–Says New LACC Act Is To Witch-hunt Current Commissioners
IPNEWS-Monrovia: The National Legislature during the course of last week passed the new amended Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission – LACC Act of 2022. The Act passed by the Legislature which would see the establishment of a new Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission with abridged powers is not being welcomed by many Liberians. The new Act now calls for the replacement of the Commissioners at the LACC.
The dissolution of the LACC leadership may now lead to the immediate resignation of Cllr. Edwin K. Martin, and other Commissioners, with subsequent reapplication of those wishing to reoccupy the positions.
The Legislature joint conference committee comprising both the House of Representatives and Senate now recommends the setting up of a vetting committee comprising the Press Union of Liberia, General Auditing Commission, and the Governance Commission, among others.
The vetting committee will now vet and submit 14 names to President George Weah for nomination. According to the new amended LACC Act, the Commission will now have seven commissioners rather than the previous five commissioners.
The new Act now grants prosecuting power to the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC).
When signed by the President of Liberia, George Weah, the proposed law titled “An Act Amending and Restating an Act to Establish the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) now grants the anti-graph institution persecutory powers upon being printed into handbill.”
The lawmakers during their 40th Day Sitting also voted to pass a bill known as the “Whistleblower Act of 2021” that is seeking to protect whistleblowers as well as “Witness Protection Act 0f 2021” that seeks to grant protection to witnesses.
Critics believe that the recent decision to amend the Act creating the Liberia Anti-corruption Commission is intended to remove the Executive Chairperson and all Commissioners of the LACC.
Cllr. Kanio Gbala: the New LACC Act of 2022 will affect him also as one of the Commissioners at the current LACC
“This in addition to concerns by observers on the actual intention of the amendments and why the National Legislature moved to change several provisions of the Act creating the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission instead concentrating on the fundamental issue of giving the Commission direct prosecutorial powers.”
“A review conducted of the final recommendations from the conference committee of the House of Representatives and the Liberian Senate shows that the Legislature struck out several provisions of the current LACC which many view as having a far-reaching negative effect on the works of the Country’s anti-graft agency.”
Part three of the recommendation from the Committee said the new LACC will be established to succeed the current Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission.
There are concerns about why the Legislature will move to establish a new anti-corruption Commission against the expressed request of the president as he submitted a specific part of the Commission’s act that needed amendments.
In part four of the recommendations from the joint committees, the new Act is completely scrapping the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission’s authority to seize public officials’ assets. The Legislature recommends that no public official assets be frozen/seized. The Committee noted that this can be done only if the LACC noticed that the person is of flight risk.
LACC boss Cllr. Martin and his Sierra Leonean counterpart at the recent 5th Annual General Meeting All Africa Anti-Corruption Assembly held in Rwanda.
The main crust of the current law by the legislature is not the direct prosecutorial powers. Rather it is an inserted clause that says all the Commissioners currently serving at the Liberia Anti-corruption Commission should continue serving until their successors are appointed.
Part XVI- Transitional Provision, the provision is that commissioners now serving the LACC shall remain in office after the enactment of this new law until their successors are appointed, but each is eligible to apply and be subjected to the appointment procedure provided for this law.
This clause in the new LACC act completely renders the current leadership ineffective and subject to presidential dismissal and automatic replacement by the president.
This is coming at the time there have mounting public outcries that the President and his immediate lieutenants intend to remove the current head of the Country’s anti-corruption following the release of damming reports on Corruption on the administration by the current leadership of the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission.
It was reported recently, that President George Weah at a cabinet retreat in Ganta, Nimba County challenged the Executive Chairperson of the Liberia Anti-corruption Commission to present all investigation reports to him before releasing them to the public. It was reported the Executive Chairperson Cllr. Edwin Kla Martin told the president that his request was illegal and contravene the act establishing the Commission.
Defeating the Corruption Fight
Speaking to the Voice of America (VOA), the current head of the Anti-Corruption Commission, Cllr. Edwin Kla Martin said the new legislation is purposely intended to weaken the fight against corruption which his administration has been very committed to.
“We’re taken aback that the Commission in order to ensure that we have independence to establish our prosecutorial powers, the Legislature as established an Act to create a new Commission that has usurp the function and will respectfully dissolve the administration of the present Commission with the sole intent of defeating the purpose of combatting corruption in the country,” he said.
He lamented that the new act calls for the appointment of new Commissioners to be appointed by the President.
Questioned whether he would continue going after corrupt government officials in the wake of the new Act, Cllr. Martin said, “This is a clever attempt to abolish the fight against corruption in Liberia. The Act of the National Legislature is purely intended to make sure that this Commission does not exist. The Commission was established to ensure that we prosecute corrupt officials consistent with the law in a certain time frame if the Ministry of Justice fails.”
H stated the powers of the would-be Commission are vague and the fight against corruption would not be fully achieved.
Cllr. Martin further told the VOA that he is considering challenging the new Act at the Supreme Court. He said, under the rule of law, the Legislature is in error by amending, creating and dissolving a tenure position. “Our laws are progressive, they’re not retroactive so to do what they did is a clever attempt to witch hunt current administration,” he alleged.
He added that despite the “witch-hunting” he would not relent in ensuring that corrupt officials in government are brought to justice.
“We will fight this to the letter, we’ll not relent. The Liberian people will not relent. What we did, we did it in the interest of the Liberian people. We will make sure that resources and conduct of the Liberia people are fully protected,” he said.
‘Whereabouts Unknown Because My Life Is Insecure’
Meanwhile, the LACC chairman further told the VOA that the current nature of his security is unknown as he has on many occasions requested the Minister of Justice to beef up his security, but to no avail.
According to him, he is only assigned a police officer which he believes is not sufficient to ensure his safety due to the nature of work where his colleagues who are involved in corrupt practices in government are investigated and prosecuted if probable cause is established.
Flashback: Cllr Martin on an Anti-corruption awareness campaign in Ganta, Nimba County
Cllr. Martin said his whereabouts is unknown to the public because his life is insecure at the moment due to the intensity of investigation his administration at the LACC is undertaking to ensure that corrupt officials are government are brought to book in keeping with the law.
Meanwhile, pundits are taken aback by the revelation of the LACC Executive Chairperson concerning his security following the release of an investigative report that indicted several public officials.
On the other hand, President George Weah has always said his government will not relent in fighting corruption, but with revelation of such nature coming from the LACC Executive Chairperson, Cllr. Edwin Kla Martin, it remains to be seen whether the CDC-led government is serious to fight the menace called corruption in Liberia.
