As Liberia Battles Massive Drug‑Trafficking Scandal
Credit: Melvin Jackson
Monrovia, Liberia – Renowned Liberian lawyer and politician Cllr. Tiawan Saye Gongloe is raising sharp questions about the financing of the US$6 million Foya Presidential Center at a time when Liberia is engulfed in investigations into nearly half‑a‑billion dollars’ worth of narcotics. In a thorough analysis, Gongloe requests that President Joseph Nyuma Boakai publicly disclose the precise source of funding for the multimillion-dollar project. He lists a number of options, emphasizing that the Liberian people need a precise, recorded, and independently verifiable explanation. These options include legislative appropriation, help from the Mano River Union, contributions from state-owned enterprises, private donations, or even criminal gains.
Gongloe makes it clear that he is neither implying that the initiative is illegitimate nor accusing the president of utilizing drug money. He expresses concern about the government’s lack of transparent and consistent information, particularly in light of the different public explanations that have surfaced. Citing the recent discovery of cocaine worth hundreds of millions of dollars, he contends that the problem is inextricably linked to Liberia’s ongoing drug-trafficking epidemic. He points out that it seems sense to check whether illicit revenues could have found their way into legal financial channels given the scope of such criminal operations.
Gongloe calls on four key institutions, the GAC, FIA, LACC, and PPCC, to “follow the money,” audit public funds, trace private financing, investigate potential corruption, and verify procurement compliance. He frames the matter as a test of the Boakai administration’s ARREST Agenda and RESCUE Mission, both of which promise transparency and accountability. He maintained that the government should have no trouble releasing the documents if the initiative was properly funded. In an effort to preserve his legacy and restore public confidence, he believes the president should order an independent investigation if the complete source of funding is still unknown.
“Liberians deserve to know who financed the Foya Presidential Center, how much was contributed, through what channels, under what legal authority, and whether any illicit proceeds entered the project. Transparency, he argues, is the only way to resolve the controversy and uphold the rule of law,” he said.
