Businesswoman wants engineer’s license revoked 

By Lincoln G. Peters 

Liberian businesswoman and lobbyist Ms. Stephene Audrey Kpoto has called the Liberian government to revoke the operational engineering license of Jimmy Gardiyee, the chief executive officer of JimKINI stone innovative Inc.

She made the request at a press conference Monday, 29 May 2023 in Monrovia. Ms. Kpoto said her request is due to Mr. Gardiyee’s alleged constant stealing from clients and making a fool of business people.

She alleged that Mr. Gardiyee overcharged her and constructed substandard work after being hired to build a mini-city across Liberia, beginning with Bentol City in Montserrado County.

“I, therefore, promised to ensure that ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) and the entire international community get to know Gardiyee and the kind of work he does,” she said. She warned the business community to be careful with his kind. 

Ms. Kpoto is a businesswoman working with the National Housing Authority (NHA).

She pointed out that the construction of the mini-city is intended to beautify the country by constructing modern facilities including Liberia’s first historic Arts Academy after the 14 years of civil unrest, starting with Bental City.

She stated that money intended for the construction of these facilities was delivered in cash to Mr. Jimmy David Gardiyee to oversee several constructions and construction-related services.

According to her, the cash delivered amounted to USD $31,000.00. She said it included funds to commence the construction of the sample home to finishing stage home before the launching of the city project in Bental. 

However, she lamented that the project came to a halt when reports came from residents hired by Jimmy that he had abused their labor and they didn’t get paid.

She said this caused her to ensure that he paid them. 

At the same time, Ms. Kpoto explained that it was discovered that she had been cheated by JimKINI Stone Innovative Inc. through its CEO, Mr. Gardiyee.

She said an evaluation team with members who studied in China and Holland went to the construction site and did an evaluation which calculated the value of the construction per inch of blocks laid.

The evaluation was done along with Mr. Gardiyee, and it allegedly discovered that he overestimated and stole cash he had no business requesting to have the work done. She lamented that this act caused her to terminate the contract.

Meanwhile, Mr. Gardiyee said he can’t refund the money Ms. Kpoto is claiming because it was used for its intended purpose. Mr. Gardiyee spoke to this paper through his lawyer Atty. Ben Kolako, admitting to overcharging Ms. Kpoto.