Editorial: Govt. must get to the bottom of the RIA drug bust

Ongoing investigation by the Ministry of Justice and the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency on the recent importation of several boxes of harmful drugs at the Roberts International Airport should not end up in another fiasco like separate consignments of cocaine valued at US$100 million and $45 million respectively that were imported in containers at the Freeport of Monrovia lately last year and early this year.

Methamphetamine is a powerful, highly addictive stimulant that affects the central nervous system. It takes the form of a white, odorless, bitter-tasting crystalline powder that easily dissolves in water or alcohol.

Despite earlier denial by airport authorities that the boxes didn’t contain harmful drugs, the Government of Liberia subsequently confirmed during the week that the consignment of boxes intercepted by a contingent of the Armed Forces of Liberia assigned at the airport actually contained illicit drug called Methamphetamine, not Moringa leaves, as the airport management had said.

Accordingly, the chief of security at the RIA Samuel Freeman, who reportedly took delivery of the consignment, has been suspended, pending full investigation.

However, given separate experiences from the cocaine case in which jurors found three key defendants not guilty and subsequently released by the court only for the government to go after them the next day without any trace of their whereabouts in the country will not be repeated.   

Government stated in its statement that the Minister of Justice has, with immediate effect, ordered the Joint Security of Liberia including the LDEA, LNP and the NSA, to expand their investigations on the importation of Methamphetamine that is banned by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crimes, UNODC. 

The State wants all those involved with importation of the illegal drugs to be brought to justice, but given experiences of the past, we take this call with a pinch of salt, as there seems to be lack of political will to get to the root of the matter, which is not good for the image of our dear country. The youth of Liberia are drowning in addiction to dangerous drugs that are decimating their future.

The latest drugs, and the previous consignments of cocaine were smuggled at the country’s main seaport and airport separately. This is disgusting! There has been a collusion in making such illegal importation right before the eyes of relevant authorities.

It is in this light that we call for a well-intentioned, thorough investigation to bring out the real culprits rather than a cosmetic exercise that will sweep the actual issues under the carpet, only to present to the public, meaningless and inconclusive findings.