The opposition Liberty Party has run to the International Contact Group on Liberia (ICGL), urging the body to institute an investigation into corruption allegation linking top Liberian government officials, including President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

Liberty Party position is contained in a statement read at a press conference held yesterday by its Chairman, Israel Akinsanya, calling on the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf-led administration to act as promptly as possible to establish the authenticity of the allegation, not to sweep it under carpet as done with other cases of such.

According to the party, several key government officials working with government and implicated in the corruptions scan needed to be investigated by an international independent body, preferably the ICGL, which has been working with Liberian since the eruption of the crisis.

The party's call comes in the wake of an article published on FrontPageAfrica which linked several officials in the government to the scan, intended to deny the government millions of dollars, and to be seconded to private pockets.

"The most troubling of the allegations is the suggestion in the FrontPageAfrica story that Mr. Zaidenberg is reported to have asked Mr. Knuckles to reassure the president that her concerns will be addressed and that Mr. Cohen would make the first payment of US$1 Million after the contract has been signed," the party said through its Chairman Akinsanya.

Apart from the troubling nature of the issue, the party also noted that "this issue is a delicate matter for our country, which is still in the process of recovering from several years of poor governance, pillaging of the national economy and devastating wars."

As such, Liberty Party said it saw it fit to discuss with President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on the matter before coming public.

According to it, the president assured them that there is "absolutely no truth to these allegations as far as they relate to her." However, the party said it advised the Liberian leader that because of the gravity and scope of the allegations, it would be appropriate to set up an independent commission of inquiry to probe into the allegation."

Against this backdrop, Liberty Party has called on the Liberian leader to request trhe international Contact Group on Liberia (ICGL) to constitute an independent commission of inquiry.

It wants such commission to consist of those it called "jurists from ICGL countries to investigate these allegations of corruption of the Liberian government and bribery of government officials by LISCR."

"The facts must be fully uncovered and allegations thoroughly investigated to ensure that Liberia does not once again become a pariah state, suffering the disdain of the international community," it said, adding that such investigation if concluded must be followed by an immediate publication.

The party said it wants the ICGL to do the investigation because it feels that "an investigation sponsored by and under the auspices of the Government of Liberia under the prevailing circumstances would not be credible, and would only be a travesty of justice."

It said the suggestion by the president, as contained in the Executive Mansion press release of August 24, 2008 that the Justice Ministry determines the authenticity of the emails and address the result of those emails is unacceptable, as the ministry is one of the alleged culprits.