MONROVIA – Grand Gedeh County Senator Thomas Yaya Nimely has walked out of a legislative hearing. His target: a controversial transport contract with Liberia Traffic Management Inc. His grievance: Justice Minister Oswald Tweh’s failure to appear. The contract is at the center of a deepening dispute. Nimely says it has not been legally consummated. Yet Liberia Traffic Management Inc. is already fully operational. Under the deal, the company retains 70 percent of collected revenue. Liberia receives 30 percent. Nimely calls it a violation of the country’s Liberianization policy. He also invokes 2029. The Liberian people, he says, are watching, as THE ANALYST reports.
Tensions reached a boiling point in the Liberian Senate as Grand Gedeh County Senator Thomas Yaya Nimely staged a dramatic walkout from a legislative hearing. Protesting the absence of Justice Minister Oswald Tweh and raising a red flag over a controversial transport contract with Liberia Traffic Management Inc. (LMTI), Nimely accused the current administration of hiding behind political excuses while executing an unconsummated deal that strips revenue away from the state and directly undermines the country’s Liberianization policy.
Nimely staged the dramatic walkout from the Senate hearing, citing “arrogance” from executive officials and raising a red flag over a controversial multi-million-dollar transport contract he claims exploits the Liberian people, with 70 percent of revenue going to the concessionaire and only 30 percent coming to Liberia. The hearing was called to investigate the ongoing contract between the Government of Liberia and LMTI. Tensions boiled over when Minister Tweh failed to appear — a move Senator Nimely described as a deliberate display of disrespect toward the Legislature.
The Core of the Controversy
At the heart of the Senator’s protest is a legal and financial puzzle. Senator Nimely revealed that the contract between the government and LMTI has not been legally consummated — that is, fully finalized — yet the company is already fully operational on the ground.
“This contract has not been consummated but it is being implemented. So, what are you implementing? Right now, this company is collecting money for driver’s licenses, license plates, and vehicle registrations. The Ministry of Transport has the statutory mandate to collect this revenue, but it is not doing so. Instead, you are giving it to another group,” Senator Nimely stated during an interview following his walkout.
The Senator emphasized that the Senate has spent the last six months warning that the deal harms Liberia’s economic health, revenue distribution, and national sovereignty, but those warnings have fallen on deaf ears.
The 70/30 Split and Liberianization
Senator Nimely heavily criticized the financial terms of the contract, questioning why the government agreed to a deal where LMTI keeps 70 percent of collected revenue, leaving Liberia with just 30 percent. He compared the current arrangement to a previous contract with a Liberian-owned firm, which he noted brought in strong revenue and produced high-quality materials. He argued the current deal directly violates the country’s economic principles, among which is a violation of the Liberianization policy. He questioned why a vital national contract was stripped from local Liberian businessman John Youboty and handed to a foreign-owned entity, noting that Youboty had offered a better revenue share to the government and was providing quality services.
Nimely also demanded to know why the government deliberately chose a formula that drastically reduced its own share of public funds. He further raised concerns that the contract may compromise national security, noting that Senate Committee on National Defense, Security and Intelligence Chairperson Senator Momo Cyrus had raised the issue in plenary. Nimely questioned why a private company should hold the vital biometrics and statistics of Liberian citizens while the Ministry of Transport claims it is still “working out” the details.
No More Excuses from the ‘Rescue’ Government
The walkout also sparked a sharp political debate on the Senate floor. When Senator Dabah M. Varpilah and other colleagues suggested that the current administration is merely trying to fix a broken system inherited from the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) government, Nimely rejected the excuse. While acknowledging that the previous administration initially mishandled the deal, Nimely noted that the current government has been in power for nearly two and a half years — more than enough time to review and correct the blunder.
“That is why they took power. If you find something that was not appropriately taken care of… your responsibility is to go and fix it. Otherwise, we can hold you liable to be impotent. There is no room to be giving excuses, trying without results. This country is waiting for tangibles,” Nimely argued.
He also took a swipe at ongoing political dismissals in government, noting: “You came to rescue. That is why you have been firing people who professed to be CDCians in this government. I am the Chair on Labor, and I see what has been happening.”
A Stand against Executive Arrogance
For Senator Nimely, the final straw was the empty chair of the Minister of Justice. He framed his walkout not just as a protest against a bad traffic contract, but as a defense of the separation of powers.
“I get paid by the government. I do not work for the executive; I work with the executive. If we find something that is against the law, we have to speak about it. And when we speak and nothing is done, we have to tell the Liberian people that this law is not in their favor,” Nimely concluded.
He said that for approximately six months, the Senate Joint Committee has made several recommendations to the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) on how to review the contract, but nothing has been done — citing what he described as the “non-cooperative attitude” of some officials in the executive branch who are bent on ignoring all recommendations forwarded to them. Nimely warned that the earlier the government realizes these missteps need to be corrected, the better it will be for them, because the Liberian people are watching.
“But again, it is left with the government to do the right thing because the Liberian people are watching. 2029 is around the corner. I am not saying I will do anything against the government, but I have my voter’s card, and the citizens are holding their voter’s cards, willing to exercise the franchise,” he said.