Monrovia – An Executive Committee member of the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) led-government, Representative Solomon Claudius George, has launched verbal attacks on some current and former members of the House of Representatives, casting a dark cloud over the integrity of that August Body.
Lawmaker George is representing the people of electoral district # 7 in Montserrado County in the 54th National Legislature.
He previously served in the 53rd National Legislature after he defeated Alomiza Ennos in the 2011 General and Presidential Elections.
The criminal minded
The CDC lawmaker’s latest branding of his current and present legislative colleagues has cast a dark aspersion on the character of members of both the 53rd and 54th National Legislatures in a recent exclusive interview with FrontPageAfrica at his Capitol Building office in Monrovia.
Rep. George disclosed that though the 53rd Legislature was made up of those he called “legislative gurus”, some of those ‘gurus’ were ‘corrupt and criminal minded.’
The Montserrado County lawmaker, however, fell short of disclosing the names of those 53rd legislative gurus, even when he was probed by this newspaper.
He maintained that though some of those legislative gurus were ‘criminal-minded,’ they understood legislative politics and workings.
Rep. George pointed out that unlike some new members of the 54th Legislature, lawmakers that joined the 53rd Legislature in 2012 “learned” a lot from their old colleagues.
“When we came here newly, we sat and learned. This place is not for getting, but organizing and getting to know people. We had gurus in the 53rd. But some of the gurus were too criminal-minded,” he stated.
Newcomers who are ‘eager to get’
“I noticed that there are too many newcomers that do not understand legislative workings. These new guys thought we have a lot of money under the table. And now they are seeing that there is no much money as they thought. They are having second thought-but it’s late. They are in the water with us, and they have to swim.”
Rep. Solomon George, Representative, Montserrado County District 7
The ruling establishment’s lawmaker pointed out that the 54th Legislature under the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) led-government comprises of “newcomers”.
According to him, most of these newcomers who do not understand legislative workings are eager to accumulate wealth to the detriment of their people.
According to Mr. George, most of these new lawmakers had a negative perception that the Legislature is a money-making terrain.
“I noticed that there are too many newcomers that do not understand legislative workings. These new guys thought we have a lot of money under the table. And now they are seeing that there is no much money as they thought. They are having second thought-but it’s late. They are in the water with us, and they have to swim,” he stated.
“We are having very young lawmakers right now. For me, they are not bad. The young people here now are too eager. They want to rush the ball game. I see a lot of them want to get what they planned or thought they were going to get. They need to learn,” the CDC lawmaker maintained.
Meanwhile, Representative George has cautioned members of the House of Representatives against being egoistic, if they must be re-elected in future elections.
“This place (Legislature) is not “for getting”; but organizing and getting to know people. Anybody who comes here and gets egoistic, will not come back,” he added.
Reactions
“When we try to push for our just earnings, they say we eager to get. I don’t know what you call eager by requesting your salaries or benefits? It’s not something you are going to beg someone for. So, Solomon George doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”
Rep. Hanson Kiazolu, Montserrado County District 17
The comments from the CDC lawmaker have not gone down well with some past and current members of the House of Representatives.
According to Nimba County Representative Larry Younquoi, the comments from the Montserrado County lawmaker are misplaced.
Rep. Younquoi told FrontPageAfrica that the 54th Legislature has ‘criminal minded’ lawmakers, adding that, the passage of national budgets has been manipulated in recent times.
“His statement is a pregnant statement. ‘Criminal minded’ in terms of what? In manipulating laws or what? You don’t want me to address myself to that. Even in the 54th Legislature, there are criminally minded lawmakers among us. Budget manipulation has taken place and nothing has been done. It is not anything new,” he noted.
Also, Montserrado County district 17 lawmaker Hanson Kiazolu said most often opposition lawmakers are lambasted by their colleagues from the ruling party whenever they raised alarm over the payment of their just salaries and benefits.
He pointed out that these lawmakers are in the constant habit of bullying their opposition colleagues because they (CDC lawmakers) are receiving separate salaries from elsewhere.
“When we try to push for our just earnings, they say we eager to get. I don’t know what you call eager by requesting your salaries or benefits? It’s not something you are going to beg someone for. So, Solomon George doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” he stated.
Indecent comments
Reacting to the accusation from the United States of America via telephone, former CDC lawmaker, Mr. Julius Berrian, a former lawmaker in the 53rd Legislature, termed as indecent the assertions made by his former colleague.
According to him, Rep. George’s comments sound like a ‘paradox’ because he was also a member of the 53rd Legislature.
“It is outrageous for my former colleague to have said that. Anyone will think that Honorable Solomon George spoke at the position of Spectrum Disorder. I have regard for him, and I don’t want to dignify what he said. To classify former colleagues as criminals, it is not decent,” he stated.
Solo’s controversies
CDC lawmaker George is widely known for controversies since his ascendancy at the National Legislature.
Few years ago, Representative George threatened to ensure that former Monrovia City Mayor, Mary Broh was dragged to a ‘government toilet’ in the township of West Point, and defecated on if she had dared demolish homes in the township, which falls within this electoral district.
In 2014, the CDC lawmaker also threatened to take Ebola bodies from the township and drop them at the offices of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf if the Emergency Response Team failed to remove the remains of persons who had died from the deadly virus.
His comments at the time were due to delay by the response team to remove bodies of persons who died as a result of the deadly virus in the township.
Recently, Representative George described members of the Inter-Religious Council of Liberia (IRCL) as ‘beggars and bootlickers’.
His attribution came barely a few days after the IRCL, through its President, Bishop Kortu Brown, called for a resolution or legal redress over the closure of three radio stations by the Government of Liberia.
‘Corruption’ sagas at HOR
The National Legislature, particularly the House of Representatives, has been rocked with series of corruption allegations ranging from receiving bribes to remove a sitting Speaker, passing legislations, and conniving with key county authorities to chop County and Social Development Funds to the detriment of citizens.
Former House Speaker Alex Tyler was nicknamed ‘corruption king kong’ following the surfacing of his name in every damning corruption scandal uncovered during his tenure as the third powerful man in the country at the time.
Some of the major ones among the numerous corruption sagas include: a conspiracy by a web of government officials, mostly from the House, to defraud the entire nation of its much needed cash attained from the sweats of poor taxpayers during the nationwide oil consultation, Sable Mining Bribery scandal, and holding share in a company that failed to complete the Bong County Technical College construction,
Tyler’s name surfaced again in the latest Global Witness Report on Liberia dubbed “Hold The Line” where he is named as part-owner along with Moses Kollie, and Ricks Toweh of a logging company which is, according to the Global Witness, among a group of illegal loggers that have lied, cheated and stolen from the Liberians through illegal logging activities.
In 2013, another member of the House of Representatives and a former member of the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC), Edward S. Forh was heard on tape influencing former Montserrado County Superintendent Grace Kpaan to steal, and distribute, monies intended to initiate developmental projects in the county.
Former lawmaker Forh at the time described his action as a “stupid joke”.
In 2017, lawmakers were also accused of receiving bribe in the tone of US$10,000 each to remove former House Speaker Tyler.
In July 2017, the Founder and General Overseer of the Restoration Baptist Ministries, Reverend Joseph Gardea Johnson described members of the 53rd Legislature as the most corrupt lawmakers in the history of Liberia with just a few good ones among them.
Rev. Johnson, in an exclusive interview with FrontPageAfrica, said the lawmakers are running a criminal cartel that passes bills that are not in the interest of the Liberians.
In recent times, the House of Representatives of the 54th Legislature was rocked with claims and counter-claims over the chopping of extra sitting money by the Chairman of its Committee on Ways, Means, Finance and Development Planning, Representative Thomas Fallah.
But the Montserrado County lawmaker rubbished the accusation.