IPNEWS: The Liberian Senate has launched an investigation into the Contec Global contract with the Liberian government worth US$40 million.
Contec Global is a U.K.-based Indian Company owned by Indian businessman Benoy Berry and registered in Liberia as Contec Global Liberia Limited.
The company produces documents, including physical and digital passports, national identification cards, driver’s licenses, residence, and work permits.
The Senate’s move was triggered by Lofa’s Sen. Momo T. Cyrus, who chairs the Senate Committee on Defense, Intelligence, Security, and Veteran Affairs. Cyrus has called for the contract’s cancellation.
“I am writing to inform you of an investigative review conducted by my office as chairperson of the Senate Committee on Defense,” he wrote. “The review focused on a contract between the government of Liberia and Contec Global for the digitization of alien residents permits.”
He argued that the contract should be canceled due to gross violations of the Liberian laws and the failure of the group to meet the minimum expectations of the contract.
“We went through the contract and realized that there are lots of violations in the contract,” Cyrus noted. “Those violations are so grave that we can’t allow the contract to fly under our hands. The portfolio is US$40 million, but interestingly, this contract did not pass through the Liberian Senate in the 54th Legislature.”
Cyrus said Contec signed a five-year contract with the Liberian government through the Liberia Immigration Service in 2021 to produce 350,000 digitized resident permit cards, a number he thinks the company was insincere about.
“From our calculations, to produce 350,000 cards in five years is not possible. Based on our research, the aliens that reside in our country annually is between 17,000 to 20,000. We think 350,000 cards can in no way be printed within five years. So, looking at the number attached to the contract and the flow of aliens in our country, Contec Global will have to stay here for the next 25 to 30 years to be able to produce 350,000 cards while the contract says five years.”
He added that the contract allows Contec to share revenues with the government, taking 40 percent and the government receiving 60 percent, which he described as an illegal arrangement without legislative approval.
Cyrus explained that executing such a huge contract requires an international certificate to demonstrate the company’s ability to manage crucial data like the aliens’ information. Still, it appears that Contec does not have such a certificate, as it has failed to respond to a communication requesting one.
“For me, this contract is one of the worst contracts in the history of Liberia,” the Lofa senator said. “So, as chair of national security, looking at the security implications and the end-user, which is the Liberia Immigration Service for which I have oversight responsibility, I have proffered to the Senate to kindly look into it and see that we can investigate the contract and come up with a decision that will be better for Liberia. The contract is a bad contract and under our signature, we will not fly with those terms and conditions.”
Apart from Cyrus’ concerns, the Public Procurement and Concessions Commission also wrote the Liberia Immigration Service seeking to cancel the contract. The PPCC communication states that Contec delayed performing contractual services, which caused the government to lose over US$16 million in revenues for the past three years.
The document alleged that Contec also failed to begin processing online applications and producing digitized resident permit cards with security features in line with the contract.
The commissioner general of the Liberia Immigration Service, Stephen Zargo, admitted to receiving the communication from the PPCC but did not say whether the contract had been canceled.
Meanwhile, the Senate has mandated that a joint committee of members of the Committees on Defense, Ways, Means, Finance, and Judiciary investigate the contract and report to the general body as soon as possible. Courtesy of by Sampson David
