Monrovia – Mr. Wilmot Smith, former deputy director general for information coordination at the Liberia Institute of Statistics and Geo-Information Services (LISGIS), has filed a lawsuit against the government, challenging his dismissal by former President George Weah.

By Victoria G Wesseh, contributing writer

In his petition for declaratory judgment filed before the Civil Law Court, Smith is seeking the endorsement of the court to compel President Joseph Boakai to reinstate him to his previous position.

According to Smith, the act by the former Liberian president was un-statutory and unconstitutional.

“The President’s action violated the Act establishing LISGIS and Article 89 of the Liberian Constitution, which gives authority to the National Legislature to establish autonomous agencies and thereby create autonomy,” the lawsuit added.

Smith was appointed by the Board of Directors of LISGIS, an authority by the Act of June 4, 2018 as deputy director.

The lawsuit claimed to “dismiss the one who occupies a position, it must be for cause, but the Act of LISGIS does not grant power to the President of Liberia to dismiss the Petitioner or the Director-General; rather, it is the Board of LISGIS.”

“The Act creating LISGIS is in line with Article 89 of the Constitution of Liberia, and this makes the Act constitutional and autonomy constitutional under Article 89 of the Liberian Constitution. For the president to claim dismissal of the Petitioner “for cause” in the absence of the due process of law is a violation of Chapter III, Article 20 of the Constitution of Liberia, especially when he exercised a power that the law does not give to him. Article 89 of the Liberia Constitution.”

He argued the standard of this provision of the Constitution, institutions or agencies created by the Legislature and given tenure status are constitutional, and removal of any official from any of these positions must be for a cause consistent with due process or removal after the tenure period expires is the only constitutional and legal means. 

In his case, Smith said that the facts revealed that President Weah strictly violated the Constitution and the Act creating LISGIS. According to him, the action of the ex-president to dismiss him on grounds that his action was for cause in which he was never accorded due process of law, is a violation of the Act of LISGIS. 

He said: “Sections 50A.4 (1) and (2) of the Act of LISGIS clearly state that:

Powers of the President: In keeping with the provisions of this Act, the President shall exercise such powers as follows: 

1. Appoint initially the Board of Directors and Its Chairman, with the Board becoming self-appointing after that upon recommendation of the Director General; 2. Appoint a qualified Director-General initially in keeping with Section 50A.2 above. After that, the authority to make subsequent appointments shall vest in these provisions.”

Smith added the authority to initially appoint both members of the Board of LISGIS and the Director General of LISGIS from the date that the LISGIS Act was passed and creating the said institution in 2004, and all subsequent appointments of the members of the Board and Director General and Deputy Director Generals are vested in the powers of the Board of Directors of LISGIS.

“In 2004, after the passage of the LISGIS Act, it was the previous president of Liberia, Madam Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who made such an appointment, and since that requirement of the statute of LISGIS was met, no subsequent president of Liberia has that authority to remove or dismiss the Director-General of LISGIS, the Deputy Director Generals of LISGIS, including members of the board of directors of LISGIS,” he added.

MONROVIA — The Director-General-designate of the Liberia Institute of Statistics and Geo-Information Services (LISGIS), Mr. Richard Ngafuan, has vowed to restore public trust and confidence in all processes leading to the conduct of data collection and national census in the country.

By Obediah Johnson

Mr. Ngafuan said he will renew confidence not only through the quality of data collection, but through the integrity of all the fiduciary processes.

According to him, adherence to the Public Financial Management and Public Procurement law and regulations of Liberia will be key in the restoration of citizens and donors confidence in the activities of the agency when confirmed to the position by the Senate.

He gave the assurance when he appeared for confirmation before the Senate Committee on Autonomous Agencies and Corporations on Monday, February 19.

Mr. Ngafuan vowed to ensure the publication of an annual State of the Liberia Population report which could be used to track national development and depict the progress made toward achieving key development milestones.

He pointed out that his administration will build a new cadre of competent statisticians by accelerating the training of staff of LISGIS through the World Bank HISWA project.

He stressed that a new National Strategy for the Development of Statistics will be drafted and submitted to lawmakers to ensure support in funding the various components of this flagship document.

“We will collaborate with our international counterparts in the African region and beyond to share best practices to ensure data comparability across countries.”

“We will keep advocating and appealing for budgetary increment to enhance statistical data collection, analysis, and dissemination across the country and improve the condition of people working at the statistics house.”

He noted that the agency, under his watch, will also work with the government and its international partners, to fill existing data gaps through surveys and censuses related to their various development assistance frameworks.

Mr. Ngafuan added that geospatial data collection through GIS and remote sensing will also be upgraded to meet international standards.

“We will not only collect but we will analyze and disseminate our results to our all people. Whether in the remotest parts of the country, we will reach out to our people through all possible forms of print and electronic media and other traditional information dissemination mechanisms.”

He said his administration will also develop and maintain comprehensive National Statistical and Spatial Data System.

This, he disclosed, will mean creating a data warehouse at LISGIS that will serve as a central hub for data storage and data analysis.

Mr. Ngafuan, who collaborated with the LISGIS Cluster Working Group of the Transition Team, however, observed that the Statistics House encounters numerous challenges in fulfilling its crucial role in national development.

He stressed that these challenges span from operational, infrastructural, and human resource dimensions, presenting a complex situation that demands immediate attention and a unified approach for resolution.

According to him, a primary concern for LISGIS is its inadequate internet and communication technology infrastructure.

“This deficiency significantly undermines the institution’s ability to efficiently carry out data collection, analysis, and dissemination processes- all fundamental aspects of LISGIS operations.”

Mr. Ngafuan stated that there is an urgent need for human resource development at the institution.

He maintained that enhancing the skills of LISGIS staff in areas such as demography, statistics, data science, and data engineering is imperative.

“Also, the approved 2023 budget for LISGIS was $1,616,630.00, with 83.5% of its budget allocated to salaries; only 12.9% of the budget was dedicated to feasibility studies and surveys, thus making LISGIS to be highly dependent on external support in the implementation of its core mandate. Furthermore, the wage structure at LISGIS is a cause for concern. For instance, the average salary before tax for non-political appointees is $484.”

He observed that this remuneration framework negatively impacts staff morale and their capacity to produce satisfactory outcomes; with the agency currently operating with no clear development strategy.

The National Strategy for the Development of Statistics, which came into force in 2008, expired in 2013.

Mr. Ngafuan disclosed that since then, there has been no approved strategy that governs the central statistics office and other entities in the national statistical system.

He, however, observed that there can be no adequate development when our national development plans are not tied to inform decision-making through quality data.

According to him, this will mean robustly monitoring and evaluating progress made towards Liberia’s national development plan and other global development frameworks, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Sixteen years ago, Mr. Ngafuan previously served as a Demographer at LISGIS following the completion of his studies from the Obafemi Awolowo University. He was promoted as a Research Officer and later advanced to the position of Assistant Director for Census and Surveys.

While serving in the position, he worked as a key member of the 2008 Census Secretariat that worked on planning and implementing the census enumeration process and disseminating the census results.

He was later afforded the opportunity by LISGIS to pursue graduate studies in Demography at the Makerere University, in Kampala, Uganda. Upon his return to Liberia, he served as Senior Demographer at LISGIS and was later appointed as Assistant Minister for Statistics and Research at the Ministry of Labor, a position he served in until 2018.

MONROVIA – The Liberia Institute of Statistics & Geo-Information Services (LISGIS) has assured all those who were contracted to conduct a malaria control and indicator survey from August to September 2022 that they will be paid.

The assurance comes in the wake of a protest in the compound of LISGIS on 4 December after months of peacefully trying to get payment.

Acting LISGIS Director-General Lawrence George and Assistant Health Minister Chea Wesseh met the protesters where it was agreed that they will be paid on or before December 13.

According to a release on December 5, payments to the contractors were delayed because Global Fund had not remitted the money to LISGIS’ account.

Each of the 81 contractors was paid US$840, 80-percent of the full amount, before they began work throughout the country.

They will receive a balance of US$560 once the amount is remitted by Global Fund through the Catholic Relief Service. 

MONROVIA – The Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Samuel Tweah, is not a signatory to the LISGIS’ Census Account with Ecobank, neither did he transfer any money from LISGIS’ account to a private account in Cote d’Ivoire, Ecobank Liberia has clarified.

By Lennart Dodoo

The clarification from the bank comes amid an allegation from dismissed Deputy Director General for Statistics at LISGIS, Alex Williams, who claimed on Spoon FM last week that the Finance Minister who chairs LISGIS Board had transferred a sum of US$2m from LISGIS account to his private Ecobank account 6100005514, in neighboring Ivory Coast.

Williams was dismissed along with the Deputy Director General for Operations, Wilmot Smith, by President Weah last week after several flaws impeding the start of the 2022 national census on November 11 became very glaring.

The flaws that marred the process ranged from questionable recruitment of enumerators, inadequate deployment of census materials to payment of enumerators.

The 2022 national population and housing census would be the first in 15 years. The Constitution of Liberia requires that a census be held after every 10 years.

After his dismissal, Williams accused Min. Tweah of committing fraud at LISGIS and at the same time misinforming the President about the realities at the census house.

However, Min. Tweah who did not take the allegation lightly wrote Ecobank Liberia requesting the bank to investigate and provide clarity on the allegations made against him.

In a November 17, 2022 communication addressed to the Managing Director of Ecobank Liberia, Mr. George Mensah Asante, Mr. Tweah stated, “…the baseless allegation is damaging and has compelled me to kindly request Ecobank to provide me with the facts pursuant to the account in question. As I am only a signatory to a personal account I have with Ecobank in Liberia, I do not have the means to withdraw funds from any account of a Government Ministry or Agency, and I am completely perplexed as to why Mr. Williams chose to lob such an allegation against me, knowing factually that as Minister I do not administer the day-to-day financial affairs of LISGIS or any other Government agency.”

Minister Tweah further contended that in his capacity as Finance Minister, he approves transfers of public monies to various government ministries and agencies under the Public Finance Management Law under established and its general regulations.

He stated in his communication that these transfers under the PFM law follow established PFM procedures and protocols to access resources from designated US dollar and Liberian dollar bank accounts at various financial institutions or banks.

Min. Tweah: “Mr. Managing Director, it may interest you to note that this malignant misinformation provided equally tends to compromise the integrity of ECOBANK since it seems to imply that persons who are non-signatories to Ecobank accounts may be able to move monies from such accounts either through some form of collusion or breach of banking internal controls or through digital hacking. Your investigation into these possibilities or impossibilities can establish the facts and place them where they ought to be, relevant to the allegation against me as Minister of Finance and Development Planning and Chairman of the Board of LISGIS.”

Providing clarity to the transaction amid the allegation, Ecobank Liberia stated that the account number 6100005514 Mr. Williams referred to by Williams is a transit account created by Ecobank Côte d’Ivoire, the affiliate bank of Ecobank Liberia, for the specific transfer of US$10,000 on March 18, 2022 to AVIANET CONSULTING, to transport tablets to Liberia.

This transfer, according to Ecobank, was done through AVIANET’s bank in La Cote d’Ivoire called Banque Atlantic de Côte d’Ivoire.

Ecobank explained that whenever Ecobank Liberia sends US dollars to La Côte d’Ivoire it routes the payment through its affiliate bank called Ecobank Côte d’Ivoire, which creates a Transit Account in Ecobank Côte d’Ivoire to complete the transaction to another bank. In this case, on March 18, 2022, Ecobank Cote d’Ivoire created Transit Account 6100005514 to transfer US$10,000 to a bank account belonging to AVIANET Consulting at Banque Atlantic de Côte d’Ivoire. The US$10,000 transferred equals CFA 5.69 million. As such 6100005514 is Not a LISGIS Account in Côte d’Ivoire and neither is Minister Tweah associated with such an account.

While Ecobank said it could not release the account information of AVIANET Consulting since it’s a third party, it provided an invoice from AVIANET amounting to CFA 49, 959, 750 (US$86,267) – the amount LISGIS was supposed to pay for AVIANET Consulting for transporting tablets to be used for the 2022 national population and housing census. All payments by LISIGS towards the US$86,227 for the transportation of the tablets were routed through the transit account in Cote d’Ivoire.

MONROVIA – Over one hundred census workers including supervisors and enumerators are currently stranded in Boegeezay Town, deep inside Rivercess County.

By Gerald C. Koinyeneh, gerald.koinyeneh@frontpageafricaonline.com and Eric Opa Doue, eric.newnarratives@gmail.com

The workers, predominantly youths, between 18 and 35 years, are among 17,000 temporary staff recruited by the Liberia Institute for Statistics and Geo-Information Services (LISGIS) in October to conduct Liberia’s 5^th National Population and Housing Census (NPHC).

Following the amplitude test, successful candidates were promised stipend to compensate for food and other essentials after a weeklong training. However, LISGIS has failed to live up to its commitment despite waiting patiently for almost 40 days, the recruits told FrontPage Africa.

“We have been here for more than one month and ten days. And LISGIS has not sent anything to our mobile money accounts,” said Solomon Harris, one of the enumerators.

“As a young man who knows himself, coming here, and bringing myself low, washing dishes and going on people’s old and abandoned cassava farm to dig cassava just to eat is so frustrating. I am feeling bad about this whole government. And I believe that is the same way my colleagues are feeling as well. We have resolved that if we don’t get our money, there will be no field work. No money no census,” Harris added.

Almost all of the recruits expressed the same sentiments.

“What is going on here is actually disappointing and frustrating. For a renowned institution like LISGIS to abandon us to starve and experience all sorts of hardship is so bad. Since October 10, 2022 we came here to do the workshop, they did not send us anything. We were healthy and happy coming here. But now we are all dry (pale) and angry,” said Benjamin Harmon, another enumerator.

Boegeezaye Town is the headquarters of Morweh Statutory District located in Rivercess County Electoral District #1. It is one of the training hubs of LISGIS. From here, several enumerators are expected to be deployed to other parts of the county. According to the distressed recruits, they were about 161 enumerators originally assigned in the area, but because of the continued hardship they are currently experiencing due to LISGIS’ failure to pay they money, most of their colleagues have abandoned their duty and returned home.

“We are really suffering here. Some of us came from Monrovia. The first time we went to Cestos. The people told us that our names were not on the list and we were assigned in Yappah Town [another training hub]. Then from Yappah Town, we were told to come here, explained Nuesonpilly GbaKolay,” a female enumerator.

Further explaining her ordeal, Gbakolay said: “We came here and were trained for the first time. We stayed for two weeks, no feeding, no stipend. Our director came and told us that the process has been postponed. So, we left. Then we were called back. Since we came back, the story is still the same. And most of our friends have left. Your please talk to the Government and LISGIS to send our money.”

Meanwhile, FrontPage Africa has gathered that in addition to LISGIS’s failure to pay the census workers’ money, it has not supplied them with any census materials despite news that the headcount has started in some parts of the country.

When contacted, LISGIS did not respond to FrontPage Africa’s inquiry. LISGIS’ acting Director General, Lawrence George did not respond to FPA’s messages sent via WhatsApp.

The conduct of Liberia’s overdue NPHC has been marred by controversies and internal wrangling. Recently, President George Weah sacked two top officials of LISGIS, the acting Director General Wilmot Smith and Alex Williams, the Deputy Director General who was placed under suspension when he accused his colleagues including the LISGIS’ Director General Professor Francis Wreh and the current acting head Lawrence George of financial malpractice.

Exactly a week after President Weah declared Friday, November 11, 2022 as national census day, the exercise has not started smoothly.

Despite the Government of Liberia and its international partners’ assurances that the census was on course, the process is still experiencing glitches.

Like the enumerators in Boegeezaye Town, LISGIS has not paid several census workers across the country their stipend.

In Grand Cape Mount County, there are reports that the aggrieved enumerators have seized census materials including smartphones. In most parts of the country, census materials are yet to arrive.

MONROVIA– The Center for Transparency and Accountability in Liberia (CENTAL) has welcomed President Weah dismissal of two of LISGIS Bosses, Wilmot Smith and Alex Williams, and called on Pres. Weah to ensure credible census 2022.

Both men, Mr. Wilmot Smith, Former Acting Director General and Deputy Director Alex Williams were dismissed on Monday by President Weah on grounds of administrative reasons. 

By Press Release

Mr. Anderson Miamen, CENTAL Executive Director, addressing a press conference on Wednesday, said: “although belated, CENTAL welcomes the decision of President Weah to dismiss Mr. Wilmot Smith, one of the individuals primarily responsible for the problem created at LISGS, which has brought so much embarrassment to Liberians, the Government, and the Country at large.”

He said had the President listened to earlier recommendations from citizens, civil society, and other stakeholders for dismissal and prosecution of those accused and investigated for multiple acts of corruption, the problems at the institution would not have degenerated to the current level.

According to the CENTAL Boss: “though we welcome the President’s dismissal decision, but we strongly believe that the action is limited in scope and it should be broadened to include all those who have been at the center of alleged and confirmed incidences of corruption and incompetence at the institution, including the Director General, Comptroller and other officials.

He further said Liberians deserve better from their government and those entrusted with specific responsibilities, the officials of LISGIS in this instant case for several months, the Liberia Institute for Statistics and Geo-Information Services (LISGIS) has been at the center of controversies, claims and counterclaims, and multiple allegations of corruption and financial mal-practices.

He said these developments have not augur well for the reputation of LISGIS, an institution that should be seen and known for credibility and integrity in collecting, processing, and communicating critical data and information for the country.

CENTAL Recommendations

CENTAL therefore recommends the followings as measures that will help to restore public trust and confidence in LISGIS, especially activities and processes related to conduct of the 2022 Census:

CENTAL has also called for the accounts of LISGIS be audited by the General Auditing Commission, especially those containing the Census funds from which the reported questionable disbursements/payments have been made.  Such Audit should be immediate and timely and the recommendations fully implemented to ensure proper accountability of public resources and assets.

They further called on President George Weah to dismiss other officials of LISGIS named in the LACC investigative report that are equally responsible for the problem  at LISGIS to not be allowed to continue presiding over activities related to the Census, including Mr. Lawrence George who has been named by the President to at act as head of the institution.

Also, that the Ministry of Justice be mandated by the President to timely act on the June 2022 investigative report from the Liberian Anti-Corruption Commission covering corruption allegations against the leadership of LISGIS. Had the recommendations of the LACC’s Report been fully implemented, the worsening state of the mess at LISGIS would have been averted.

They are however calling on the President of Liberia to establish an independent panel/committee with a mandate to review the entire preparatory processes around the Census to identify and recommend solutions to existing gaps that may further undermine the robustness, integrity and sanctity of the 2022 Census. Such committee should comprise of credible Liberians, civil society organizations, the Religious Community and other players not currently involved with the work of LISGIS.

Lastly, the group is calling on Pres. Weah to warn the Board of Directors of LISGIS against getting directly involved with dealings of the institution. Reports of individuals closely connected to some members of the Board of LISGIS receiving consultancy services from the institution undermines their ability to make timely and independent decision (s) on critical issues bordering on the entity. 

GBARNGA, Bong County – After living in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County for 10 years, Philip Korkollie, 64, recently returned to his native Bong County keen to take part in a population census whose findings will influence the status of the centrally located county.

Report by Mae Azango and Selma Lomax

A census, as mandated within the Constitution, involves the complete enumeration of the population in a country. It generates a wealth of data, including numbers of people, their spatial distribution, age and sex structure, as well as their living conditions and other key socioeconomic characteristics. 

These data are critical for good governance, policy formulation, development planning, crisis prevention, mitigation and response, social welfare programmes and business market analyses, among others.

The government had called on all ministries and agencies of government, enterprises (large or small), the patriotism and loyalty of every citizen and to the goodwill of every foreign national as well as local government officials to assist the census authorities in explaining, influencing, and endorsing the participation of everybody in this massive, national undertaking, given the advantages and usefulness of the Census to the overall national socio-economic development of the country.

“I am not sure why, since this morning, my family have waited for the enumerators to count us but we have not seen them,” said Korkollie, who had sat at his Far East Community in Gbarnga all through on Friday waiting to be counted. “If they were short of people to employ or experiencing problem, the government shouldn’t have declared today they should have recruited more.”

On Friday, the Suakoko Market in Bong County was crowded as many residents appeared unaware about the “National Census Day” declared by the government. 

One marketer told FrontPageAfrica: 

“I wasn’t informed about this holiday that’s why I came out to sell. More awareness needs to be done about this Census,” he said.

‘Disappointed’ Liberians slam government

In Worwen Community on Capital by Pass in Monrovia, many residents, who are business people, were angry for sitting home and losing money, including an enumerator of LISGIS who should have been in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County, but chose to stay home in protest. 

Chris J. Dolo Jr. a LISGIS enumerator of St. Peter’s Clever High Catholic School, Buchanan, said he did not go to work in Buchanan as a way of protest. 

 “LISGIS is supposed to pay my first my first ten days sitting fees. LISGIS was to give us US$50.00 as sitting fees and I haven’t  got mine yet.  We were 133 persons from Buchanan and 17,000 enumerators in total who were to commence the exercise, but up to now, we have not gotten any money yet. Those enumerators blocking roads in Buchanan are doing it in the interest of everybody, but my protest is to stay home unless LISGIS pays me. If we were to complete the entire work, the total money to pay each enumerator is US$ 320.00 and supervisors are supposed to be making US$370.00,” he said 

Marie Mayford, a business lady in Monrovia, said, “I usually go in town to sell and support myself but today I do not have any money to even start my day because I did not go to sell. I am feeling very bad because I am so broke right now. Even if I talk, government will not do anything about the situation, so all I can say is that maybe government has the reason why the LISGIS people did not come to count us. Next time, government should be sure, because they really stopped my hustle and many people from hustling today.”

Beware Peters,  a Liberian business man shared his disappointment with FrontPageAfrica:  “I am disappointed that I had to stay home hoping LISGIS people would come coming around to check us but up to now, we have not seen anybody, I do not know what the matter is. We want to know what is going from the government. By staying home, it affected me a greatly, because I usually go out to hustle for the family to eat and today I am not able to go anywhere, so my wife and children do not have food to eat. We are sitting home doing nothing, everywhere is closed, you can’t even do any turning around, so it is bad for we the hustlers. Therefore, we are asking the government when this census will take place. I heard from one of the workers that LISGIS refused to pay them and did not even give them food to eat. I think this Government is joking. We want the government to pay the people so the work can start.”

Rose Kanneh, is a hair braider, said: “I usually go to braid hair but I can’t go because no business open because of the holiday. I want the government to be sure next time before making announcement for people to leave their businesses and stay home, or next time people will not take the government serious if they announce anything.”

Emmanuel Ade White, street vender, told FrontPageAfrica: “I am feeling very bad because I stayed home today doing nothing. I do business as my legal hustling but today I cannot hustle because I was told LISGIS is counting citizens. Normal hustling is what we do to survive, so I was not able to go and hustle because businesses are closed and I can’t sell. Up to now we are not seeing anybody coming to count us. Next time Government should put things in place before announcing that people should stay.”

Diana S. Boyah, business woman. “Today I stayed home for nothing, how am I going to feed my children and be able to get money for their lunch on Monday to take to school? The business I am running is from ‘hand to mouth’ as we say in Liberia. Since I did not sell today, I still have to pay that money, so where do I get it from. I hear LISGIS doesn’t want to pay the workers their sitting fees, so they will not work and if they give them the Android tablets to work, they will seize it, because they have their family to feed. I do not blame LISGIS workers, because they are right to not go on the field to work, because they too have families to feed.”

Helen Suku, cosmetic seller, said “I sell body spray and perfume from government Ministries and on Friday is when my customers can pay my money for goods they took earlier, but now how will I collect me money for me and my children to survive? Now the government has made us to sit home and nobody is coming to count us, so I am feeling bad because I lose money. Right now I am very angry, so next time government should be sure before announcing it.”

Problems have dogged the exercise from the beginning, leading to a postponement and wrangling over the sitting fees that should have been paid to enumerators. 

And even when it all appeared set, the House of Representatives raised an objection, calling for the postponement of the Census.

‘Census is on Track,’ government and partners say

However, on Friday, under the signatures of Samuel D. Tweh, Jr., Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Mr. Niels Scott, United Nations Resident Coordinator, Ms. Bidisha Pillai, Resident Representative, UNFPA, Mr. Khwima Nthara, Country Manager, World Bank, the government and its international partners reaffirmed their continued commitment to the successful conduct of the ongoing 2022 National Population and Housing Census, which runs from 11 to 22 November, 2022.

The government, however, claimed start of the census has been politicized amid

calls by some elements within the country to boycott the Census.

“Despite some initial challenges, the Census is now on track and has commenced as of 11 November, 2022, adding that any further disruption would lead to delays in, or possible abortion, of the Census which will benefit no one,” the government and international partners said in a release.

“The Partners, led by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), are providing technical and financial support to the Liberia Institute of Statistics and Geo-Information Services, the agency of the Government with the authority to conduct Census taking, to ensure the census house listing an enumeration is completed within the timeframe of 11- 22 November 2022 as announced by the government.”

Monrovia – The Political Leader of the opposition Liberty Party (LP) Senator Nyonblee Karnga Lawrence has called on President George Manneh Weah to with immediate effect dismiss the acting Director General of the Liberia Institute for Statistic and Geo-Information Services (LISGIS), Wilmot Smith and others for the gross show of incompetence in handling the ongoing National Population and Housing Census (NPHS) in the country.

Senator Lawrence is representing the people of Grand Bassa County on the ticket of the Collaborating Political Parties (CPP) in the 54th National Legislature.

The ongoing census in Liberia is long overdue.  It was last conducted in 2008 during the administration of ex Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

The census has suffered multiple setbacks, ranging from reported acts of rampant corruption involving authorities at LISGIS, lack of funding, poor planning over the time frame, methods, training of enumerators, among others.

Enumerator trainings were conducted across the country with the government, through LISGIS failing to provide food, water and sitting fee for those who attended.

Government’s action prompted series of protests in some parts of the country. Those protests obstructed the movement of motorists and pedestrians and jeopardized normal working academic and other activities.

Last Friday, November 11, the start of the census was marred by serious setback when thousands of Liberians recruited to serve as enumerators and supervisors boycotted the exercise due to the failure of LISGIS to pay their US$50 each sitting fee for the training they attended.

They also expressed skepticism that the government, through LISGIS will pay them between US$250 and US$300 each at the end of the 14-day census.

In a statement released on her social media page late Friday evening, Senator Lawrence described the ongoing census as a “fiasco” and a total waste of taxpayers and donor funds

She observed that authorities of LISGIS failed to live up to its plan to deploy enumerators and supervisors within a period of 10 days prior to the census.

She stressed that all enumerators should have been deployed three days before the counting process for mobilization and awareness.

Senator Lawrence maintained that President Weah should fire officials of LISGIS that are involved with the census and guarantee the conduct of an audit at the agency.

  “The president needs to take the most appropriate action by dismissing all those in charge, ask the GAC to audit the process and constitute a new management team with the requisite qualifications and expertise to work within the two months.”

 Appointing stooges and surrogates

Senator Lawrence further cautioned against the appointment of those she called “stooges and surrogates” by the Liberian Chief Executive at various positions in government.

She stressed that as a country, Liberia’s human capacity gaps in key governance areas is a matter of public knowledge.

“In the face of our known human capacity problems, it’s quite unfortunate that the CDC-led Government would allow partisan politics overshadow the national interests by appointing stooges and surrogates in key governance areas such as LISGIS rather than maximizing the available professional expertise we have.”

She said Mr. Smith and others who are “responsible for the fiasco of a CENSUS exercise” must account for the wastage of much-needed resources.

On Weah trip

President Weah departed the country on October 31, to Morocco and Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt where he attended the MEDays Forum and COP27 respectively.

On November 9, he departed Egypt and arrived in Paris, France to attend the 5th Edition of the Paris Peace Forum. 

He’s currently attending the renowned Paris Peace Forum which serves as a platform upon which state and non-state actors engage in transnational cooperation for collective action. The forum is expected to climax on November 15.

Thereafter, President Weah will travel to Qatar and spend additional two weeks to witness his son Timothy Weah, who received a call up to the senior national team of the United States of America, features in the World Cup.

The President has been heavily criticized back home for using taxpayer’s money to travel to the World Cup along with a huge delegation.

Senator Karnga-Lawrence wondered while President Weah who declared the day for the commencement of the census as a National Holiday boycotted the exercise to attend to other events, including witnessing the World Cup opening matches in Qatar.

“All citizens of Liberia were asked to stay home to be counted, and we all did; except the President and his entourage, who are away from the Country for three weeks. The president has one week off official duty, and two weeks to attend the World Cup opening games.

It is far after 6pm in Liberia and after an all-day wait, all businesses and offices closed, we were just informed that no enumerators were deployed in Grand Bassa County, and probably the entire Country.”

Deceived twice

She maintained that it is troubling for the Liberian Chief Executive to announce a National Holiday when there has been no adequate preparation for the census to be conducted.

Senator Lawrence further recalled that the failure of the census to take place as planned and scheduled brings to two the number of times that Liberia and its citizens have been deceived by the government.

“The first was the President’s inaccurate response to the rice shortage. This is yet another manifestation of what the Weah-led administration has come to be known for- incompetence!”

Upon his return to Liberia from attending the 77th General Assembly of the United Nations in New York, President Weah told reporters at the Roberts International Airport (RIA) that sufficient rice was in the country.

His comments were in respond to the shortage of rice, the nation’s staple food, which triggered astronomical increase in the price of the commodity at the time he returned to the nation. 

Senator Lawrence pointed out that following several days of interventions by the Legislature, the deadline for the conduct of the census was extended to January 23 by the National Legislature.

She disclosed that though the move was intended to allow sufficient time for adequate preparation, LISGIS staged a fiasco process.

“We were informed by LIGIS that deployment was completed, and the process was set to commence today. The only inference deducible from their insistence on conducting the CENSUS today is that all measures were put in place to ensure the smooth execution of the exercise.”

Census outcome threatened

The realistic outcome of the ongoing census remains threatened due to the unsettled issues raised by the aggrieved enumerators and supervisors, many of whom have already abandoned the process.

Though the day commemorating the start of the census was declared a national holiday by President Weah, hundreds of citizens were seen at marketplaces going about their normal routines or services.

Inadequate awareness on the census, including the dishing out of huge sum of money to one Aloysius Howe by authorities of LISGIS are issues being raised by the locals.

Minister Tweah recently reported that the amount of LD160,000 was paid to Howe, who is one of his closed allies, for a social media public relations service on the census.

The worth for taxpayers’ monies and donors’ funds will not be actualized if steps are not taken promptly to address the lackadaisical manner and form in which the census is being conducted.

While President George Manneh Weah is away from the country, the peace and stability of Liberia also remain threaten if measures are not taken immediately to guarantee the payment of fees to the several thousand young Liberians who have been recruited to serve as enumerators and supervisors for the census.

Already, owners of local businesses who claimed that they were hired by LISGIS to provide catering and other services for the trainings of the enumerators across the country are also planning to stage series of protests in their respective regions.

They claimed that the government surreptitiously cancelled their contracts just few days to the start of the trainings

They further claimed to have spent huge sum of monies towards pre-financing the contracts and want the government to pay for the losses they have accrued.

CAPE MOUNT – Travelers are stranded, vehicles traveling on the highway to and from Grand Cape Mount, Sierra Leone and Montserrado County are halted in long queues as sticks, pieces of iron and old gallons are crossed from one end of the road to the other. 

Report by Evelyn Kpadeh Seagbeh, Contributing Writer

The roadblock is a protest by recruited enumerators for the Liberia Institute of Statistics and Geo-Information Services (LISGIS) in demand of their stipend (transportation & feeding) promised to them by LISGIS prior to the start of the training. 

The aggrieved enumerators lamented that for the ten days of the training, LISGIS  made them to transport and feed themselves contrary they were told by to the local county structure in Grand Cape Mounty County through the county’s director Mr. Usuma B. Kanneh. 

“Our disenchantment is with the director of LISGIS, Hon. Wilmot Smith. He told the House of Representatives yesterday, October 20, 2022 that they (LISGIS) gave us money for lodging and feeding which are all lies. All the little money we had on us during the training, has all finished. We had to beg our friends before we could eat. 

“We were in the training for 10 days and not a bottle of water or a cent was provided to us. Last night at midnight, all the materials that were being used for the training were packed and driven to Monrovia leaving us here undone. Matthew J. Johns, one of the enumerators angrily told FrontPagePage.  

A total of 532 participants from the four LISGIS training centers which include – the Multi-Purpose Building, Sinje Youth Center, Robert Sports, and Golakonneh Center Hall say they are dissatisfied with the manner in which were treated by LISGIS. The aggrieved enumerators have threatened to state another action in the county if LISGIS failed to provide them a stipend.  

Mediation by the officers of the Liberia National Police, the LISGIS Grand Cape Mount County Director, Mr. Usuma Kanneh, and the Liberia Immigration Services to convince the aggrieved LISGIS trainees to remove the roadblock lasted several hours. 

“I know this is a problem that you people are hurt about but I am appealing to you to kindly remove the things from the road as we continue to talk to the authorities to see reason to understand that what they did to you people is not good at all. I am not supporting my institution (LISGIS) to say what they did to you people is good, so I am trying in my weak way too for them to give you what is due you,” Usuma Kanneh told the aggrieved protesters. 

FrontPageAfrica has learned that the disenchantment among trainees of LISGIS ongoing training for the upcoming national census is not just unique to Grand Cape Mounty County alone. The challenges associated with the recruitment and training of enumerators for the 2022 National Population Census from across the country have been chaotic.

The process leading to the actual holding of the census many of those interviewed by this paper says has been characterized by lots of chaos. 

In some places, training that was meant to last for ten days is being cut down to 5 days; while in Lofa County, local caterer providers who were contacted by LISGIS to pre-finance a catering service for the training in the county in Zorzor, Foya, Kolahum and Voinjama cannot get back their expenses after purchasing food items worth thousands of Liberian and United states dollars for the Lofa County phase of the training. FrontPage Africa will publish a full article on the Lofa County LISGIS Chaos in the coming days.   

CAPITOL HILL, Monrovia – The Speaker of the House of Representatives Bhofal Chambers has announced that the House has met with top officials of the Liberia Institute of Statistics and Geo-Information Services (LISGIS) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and agreed to push the starting date of the census by additional 15 days.

That means, the national census will now kick off on November 22, 2022 instead of October 24, this Monday.

The news comes amid a chaotic recruitment exercise that has brought LISGIS, who has earlier been rocked by integrity problem, under the spotlight again for all the negative reasons.

All across the country, thousands of applicants who accepted to undergo LISGIS’ training to serve as enumerators have complained that their names were omitted after successfully passing the aptitude test, the last step for qualification.

Even, some of those whose names were posted on LISGIS website as successful candidates were denied entry to their assigned training venues.

One of the enumerators identified as Grace Dickson told FrontPage Africa that she had to travel back and forth to be accepted for the training but was denied twice.

“Since this morning, I have been going from place to place. My name was placed on LISGIS website but the supervisor at Caldwell told me to go to where I took the test,” Grace Dickson said.

She added: “I do not know what to do because I am tired of moving from one place to another and cannot get any results.”

Another enumerator assigned at the Boatswain Jr. High School in Jamaica Road told FPA that prior to his acceptance, the names of everyone of them who sat the test at Boatswain Public School names did not come up.

“We were about 175 people that took the test at Boatswain Jr. High School. All of us that took the test, none of our names came up. LISGIS made an error but they told us to keep calm. They gave us another form to sign and they accepted all of us in. The people are making the recruitment process chaotic and complicated,” he said speaking on anonymity.

Amid the chaos and irregularities on the recruitment process, LISGIS’ acting Director Wilmot F. Smith said the ‘Census House’ was ready to go ahead with the process.

According to him, they have met with the local authorities in every county and have divided the country into six regions.

“We are ready, we did the aptitude test. We are conducting training. Even after the census, there will be post-analysis done so that does not mean that we are not ready. We are more than ready and we will deliver with the help of the Liberian people,” Smith said.

He added: “We have all of the experts here and they are working on this project. We have to keep our eyes on the President’s biggest picture, we have a project to deliver. Why it is true that there are some missteps that we are correcting we cannot regret now, we have to make sure that this project should not fail.”

However, amid the Speaker’s revelation, it is a clear testament that LISGIS is not ready all. And in order to live up to its promise to successfully conduct Liberia’s first digital census as it promised, it should make use of this opportunity and put its ‘house in order’.

While LISGIS will be relieve with the Speaker’s pronouncement, it should be noted that nothing has been finalized. Since the previous schedule was derived through an act of the Legislature, the proposed dates have to be legislated. That is, both the House and the Liberian Senate should approve through unanimous votes and be signed by the President.