Photo: This Day

Aircraft landing.

Peter N. Quaqua

President

Press Union of Liberia (PUL)

Clay Street

Monrovia, Liberia

Mr. President:

We are constrained to draw attention to and complain against the unethical reporting, deliberate misinformation and outright lies published by the National Chronicle and to seek the necessary reprieve from the Press Union of Liberia so as to preserve the image of the Liberian media and the hard-earned reputation of the President and the Government of Liberia.

On June 24, the National Chronicle published a wholly scandalous story under the banner headline US$100M To Be Corruptly Pocketed in which it maliciously slandered the President, some members of her family and officials of the government as partaking in a scheme against the people of Liberia to "corruptly pocket $100M" in overcharges for the reconstruction of the Roberts International Airport (RIA).

As we strive to expand the space for freedom of the press and responsible journalism, the gravity of misinformation and falsehoods that are woven throughout the story compel a conclusion that the National Chronicle has gone beyond the pale of ethical reporting and is mischievously uncommitted to preserving the journalistic creed of truth telling. Notwithstanding the availability of the facts, and the National Chronicle's access to such facts, the paper has elected to deliberately mislead the public and to dangerously incite against the President, her family and other members of the government through a maliciously contrived campaign of smear, dishonesty, conjectures and concocted lies.

Here are the relevant facts about the reconstruction of the RIA to which the National Chronicle is privy:

The plans of the Government of Liberia to reconstruct the Roberts International Airport are based on a comprehensive study by the Netherlands Airport Consultants, BV (NACO), a renowned Dutch firm with over 60 years of experience in airport planning, design and engineering services. NACO has provided these services to over 550 airports in over 100 countries at the levels of main ports as well as regional airports.

Projects of NACO for international airports have included Abu Dhabi, Amsterdam-Schiphol, Athens, Bangkok, Beijing, Bogotá, Botswana, Cairo, Detroit, Frankfurt, Geneva, Hong Kong, Istanbul, Jakarta, Jeddah, Johannesburg, Kenya, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, Lagos, Lima, Munich, Prague, Shanghai, Singapore, Sofia, Taipei, Vienna, and more.

In 2003, as part of its intervention in Liberia, the World Bank conducted an international competitive bidding process for the development of a Master Plan for the Roberts International Airport. The winning bid was submitted by (NACO).

Utilizing what data was available, NACO published that Master Plan in 2006. In 2008, Lockheed Martin Corporation, then managing RIA contracted another firm from the United States, Matrix Design Group, to evaluate the 2006 Master Plan. On the basis of this evaluation, Matrix recommended that the Master Plan be updated.

In keeping with this recommendation and in line with industry best practice, in 2012, the Government of Liberia contracted NACO to update that Master Plan. The Plan was completed and publicly presented to the Liberian Government in the C. Cecil Dennis Hall, in March 2013, in the presence of media entities, private firms, commercial counselors at foreign embassies near Monrovia and other non-governmental actors who were all given copies of the plan.

The projected capital expenditure of the updated Master Plan has been divided into three (3) phases:

From the above, Phase One of the airport reconstruction plan is projected to cost approximately US$164 million over the coming 5 years. The most urgent is the rehabilitation of the runway and associated infrastructure which we need to begin immediately to keep the airport operational.

The full development of landside and airside infrastructure to be undertaken over the three phases of development is projected to cost US$326 million spread over twenty years. (See attached copy of the projected costs for the reconstruction of the Roberts International Airport)

As we have repeatedly indicated, these are projected costs. Before we sign any contract, we will of course follow a thorough, competitive bidding process, and it is our hope that we may attract bidders who can offer the same service at a lower cost than the one projected by NACO.

In its campaign of smear and deliberate lies, the National Chronicle misleads and incites the public that

According to results of studies done on the RIA by engineers, in the possession of the National Chronicle, the RIA only needs US$60 million for its reconstruction. According to the studies, US$30 million is to construct a modern terminal, which includes tubes extending from the terminal to the airplane for passengers to walk through, and the balance for the construction of a twin runway for the landing and takeoff of two planes at a time. (National Chronicle, v19 no.98, p1)

We challenge and demand that the National Chronicle make available and publish any such results of recent studies done by any internationally reputable entity on the reconstruction of the RIA which it claims to be in its possession.

The National Chronicle goes on to dangerously incite the public against the President, the entire government and her family in claiming

If the construction of the airport is only US$60 million, why, then, did the government give President Obiang a bill of US$160 million? What happens to the balance US$100 million? Let the Chronicle remind the Liberian people that this money is a loan - a loan to be repaid to the people of Equatorial Guinea, and not a grant (free money). The people should be conscious that if they are not vigilant and ask questions about this US$100 million they, their children and grandchildren will be repaying money a certain ruling family corruptly pocketed. (ibid)

Again, let us be clear. The Government of Liberia has not contracted a loan from Equatorial Guinea, or anyone else, to finance the emergency rehabilitation of the RIA. The government will not enter any such agreement without following the legal process, which includes detailed technical discussions. The government will not enter any grant or loan agreement that is not in the interests of the Liberian people.

It is true that the Government of Equatorial Guinea has offered, in principle, to assist with the modernization of the Roberts International Airport and the construction of low-cost housing units but we cannot put a figure on this offer until a technical team has visited Liberia and participated in detailed discussions with the relevant Liberian functionaries. The visit is proposed for later in the year. The National Chronicle knows this, has reason to know it, or can come into this knowledge with minimal effort of competent journalistic inquiry.

Sadly however, and with obvious intent to malign the government, the National Chronicle has rather decided to ignore the truth and to knowingly publish concocted lies so as to mischievously portray the government to the people as uncaring and corrupt; to dangerously incite the public into dissention against the government; and to callously soil the resurgent image of the country.

Bent on dangerously inciting the public against the government with lies and deceptions and scandalizing the reputation of the President, her family and officials working in the administration, the National Chronicle goes on to assert that

What is more frightening is that there is a secret built-operate-transfer (BOT) agreement between the government and the Lebanese businessman. In the agreement, according to Chronicle's investigation, the Lebanese businessman will run the airport for consecutive 30 years, and the interest of the first family will be served. (ibid)

Of course, no such agreement exists between the Government of Liberia and any Lebanese businessman which contracts out the management of the airport for consecutive 30 years or even 30 minutes. Can there be an agreement which already contracts out the airport to someone for 30 years when the government is in search of the best options to finance the reconstruction of the airport?

Again, we challenge and demand that the National Chronicle publish the "BOT agreement" between the government and a Lebanese businessman for the running of the airport for consecutive 30 years in which the first family interest is served which the National Chronicle's "investigation" has uncovered.

Mr. President, we urge you to entreat this complaint with the seriousness it deserves.

Regards.

Sincerely,

Lewis G. Brown, II

Minister of Information, RL