IPNEWS: TRH Trading Company and others who blew the whistle on the illegal drug trade in Liberia will enjoy the full protection of the state under the amended drug law. This, according to Thomas Goshua, a member of the House of Representatives, will to a large extent prevent those involved in the trade from fighting back.
TRH has in recent times been very instrumental in helping the government through various agencies of government including the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency in busting huge consignments of narcotics illegally shipped into Liberia through the Freeport of Monrovia.
In late January, TRH helped the government bust US$37 million worth of narcotics when it raised alarm about a container marked MNBU4204747 with products manufactured by BRF, asking for a setup of an internal investigation procedure to verify if the container has been compromised at any stage during its journey to the port of destination at Monrovia.
Based on the tipoff, the seizure of the 197 packages of cocaine was a coordinated effort of the LDEA, the Liberia Maritime Authority, the Liberia Seaport Police, and the Port Facility Security Office.
“The seizure of these drugs is the result of coordinated efforts, especially a tip-off we [security agencies] had gotten from TRH. The company had raised suspicion about a container that had berthed at the Freeport and wanted the police to search it,” said the Senior Collector at the Freeport of Monrovia, Jerry Diah.
“We want to be grateful to THR through the Liberia Seaport Police Director Logan Davies, the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA) for the coordinated efforts applied,” he further said.
This is the second seizure of a huge consignment of cocaine smuggled into the country through the nation’s seaport. The first seizure was made in early January when TRH again raised the alarm on the importation of 520 grams of cocaine stocked in frozen food barrels.
At the burning of the latest seizure, Rep. Goshua hailed TRH for its courage despite the financial inducements and the risks involved with exposing such dangerous trade.
The burning took place at the BTC Army Barracks in Monrovia on Wednesday.
“There are phases within the law that seek to protect whistleblowers. The drug crime itself fights back,” the lawmaker said.
He added: “We have to commend the security apparatus for a job well done. However, we encourage them to be more vigilant as we strive for more logistics to make their work easier.”
The Senate in November of 2022 passed into law the Amended Controlled Drug and Substances Act of 2014.
The Senate categorized drug crime into two categories, hence making it non-bailable and bailable depending on the gravity of the crime.
In the wisdom of the Senate, those who are involved in the importation, distribution, massive production, and custody of illicit drugs shall not be granted the right to bail when caught in the act, while the end users of the drug shall have the right to bail when apprehended in the act.
Speaking Wednesday, the Director of the Liberia Drugs Enforcement Agency (LDEA), Marcus Zehyoue, declared his team was ready to make Liberia a drug-free country.
“The LDEA has always been in the vanguard to make sure we clear harmful substances from the country. Quite recently in October, we confiscated an estimated US$100 million worth of cocaine. This is the second-largest confiscation of drugs in Liberia. It is a clear manifestation that we are ready to make Liberia a drug-free nation. Regarding this confiscation, there was no arrest,” he said.
He praised the joint security for the efforts in confiscating the two largest drug incidents in the country, stressing the importance of the whistleblower in the crackdown on drugs.
“The bookers received a call and said someone had informed them that their goods were in their storage, so they needed to get them out. So, the number the persons used to call the bookers is the number the company gave us but up till now we are tracing to know who the number belongs to
The Minister of Justice, Cllr. Frank Musa Dean, said from all indications the country was succeeding in the fight against drugs.
“We are also working to rehabilitate our youthful population that has fallen prey to drug abuse, and we are also strengthening our capacity to curtail the influx of drugs into our country,” Minister Dean said.
“New laws have been enacted, sooner or later they will be made public. The law guarantees punishment for drug traffickers and we are committing resources to the fight sooner or later Liberia will be a no-go-zone for drug traffickers.”
