IPNEWS: Representative Clarence Massaquoi (UP, Lofa County) has accused the ruling CDC government of playing lip services in the fight against corruption.
He said, the government is dragging its feet to act on audits reports from the General Auditing Commission that have been reviewed by the legislature.
He expressed fear that if steps are not taken by the Executive to act on GAC reports already reviewed by the Legislature with recommendations made, the country will continuously lose hard earned tax payers’ money to the pockets of individuals.
He expressed fear that if actions are not taken on the reports in a timely faction to have people indicted face the law, they will take advantage of the law under the statute of limitation to escape punishment for their corrupt acts.
“Under our law there is something referred to as the statute of limitation and that is if there are issues raised in the audit reports and steps are not taken to address them, after 5 years you don’t take them to court. The state will lose the money that went into corruption and money spent on the audit. That is a waste of state resources,” he said.
The Lofa County lawmaker in an interview with Newsmen said, he sees no reason why a government which claims to be serious in a fight against corruption will not act on an audit report with all the support available at its disposal.
“The reports are there; the findings are there and the recommendations are there. The executive has all the supports it needs. They have all the structures the former government put in those structures and it will be a lip services if the executive doesn’t take steps to act on these audit reports.”
According to Representative Massaquoi, his view is the direct representation of the opposition and if any member of his UP which is the former ruling Unity Party nothing should stop the current government from acting in accordance with the law. This is state resources, it doesn’t belong to the Unity Party. When we were in power, we were charged with the responsibility to manage the state resources, it belongs to the people some of whom are not partisans. My call today is not against a particular group of people. My disappointment is for this government to have all the support and fail to act. This Government came under the impression that the UP government was doing nothing against corruption.
“Muster the courage, generate the spine to go into the audit reports. The Liberian people are denied of justice their money left in corruption some of which was carried out by officials of past and current governments. Accountability should go across party line the legislature has acted there are tons of audit reports before the President and I don’t see why after three years the President cannot muster the courage to launch an investigation.”
