Monrovia, Liberia – The Civil Society Network of Liberia (CSNL) has categorically denied claims that well-known Indian businessman Upjit Singh Sachdeva, also referred to as Mr. Jeety, is responsible for the extended detention of people detained in relation to the violent demonstration at the Salala Rubber Corporation (SRC) on June 27, 2024.
In a statement released on Thursday, CSNL called the allegations “fake propaganda driven by ignorance,” with the intention of harming Mr. Jeety’s reputation and causing tension between him and the company’s staff. The organization made it clear that Mr. Jeety did not own the SRC at the time of the demonstration and was not involved in the current legal battle against the defendants.
CSNL indicated that Mr. Jeety is not pushing the judiciary to postpone or reject the lawsuit involving former SRC workers, unlike what the public and media have been speculating about. “Let it be made clear,” the statement said, “that Madam Mary P. Boimah and Lawrence Gorgbor, the former president and secretary general of the Workers’ Union, along with others allegedly involved in organizing the violent protest against the plantation’s previous management, are currently being prosecuted by the Government of Liberia.”
CSNL believes that the government’s intervention stems only from the SRC being the immediate target of the violent acts, which included threats to national security and property destruction. According to the civic society organization, Mr. Jeety cannot be held accountable because the incident happened four months prior to him owning the company.
According to the statement, the Liberian government was actually pursuing legal action against Madam Mary Boimah and other individuals, not Mr. Jeety. Because it is still pursuing additional protest participants, the court has informed CSNL that it cannot release those who are now in detention without jeopardizing the prosecution.
The spike in allegations against Mr. Jeety, according to CSNL, is due to the company’s decision to not rehire Boimah and her colleagues after he became the owner. The group claims that the SRC, under the direction of Mr. Jeety, paid out all previous workers and instituted a new merit-based recruiting process.
It would have been inappropriate, according to the organization, which also stated that “the new management had every right to decide who to rehire based on professionalism and ethical standards.”
CSNL emphasized Madam Boimah’s history of instigating violence while restating its opposition to wrongful incarceration. She is charged of orchestrating previous disturbances in Kakata, Margibi County, which led to the destruction of a magistrate’s court and police station.
Finally, CSNL cautioned against politicizing matters that jeopardize investment and national security. The organization claimed that scapegoating and damaging the reputation of respectable businesspeople only deters foreign investment in Liberia. “We implore all citizens to put the common good first and protect Liberia’s peace and progress.”
