Monrovia — Public Works Minister Roland Lafayette Giddings has accused the former Weah-Taylor administration of wrongfully diverting 60 percent of the National Road Fund (NRF) to community road construction while neglecting maintenance of major roads over the last six years.
Minister Giddings leveled this accusation against the previous Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) government amid intense difficulties faced by commuters, motorcycle and tricycle riders, and drivers due to numerous potholes and clogged drainages that hinder free water flow in some parts of the country.
The Public Works Minister made these statements during his appearance on the Super Morning Show on the state broadcaster, ELBC. He was joined by Information Minister Jerolinmek Matthew Piah, Chairman of the National Investment Commission (NIC) Jeff Blibo, and Presidential Press Secretary Kula Fofana on Monday, September 16, 2024, outside Monrovia. The show was also relayed on other local radio stations and featured other talk show hosts as co-moderators.
He specifically referenced the Gabriel Tucker Bridge to the Freeport of Monrovia as one of the areas allegedly neglected by the CDC-led government. "There was no maintenance done on many corridors; from Gabriel Tucker Bridge to the Freeport, there was no maintenance over the last six years, not to mention drainage cleaning," he stated.
According to Minister Giddings, other major corridors in Monrovia and its environs were reportedly abandoned by the previous administration, stressing that instead of focusing on road maintenance and cleaning drainages, the Weah-Taylor regime diverted a significant portion of the NRF to constructing several community roads without establishing maintenance mechanisms.
The Public Works Minister further stated that the passage of the 2024 national budget in May, coinciding with the rainy season, has prevented his team from making further developmental efforts on those damaged roads until the dry season. However, he believes the ministry would have faced a lesser burden had the CDC regime maintained those corridors.
"We've been doing some work on those roads, and you can see the level of work we've done there, but we can't do much now because of the rainy season. There's a company--MDMC--that should be doing maintenance from Freeport to St. Paul Bridge, and they've been maintaining some areas but will start that contract during the dry season," he added.
He also blamed disadvantaged youth, otherwise referred to as 'zogoes,' for undermining the efforts of the Ministry of Public Works by selling the very crush rocks used for road maintenance in communities, noting that the government cannot continue investing in these materials without adequate financial resources.
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Additionally, Minister Giddings appealed to the public and residents of affected communities to remain patient until the dry season, at which time the ministry will be fully prepared to address these challenges.
"But the last government [the CDC administration], I'm sorry to say, neglected maintenance of all these corridors for the last six years and only focused on building new community roads," Minister Giddings asserted.
He emphasized that the past administration's decision to allocate 60 percent of the National Road Fund for road maintenance, with the remaining 40 percent going to road rehabilitation, was misguided.
Minister Giddings indicated that the Unity Party administration accepts full responsibility for addressing the damages incurred during the CDC regime, adding that the current government is committed to fixing and maintaining those roads.
Meanwhile, the immediate past Public Works Minister, Ruth Coker-Collins, assured The Liberian Investigator that she would officially respond to these claims at the appropriate time.
