UP’s First MICAT Briefings Address Sticky Issues -Govt. Rejects Fmr. Presidents’ Request; -Suspends Passport Regulations As BMMC Resumes Operations

MONROVIA: The Ministry of Information Culture, and Tourism, under the new Unity Party regime, resumed its normal activity where state bureaucrats and functionaries shared their thoughts and engagement on trending national issues. The Monday, March 18 edition of the regular press briefing of MICAT brought together the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Sara Beslow Nyanti, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Cllr. N. Oswald Tweh who were hosted by Information Minister Jerolinmik Piah to address the Liberian media. As Anthony Q. Jiffan, Jr. reports from the function, highlights of the auspicious function embraced the prospects of industrial agitation in Cape Mount at the Bea Mountain Mining Corporation, the proliferation of Liberian passports in wrong hands and the former President George Weah’s request for more than 30 Executive Protection Officers (EPS) were highlights of the media meeting with the three officials at the Information Ministry.

   In his introductory remarks, Information Minister Piah was categorical in stating that the Boakai government has rejected the request of former President Weah for 38 EPS officers.   Having rejected eight of the fifteen EPS officers assigned to him, Former President Weah is now requesting from the Government of Liberia 30 EPS guards, but the government, he said, has rejected the request by the former president

Information Minister Piah said the EPS Director, Sam Gaye, has informed him that former President George Weah is requesting thirty-eight EPS officers after rejecting eight of the previous fifteen assigned officers to him.

Piah added that the Executive Protection Service Director said they will not assign thirty-eight officers to the former Liberian leader, noting that assignment of EPS officers to anyone is at the discretion of the President of Liberia.

Speaking at the Ministry of Information Cultural Affairs and Tourism regular Press briefing Monday, March 18, 2024, Minister Jerolinmik Piah argue that there is no existing law that talk about the number of EPS personnel to be assigned to a former leader, stating that in 2017, the head of the Executive Protection Service recommended to former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf that there should be a law included in the transitional act to explain as to how former Liberian leaders should be protected.

Because the transitional act did not go through, there’s absolutely no law which specifies how former leaders of Liberia be protected. However, he noted that it is important every government ensures the safety and protection of former leaders.

According to him, when President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf became former president, the government of the Coalition for Democratic Change under the stewardship of former President George Weah assigned fifteen EPS officers to her of which eight of them walked away without reason, leaving her with seven officers.

Piah indicated that twelve EPS officers were assigned to President Joseph Nyuma Boakai when he was former Vice President, but alleged that the government later withdrew three and left him with nine officers.

The Information Minister further said that the Executive Protection Service recently assigned fifteen officers to former President George Weah but that the former Liberian leader has rejected eight of the officers on grounds that he doesn’t know them.

Saying government is committed to ensure that former Presidents Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, George Manneh Weah and officials of government deemed necessary by the president to have EPS assigned to them will enjoy the comfort of the EPS protection, Piah however called on Liberians to stop politicizing everything, especially national security issues in the country.

He then welcomed his colleagues and members of the fourth estate that congregated at the function.

Then came the Justice Minister, Cllr. N. Oswald Tweh who disclosed that Bea Mountain Mining Company has resumes operations in Kinjor, Grand Cape Mount County the Attorney General of the Republic and Justice Minister Tweh disclosed the resumption of normal operations at which he was a result of an intervention by the government through a Ministerial Delegation recently sent to the area to resolved the Bea Mountain debacle involving residents of the community and workers.

. The Ministerial delegation was dispatched to Kinjor in the wake of persistent protest by workers and residents of the community against the bad labor practice by the BMMC and what they referred to as violations of several counts of the company’s mineral Development Agreement (MDA).

Speaking at the regular Press briefing of the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism (MICAT yesterday, Monday, the Attorney General of the Republic, Cllr. Tweh said the Ministerial Delegation’s visit to Kinjor was intended to reunite the company and community dwellers.

Cllr. Tweh indicated that the Ministerial Delegation, which comprised the Ministries of Justice, Labor, Internal Affairs, Information as well as National Bureau of Concession and the Director General of the Cabinet pleaded with citizens to address issues through lawful means.

According to Cllr. Tweh said the delegation held a fruitful conversation with the community dwellers and Executives of the Bea Mountain Mining Company in the interest of peace to avoid a recurrence of the recent situation characterizing mass protests by the residents including workers of the company.

From the intervention of the government, Cllr. Tweh added, all is now calm in the area as the people of Kinjor and Bea Mountain Mining Company Management have begun to coexist and that the protest has ceased resulting in the commencement of normal activities at the company site.

Accordingly, the Justice Minister has cautioned Liberians to address issues within the confines of law, noting that it is the government’s obligation to protect its citizens as well as companies who are investing in the country’s economy.

“People have to understand that the government is like a twin mother [who] cannot overlook any of the children who are breastfeeding; therefore we are working to ensure that the government resolves the impasse, but it is an ongoing process we will continue to engage ” Tweh asserted.

He averred that it is the hope of the government to maintain an environment of law in every spectrum of the Liberian society, calling on every citizen to remain law abiding to ensure a peaceful state.

He furthered that the government has listened to the forty eight counts petition submitted by residents of the county, and that the government is looking into it to find an amicable solution to the mutual benefit of both parties.

It can be recalled that Cape Mountaineans in Monrovia recently launched a protest against the retention of Debar W. Allen as the Country Manager of the Bea Mountain Mining Company (BMMC), in which they vehemently opposed Mr. Debar’s leadership of the mining company in their county, Grand Cape mount.

The citizens carried placards and chanted slogans protest in which they said they did not want Debar in the county as Country Manager of BMMC, noting that Cape Mountaineans were being killed by the Debar Allen management of the BMMC   daily, adding that their lawmakers have been sacrificing the interest of their voters for money.

The Protesting Cape Mountaineans therefore threatened to vote against those lawmakers who they accused of having sacrificed their interest to the BMMC for money in 2029, saying that they will not rest to protest unless their demands were heeded.

Amidst these exchanges the government has been making efforts to resolve the impasse, and the Attorney General of the Republic, Justice Minister Tweh announced at the Ministry of Information Press Briefing that calm has returned to the area, and that the BMMC has resumed operations.

 As the Justice Minister returned to his seat, Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti mounted the podium, where she announced the suspension of the current Passport Regulations and replaced it with the previous one.

She further stated that the Government of Liberia, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has suspended, with immediate effect, the July 2023 Revised Passport Regulations replacing  it with the reinstatement of the March 2016 Passport Regulations.

Accordingly, Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti warned Liberians to comply with the notification to avoid any inconvenience at ports of departure and entry.

Speaking yesterday, Monday, March 18 at the regular press briefing of the Ministry of Information, Culture Affairs and Tourism, the Foreign said all those bearing diplomatic, Official and service passports with the duration of more than 2 years are hereby requested to return them to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs commencing Tuesday, March 19, 2024 with an end date of the exercise being April 18, 2024.

The directive, the Foreign Minister said,   is applied to all holders of diplomatic, official and service passports, and it requires individuals possessing these passports to link, without delay,  with either the legal department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the designated Technical Team led by Mr. Garrison Koikoi Jallah.

This step, she maintained, is crucial to ensure compliance with the Government’s directive, and to bring about the necessary procedures associated with the recall.

The decision to recall these passports underlines the government’s commitment to support national security, ensuring the integrity of travel documentation, and maintaining diplomatic protocols, she disclosed, stating that it is also in line with the ongoing efforts to construct administrative processes and enforce the efficiency of passport issuance and management systems.

According to the Minister Nyanti, all Liberian citizens and non-Liberians who are not eligible for diplomatic, official and service passports should kindly return the passports to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regardless of duration of validity period as passports in those categories will be cancelled with immediate effect.

Additionally, the Foreign Minister informed all those with multiple diplomatic, official and service passports that those extra passports will be cancelled with immediate effect, saying that should they have any questions or information that justifies their possession of such passports, they should contact the Legal Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Liberian Foreign Minister noted that the reissuance of diplomatic, official and service passports will be based on eligibility, and further disclosed that the cost of the replacement of the said passports will be free of charge to citizens with costs borne by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Beslow Nyanti, the Dean of the Cabinet, also added that for those outside the country who are holding diplomatic, Official or Service passports that need to be replaced must  report to the nearest Liberian embassy or consulate.

She said the Ministry regrets any inconvenience that this action may have caused Liberians at home or abroad, but added that it has become necessary for national security concerns and cannot be delayed or deferred.

It can be recalled that in July 2023, the Government of Liberia  Revised the  July 2023 Passport Regulations and the Fourth Edition of the Foreign Service Manual of the Republic of Liberia,

Former President Weah took a moment to officially launch these revised documents, emphasizing their importance in aligning the nation’s practices with international standards.