PIT Warns Gov’t Officials

-Of Making Comments

By R. Joyclyn Wea

The Presidential Investigation Team (PIT) setup to investigate the alleged missing money has warned government officials of line ministries and agencies to avoid making comments regarding the mysterious disappearance of the sixteen billion (LRD16 Billion) banknotes.

Though the team did not mention any penalty or punishment for violators, it claimed that comments made by officials of government would demoralize the gain and strives; the team is making to bring the matter to a logical conclusion.

The PIT gave the warning over the weekend at the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs, and Tourism (MICAT) on Capitol Hill in Monrovia.

The PIT full investigation which started October 1, 2018 is said to be a financial crime investigation that includes money laundering.

The dilemma into the billion dollars saga started early September of this year when the Minister of Justice, Frank Musa Dean announced to the public that money amounting to LRD9billion was allegedly missing and government was investigating circumstances surrounding the alleged missing money.

The statement by the Justice Minister was further buttressed by Information Minister Lenn Eugene Nagbe who confirmed in an interview that government was investigating a missing money over LRD15 billion though he (Nagbe) claimed that the CDC led government is not responsible for such, as the president was not knowledgeable about the billion.

Since the two statements from these officials which many sees as contradiction, there have being series of statements from other government officials and stalwarts of the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC); as well as protest by Liberians in an effort to enable government bring back or restitute said fund.

PIT chairman Charles Gibson complained “we want to warn officials of government and line ministries and agencies to desist from issuing press statements, releases, or appearing on talk shows, if you have any information bring it to the investigation team.”

Accordingly; Gibson said there is no need for FBI as they have trustworthy and competent people on the team that can handle the situation at hand.

Gibson explained that “we have the expertise, capacity but we want the public to have patient, trust and wait for the report from the investigation. We are asking the public to work with us including the media to give us any information that could help us get to the bottom of this investigation.”

Though the team claimed to have competent and trained investigators to handle the issue; the PIT chair and head of the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC), Charles Gibson in recent time have had internal issues with one deputy commissioner accusing him of a lot of integrity issues which is yet to be settled.

The public believes that the called by the presidential investigation team (PIT) is belated as more damages had already been done.