at no time did it claimed ownership of the said property.
“ On August 9, 2012, the Government of Liberia agreed to provide More Than Me (MTM) access to a building that was government owned on Ashmun Street in Monrovia, Liberia,” the release states.
When contacted, the former Montserrado County Superintendent, Grace T. Kpaan admitted to signing the MOU by directive of former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.
But she said she could not answer any further questions from FrontPageAfrica and refer our reporter to the office of the President of Liberia for more inquiry.
For her part, Madam Broh refused to comment on the issue.
“If that is the only story you are interested in, go and carry it any way you want to carry it. I am not going to clarify anything,” Broh said.