GBARNGA, Bong County — The Executive Director of DELTA Human Rights Foundation, Jesse B. Cole, has filed a complaint with the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC), accusing the Bong County Administration and County Council of fraudulently awarding a renovation contract twice to the same company, JEAMCO, despite the company failing to complete the project after receiving full payment.
The original contract, signed on March 6, 2020, awarded JEAMCO the task of renovating the Superintendent Compound in Gbarnga, Bong County. The completion date was set for July 6, 2020, and the project cost was paid in full at US$50,000. However, JEAMCO reportedly failed to complete the renovation and did not turn over the project to the county authorities.
According to Cole, despite JEAMCO’s failure to deliver the first time, the new county administration, under Superintendent Hawa Loleyah Norris, awarded the same renovation contract to JEAMCO again after the 2023 elections. This time, the contract’s value was inflated to over US$149,000.
“We were shocked to see the new leadership of the County, headed by Superintendent Hawa Loleyah Norris, awarding the same project to JEAMCO, a company that had already been paid US$50,000 but failed to complete and turn over the Superintendent Compound,” Cole expressed.
Cole questioned the motivation behind the County’s leadership repeatedly awarding contracts to JEAMCO without ensuring project completion. Despite JEAMCO’s earlier payment, the company continues to receive contracts, raising suspicions of impropriety.
Cole also revealed that JEAMCO had been awarded five additional contracts from the 2018 County Council Sitting in Bong County, all of which remain incomplete. The projects included completing the Commissioner Compound, constructing an elementary school, and completing a clinic in Kokoyah Electoral District #1, among others.
“JEAMCO was also awarded the very same Superintendent Compound project in 2018 for US$50,000, which was paid in full, but the project was never completed. Additionally, four other projects in Kokoyah, each worth US$15,000, remain at a standstill,” Cole disclosed.
In his communication to the LACC, Cole emphasized that despite a 2021 General Auditing Commission (GAC) audit report on the County Development Fund and Social Development Fund, which flagged JEAMCO’s failure to complete projects, Superintendent Norris and the County Administration continue to work with the company.
“The Auditor General recommended that JEAMCO complete the project in line with the scope of work, technical specifications, and payment terms. The Auditor General also recommended penalties for JEAMCO’s failure to adhere to the contract,” Cole noted.
DELTA Human Rights Foundation has also petitioned the Bong County Council to halt the new contract with JEAMCO and investigate past contracts awarded to the company. However, according to Cole, no significant efforts have been made by the Council to address these concerns.
Given the lack of action from the local authorities, Cole urged the LACC to intervene and investigate the matter to prevent further mismanagement of development funds in Bong County.
In response, Bong County Superintendent Hawa Loleyah Norris defended the ongoing renovation work. She stated that the project would give the Superintendent Compound a much-needed facelift.
“This building is the official residence of the Bong County Superintendent,” she said in an interview with a local community radio station on October 19, 2024. “You are aware that the money allocated for the compound’s renovation under the previous administration was from the 2008 County Development Sitting, but the project was never completed.”
Superintendent Norris further explained that JEAMCO was retained for the project because the company had agreed to pre-finance the work under the previous administration. She also clarified that the current allocation of US$144,000 is a reduction from the previous administration’s US$149,000 budget for the renovation.
“I remain committed to the development of Bong County and will not be distracted by negative propaganda,” Norris stated.
In July 2024, the Bong County Council approved Superintendent Norris’s 100-day Action Plan budget, which included US$302,913 for various projects. These projects include fencing the Gbarnga Administrative Building (US$50,922), renovating the Superintendent Compound (US$144,000), and cultivating beans in the 13 administrative districts.
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