House Report Anti Investment
……Rep. Ghousa says it sends bad image for business climate
Following the release of the House of Representative Special Committee report on the violent protest in Bea Mountain, Kinjor, last month, a lawmaker said that the report is anti-investment and sends a bad business image of Liberia to the outside world.
Representee Thomas Ghousa of district number five Grand Bassa County told a team of reporters on Tuesday that part of the report does not send good image of the country to the outside world.
He said part of the report called for the resignation or transfer of the Country Manager of BMMC, Mr. Debar Allen, to foster accountability and restore community confidence.
He said they have documentary and visual evidence that protestors wanted him out because of his ethnicity-Bassa.
“Some banners called for Mr. Allen to go because he is from Grand Bassa County, and they wanted a citizen from Grand Cape Mount to occupy the position. This is wrong,” he said.
According to him, it violates Mr. Allen’s constitutional rights. “Our constitution says that any Liberian can work in any place once he or she is qualified. And by them denying Mr. Allen from not working there is a complete violation of his constitutional right. This is wrong and we should not encourage that.”
He added, “similar protest was carried out on an employee, Jackson You from Nimba. That he was not a citizen from Cape Mount County.”
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Rep. Ghousa said that such an attitude by citizens is unhealthy for the country.
Recently, the speaker of the house of Representatives set up a committee to investigate the protest which took place in Kinjor, Grand Cape Mount County. The Committee submitted its report in session on Tuesday.
He said the committee in its report said Mr. Allen was accused of standing in the way of development and other charges. Mr. Allen should have been invited by the committee to vindicate himself, but the committee failed to do so. That, he said is a violation of his rights to hearing.
But the representative said, the report violates itself. Hon. Ghousa said section 14 of the petitioner of the count recommended that Mr. Debar Allen, serving in his capacity as Country Manager, is a recipe for continues resistance from the workers. The committee craves the indulgence to invite Mr. Allen to address himself to it.,” he said. In this light, he said, the committee failed to invite Mr. Allen.
But contrary to inviting Mr. Allen, he said, the committee went ahead to recommend his removal and transfer to another position.
According to him, “what if citizens from Grand Bassa one day come out and say all citizens from Grand Cape Mount should not work in Bassa, what will happen? I think this is wrong.”
He said Mr. Allen should have been invited to address himself to these allegations, but that was not done. More to that, there are visual evidence in their possession that show the protestors saying Mr. Allen should leave because he is a Bassa man.
He considered it as complete xenophobic and does not augur well for the country. He said this report if considered will be serving a bad precedent in the country.
Well understood through our constitution, but please understand human climax change also. Meaning that, these this people are not willing to work for other but prefer to work for themselves. Please advocate to investigate for yourselves the work done by Mr. Debar Allen who hailed from your county. If you hear citizens protesting against an individual not all for their own again, sometime the behavior, the approach, the tough and ect.