Montserrado Supt. threatens to shut down top businesses -For refusing to support sports in the County

By Rancy Teewia

In the wake of the 2020/2021 National County Sports Meet kickoff last Saturday January 9, 2021, the Superintendent of Montserrado County Madam Florence Freeman Brandy has threatened to shut down all top business establishments operating in the county who fail to adhere to the social corporate responsibility by supporting the development programs of the county with special reference to sports. Supt. Brandy disclosed that few days from now, she will constitute a team to enforce the social responsibility of businesses in the county. The team will be instructed to lock some tops businesses, concessions, companies who are refusing to adhere to their corporate social responsibility to Montserrado.

Speaking on Thursday, January 7, 2021 at the regular press conference under the auspices of the Ministry of Information, Culture Affairs and Tourism (MICAT) where stakeholders announced the events for this year’s edition of the County Meet, Superintendent Brandy observed that most corporations in the county have reneged on supporting Montserrado during the annual national sports fiesta.

“I have a problem and the problem involves the businesses in Montserrado County that are not willing to help the county; you can hear my voice. I have been all around to all the companies, all the concessions, companies who are refusing to adhere to their corporate social responsibility to Montserrado County”, the visibly enraged top Supt.  Brandy said.

She names some top businesses, concessions, Companies that may be affected during the shutdown exercise as City Builder, A-Z, Sethi Brothers, Boulevard Palace, Royal Grand Hotels, CEMENCO, and Steel Factory, among others.

The Superintendent said she is of the opinion that it was not the business of the National government to fund activities of the Montserrado County sporting programs during the county meet, but top businesses that are flourishing here must make it their obligation to support the county to drive her projects including sports during the County Meet. She furthered, though they are taxpayers and must be respected for that but there was something inevitable anywhere in a business community called Corporate Social Responsibility which businesses must always adhere to.

She asserted that businesses and concessions must be able to give back to the people of the places they operate, in this case the county, but they are unfortunately refusing to do so which according to her amounts to not respecting the county and she promised to take action against such entities including challenging those who could be backing them from identifying with the county. She said as mark of her seriousness she will approach the Liberia National Police (LNP) for manpower to enforce the closure of all delinquent establishments who fail to support Montserrado County during the County Meet.

She then called on the National government to get the involvement of counties during discussions on some of the investment agreements in the country so that they can make inputs concerning what belongs to the counties when companies operate in their domains.

The well attended press conference had in attendance Ministers of Youth and Sports and Internal Affairs Messrs Zeogar Wilson and Varney Sirleaf, the Deputy Director of Police (102), Colonel Melvin Sackor representing the Joint Security, other top government officials, among others

Montserrado County emerged Winners of the Football component of the annual County Meet two years ago.