Monrovia – Former International Affairs Minister Dee-Maxwell Saah Kemayah, former GSA Director-Common Mary T. Broh, former Deputy International Minister Thelma Sawyer, and former Government Director of the Nationwide Catastrophe Administration Company (NDMA) Henry O. Williams, together with three senior NDMA officers, have been incarcerated on the Monrovia Central Jail by Legal Court docket “C” on the Temple of Justice, pending trial on critical corruption costs.
Willie N. Tokpah
The arrests are tied to the alleged misappropriation of 29,412 luggage of rice, valued at US$425,918, donated to Liberia in April 2023 by the King Salman Humanitarian Help and Aid Centre. The rice was meant for distribution to disaster-stricken communities throughout the nation however was allegedly diverted “for private and political advantages,” in keeping with investigators.
Along with the high-profile suspects, the next NDMA officers have additionally been jailed:
• Acheivego Doe, Communications Director
• Rosette Gbeisaye, Director of Logistics
• Augustine Konneh, Director for Response
One suspect, Edward Konneh, a Response Officer at NDMA, stays at giant. Authorities say efforts are underway to find and apprehend him.
The arrests comply with a months-long investigation by the Particular Presidential Taskforce on Belongings Restoration, which revealed that huge parts of the donated rice by no means reached the catastrophe victims for whom it was meant. The rice had been formally consigned to the NDMA for public distribution in response to fires, floods, and different pure calamities.
The accused face a number of costs, together with:
• Theft of Property
• Financial Sabotage
• Misuse of Public Workplace
• Legal Conspiracy
A forensic audit performed by the Common Auditing Fee (GAC) performed a pivotal function in constructing the case. The audit uncovered a community of alleged mismanagement, with proof that enormous portions of rice have been diverted to non-public storage amenities, some reportedly linked to 2023 political marketing campaign operatives.
Procedural Controversy Emerges
In a creating twist, FrontPageAfrica has discovered that the presiding decide of Legal Court docket “C” has expressed dissatisfaction with the style wherein the court docket clerk issued the jail dedication order. Sources acquainted with the scenario say the decide had not but signed the order when the accused have been transferred to the Monrovia Central Jail.
Authorized observers warn that the obvious procedural misstep might increase critical questions on inner coordination inside the judiciary. It might additionally present protection attorneys with grounds to problem the legality of the detention on procedural irregularities.
