Minister Kruah Reacts to ‘Conflict of Interest’ Story -Says “I am Not Conflicted, FPA Violates Media Ethnics”

MONROVIA – The Minister of Labor, Cllr Cooper Kruah, has rubbished a FrontPageAfrica story accusing him of “conflict of interest”, asserting that he engaged not in any conflict of interest as reported by the paper.

Minister Kruah noted that he was bewildered that the FrontPage Africa, “a paper supposedly deemed reputable”, had to publish an unverified truth linking him to payment which was paid to the National Port Authority by him.

Cllr. Kruah indicated that the paper should have done due diligence as a professional institution before the publication, disassociating himself from the Henries Law Firm ever since he was appointed as Minister in government.

He maintained that the FrontPage Africa has violated the truth telling ethics journalists thrive on, and called on the FrontPageAfrica Newspaper and its online version to retract what he described as the falsehood the paper fed the public with.

He also called on the newspaper to heed the spirit of professional journalism.

The Henries Law Firm was established in 1944 by Richard Henries who gave his will of ownership of the law office to his son, Cllr. George E. Henries, Minister Kruah explained.

Cllr. Kruah said as a Liberian who the constitution rendered the right to work, he did work with the law firm to sustain his family with the law profession when he was out of government but noted that he quitted ever since his appointment as a cabinet minister in the government.

Rudimentary journalism, he said, requires that no matter the facts an institution thought it might have had, it should endeavor to confront an accused with its so-called facts before publication, which is an ethical conduct that the FrontPageAfrica fell short of.

The Liberian law lawyer indicated that it is a shame that the FrontPage could neither utilize the prevailing and common technology of a phone call nor drive to his office to get his side of the story, which is the cannon independent journalism.

“The FrontPage Africa might have been intentional in their publication for pecuniary motive,” he alleged.

In its story headlined, “Conflict of Interest?”, the FrontPageAfrica wrote that its investigation has uncovered the National Port Authority issued 15k to Labor Minister Cooper Kruah’s law firm for Court-related matters and it also claimed it had obtained copies of two checks – one $38,500 and the other $15,000 issued to the Henries, Kruah and Associate Law Firm totaling $53,000 for court related matters, and that the checks were issued by Sekou Dukuly, Managing Director of the NPA.

Minister Kruah further explained that although he has his brother Prince Kruah and son Othello Kruah, all people of consent and age, as are associates of the Law Firm, since his appointment into cabinet position, he has disassociated himself from the firm.

Besides, he said, there are other lawyers in government who, when you check, had practiced with some other law firms but relinquished their association with those law firms as soon as they were appointed into government.

“The Henries Law Firm has retention with the National Port Authority since 2001, and in line with that retainer ship that the money was paid to the law firm and not to me.