Monrovia– Solidarity & Trust for a New Day (STAND), a group advocating for accountability in Liberia, is demanding thorough investigation into the alterations of the 2024 national budget following confirmation from Bong County District #4 Representative Robert Flomo Womba, who chair the Special Committee that the budget was tampered with.
By Jaheim T. Tumu- [email protected]
In his communication, STAND Chairman, Mulbah K. Morlu expressed a firm stance, threatening to petition the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) to launch a formal investigation and prosecute officials involved in the budget tampering scheme.
Said Morlu, “The LACC’s mandate under its amended Act requires it to intervene in cases of corruption, fraud, and abuse of power, and STAND will ensure this mandate is enforced.”
He added, “The Liberian people deserve justice, and all those responsible, regardless of rank, must be held accountable. This scandal has deeply undermined public trust in our institutions, and the refusal to prosecute those involved reveals a broken system that protects the powerful while punishing the powerless.”
It can be recalled, after the discovery of the tampering of the national budget, House Speaker J. Fonati Koffa constituted a Special Committee headed by Rep. Womba to investigate the accusations.
The decision to set up its special committee to probe into the alterations was endorsed by STAND through its Chairman Morlu.
Morlu wrote Speaker Koffa, stating that they were closely monitoring the controversies surrounding allegations of budget tampering, which have resulted in at least US$20 million in questionable reallocations.
Morlu who commended the Speaker Koffa in forming an investigative committee to address this matter, also frowned on why the investigation findings remain shielded from public scrutiny.
“Altering an enacted law, such as the budget, without following proper legislative processes is considered forgery. Keeping the investigation’s findings secret creates an atmosphere suggestive of either a cover-up or collusion,” Morlu said in his communication on September 6.
Following the report being made public, Morlu, however, rejected and condemned the report from the special committee investigating the tampering of the 2024 national budget, stating that the report represents a deliberate cover-up of organized crime involving high-ranking members of the Legislature.
He emphasized that Rep. Womba’s committee’s findings reflect a disgraceful miscarriage of justice, protecting powerful officials from prosecution while unfairly targeting lower-level staff.
He highlighted that Womba ‘s Committee ignored irrefutable evidence within its report, which directly implicates lawmakers in the illegal act of altering the budget, asserting that after the national budget was passed and submitted to the President Joseph Boakai’s office on May 7, 2024, it was illegally withdrawn and altered to infuse at least $20 million for self-indulgent.
“The report also exposes a serious crime: the forgery of the Speaker’s signature while he was out of the country. This egregious act raises significant concerns, and the Speaker’s muted response only heightens suspicion. Without a clear and decisive effort to distance himself and hold the responsible parties accountable, his silence may be interpreted as tacit endorsement of this grave offense, he said.
He stressed, “Despite overwhelming evidence implicating members of the Joint Ways, Means, and Finance Committee, along with senior officials from the Ministry of Finance, the Womba’s report astonishingly shifting blame to junior staffers is an affront to the intelligence of the Liberian people.”
Morlu emphasized that Liberia cannot tolerate a system where powerful individuals are shielded, while the less influential are scapegoated. This, he argues, is a form of blatant hypocrisy that undermines justice. Accordingly, he said STAND remains firmly committed to protecting the public interest and pushing for accountability.
He further stressed that they will ensure that those responsible for manipulating the 2024 National Budget for personal gain are held accountable, as the organization continues to advocate for justice and transparency in governance.
“In our pursuit of justice, we will urge our international partners to view these individuals not as dignitaries but as perpetrators of economic crimes that have hindered the nation’s progress, and we will call for the revocation of any privileges or honors they no longer deserve, he said.
