Monrovia – The standard bearer and Vice standard bearer of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) Senators George Weah and Jewel Howard Taylor Tuesday took opposing decisions on a concurrence tax incentive bill for the Farmington Hotel.
Report by Henry Karmo – [email protected]
The Bill was passed by the House of Representatives granting 30 years tax incentive to the Farmington Hotels Resorts, Inc.
The Joint Committee on Investment and Concessions and Judiciary of the House recommended to its plenary the ratification of an Investment Incentive Agreement between the Republic of Liberia and the Farmington Hotels Resorts, Inc.
The agreement was ratified and sent to the Senate for concurrence.
During its Tuesday July 4th 2017 session Senator George Weah voted in favour of a Motion from Senator Nyounblee Karnga Lawrence (LP-Grand Bassa County) for the agreement to be thoroughly investigated while his vice standard bearer Jewel Howard Taylor voted against the motion and supported the one from Senator George Tengbeh (UP-Lofa County) calling for the agreement to be open for discussion and subsequently passed.
Contrary to expectations by many witnessing the session, the agreement did not meet the concurrence of the Senate as Senator George Tengbeh of Lofa County Motion received a favorable support for copy of the agreement to be distributed to senators and open discussion.
Critics believe that Senator Taylor and others are pushing for the ratification of the agreement because they owed the owner of the resort money as a result of cars they took from the vendors on credit.
In 2015 FrontPagaeAfrica reported a story about what appeared to be a broad-day light case of breaking the law – and trying to get away with it; that unfolded in the upper house of the Liberian legislature.
In a confidential letter obtained by FrontPageAfrica, all 30 members of the Senate acknowledged breaching the Public Procurement & Concessions Commission regulations regarding the purchase of some 30 vehicles and asked the President to intervene on their behalf to pay the vendors.
FrontPageAfrica learned that the Senators individually took it upon themselves to take the vehicles on credit from a local vehicle importer, GBK Motors on the condition that they would pay when the budget passed.
However, when the Senators reneged on their pledge to pay and the vendors came knocking on their doors, the Senators reportedly appealed to the President to join them in breaking the law by breaching the PPCC regulations.
A Copy of the Letter submitted to the President in possession of FrontPageAfrica states: Your Excellency:
I have the honour to present my compliments and by directive of the Liberian Senate (IN SESSION), apprise Your Excellency that, the Liberian Senate took thirty vehicles from vendors in favour of Members of the Senate in the total amount of (US$1,395,000.00), to facilitate to and fro work movement of its Members, so as to obtain quorum for the commencement of its legislative duties and County Visitation.
This transaction is to be paid during the FY-2015/2016 Budget that is now coming to an end.
Accordingly, the vendors are currently mounting pressure on the Senate to effect payment for said vehicles, and PPCC is interposing objection to the process, accusing the Senate of not adhering to the PPCC Procurement Law.
In view of the above-mentioned, the Members of the Liberian Senate would have me to further inform Your Excellency, that the Body would appreciate highly were you to timely intervene, so that the vendors will receive their payments and save the face of the Liberian Senate in this manner.
Please accept, Madam President, the renewed assurances of my highest consideration and esteem.
On May 1, 2011, the Hotel entered into a lease agreement for the period of the thirty (30) years for the purpose of constructing a five-star multi-purpose hotel and resort facility.
The committee believes with the development carried out by the RIA Hotels resort will grow the private sector, as well as facilitate the growth and development of travel and tourism which will also have significant benefits to the local economy, reduce high unemployment, revive financial wealth and promote economic development and sustainability.
“Honorable Speaker and colleagues, the needs of business travellers and airline personnel for whom proximity to the airport is important, as well as other analysis conducted concerning the demand for hotel capacity and the historically low rate of hotel development in Liberia, demonstrates that the Hotel would serve unmet and new market demands,” the committee added.
The agreement granted the hotel certain capital allowances and deduction including ten percent incentive deduction for investment activities provided it employs more than a hundred Liberian nationals.
It shall also be exempted from income tax for the first years of its operation if the agreement is ratified.
The investor shall not be subject to import duties on capital spare parts, consumables, equipment and machinery directly used in operations for the first five years of its operation, it would also be exempted from the payment of duties of fuel used in its operations.
“Therefore, investor shall be taxed duty on fuel at a rate of 25 percent of the applicable rate for fuel used in its operations,” the agreement requests.
Its custom user fee, the agreement goes on, on all imports shall not exceed 1.5 percent of CIF Liberian port value on imported goods or US$10,000 per item, among others.