An amount of US$9,077,498.05 has been uncovered at three separate agencies of government by the General Auditing Commission (GAC) implicating several individuals into acts of corruption and systematically by-passing internal procedures. Agencies involved as the Liberia Holdings in the International Maritime Satellite Ltd. (INMARSAT) of the Bureau of Maritime Affairs (BMA), the Ministry of Public Works and the Liberia Mining Corporation (LIMINCO).

Individuals implicated in the reports are Tiah J.D. Slanger, former Commissioner of the Bureau of Maritime Affairs, Mohammed Dukuly, former Liberia's Permanent Representative to the International Maritime Organization (IMO), former Lands Mines and Energy Minister Jonathan Mason, former President of LIMINCO S. Siapha Gbollie, George Haddad, Chief Executive Officer of Bridgeway and Tugbeh Doe, former Deputy Minister of Finance for Administration. Those entrapped by the report surrounding the sale of road construction equipment by Consolidated Group Incorporated (CGI) to the Ministry of Public Works include Minister Losene Donzo, former Acting Minister Carpenter and Acting Comptroller John Gbaleh, with the report recommending that the CGI restitute the sum of US$877,945.00.

In his respective recommendations made to government, Auditor General John Morlu, in the case with the BMA upheld that Mr. Tiah J.D. Slanger be made to restitute US$180,000 transferred to his personal account from the Liberia Permanent Mission to the IMO. He further advised that government also legally pursue Mr. Mohammed Dukuly to restitute the amount of US$563,409.09, involving US$240,000.00 transferred to his personal account, US$175,000 unilaterally authorized to be transferred to accounts in the Middle East, US$55,524.09 also unilaterally authorized to be transferred to accounts in the Netherlands. Of the total amount, Auditor General Morlu is recommending that a US$80,000.00 unilaterally transferred to Jeety Trading to supply building materials for construction of the personal home Mr. Dukuly be restituted and that the US$12,885.00 paid in excess to Mrs. Taylor, contrary to a specific instruction given him by former Commissioner Tiah J.D. Slanger in a letter dated May 17, 2004 also be reimbursed to government.

Regarding the investigative findings into the sale of road construction equipment by CGI to the Ministry of Public Works, the audit reports, among other recommendations, called for the restitution of US$877,945.00, with an imputed interest, by the CGI for violating the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and the bid specification by supplying old equipment. It further indicated that Minister Donzo, former Acting Minister Carpenter and former Assistant Minister and Acting Comptroller John Gbalah should be held accountable on the variation of winning bid according to the Bid Analysis Sheet from US$693,595 to US$887,945, thus creating a variance of US$194,350.

This, amount, Auditor Morlu furthered in his recommendations, includes US$151,000.00 noted with payment made to CGI, indicating that the Ministry of Public Works submitted a voucher in the amount of US$205,000 to be paid to CGI, whilst the Bid Analysis Sheet submitted by Consolidated shows a price bid of US$53,900. It considers such transaction as “breaching Section 131 of the PPCC Acts as stipulated in Section 138 of the PPCC Act of 2005.” The Audit Report also suggested that Minister Donzo be reprimanded for not taking any action against CGI for refusing to deliver the pre-heater for which it won a bid to make functional the Mobile and Asphalt Plant, which the Government of Liberia spent US$205,000.

In the Special Forensic Audit conducted by the General Auditing Commission (GAC), based on scientific findings, it recommended that the former LIMINCO President Ciapha Gbollie and former Lands, Mines and Energy Minister Jonathan Mason, who also served as Co-Chairman on the Board of Directors and George Haddad should be held jointly and severally to account for US$3,938,201.09, being the difference between Shandong's payment of US$4,313,201.09 and US$375,000.00 paid to Pierre, Tweh and Associates in favor of FIDC, a Czech owned company. The amount, according to the audit report, involve the payment to the Government of Liberia for stockpile of iron ore at the Port of Buchanan, Grand Bassa County sold to Shandong, requesting also that George Haddad of Bridgeway provide bank statements and all the returned checks for the account opened in his name to facilitate the payment of the Government of Liberia from the sale of the iron ore.

Meanwhile, Mr. Morlu has thanked the GAC audit team, Ecobank and the Ghana Audit Service for assisting him in carrying out the forensic audit at the three respective institutions, although with many to be conducted in the months ahead in helping ensure accountability and transparency in government.