A Letter from the Editor: FPA to Dunn Commission - No More Cooperation!!! Seven Bank Accounts Tied to Minister Banks
A Letter from the Editor: FPA to Dunn Commission - No More Cooperation!!!
10/17/08 - Rodney D. Sieh, rsieh@FrontPageAfrica.com
Dear Readers,
Since the revelation of a chain of e-mails linking several senior officials of the administration of President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf to allegations of corruption and bribery relating to a number of concession contracts and the lucrative Maritime program, FrontPageAfrica has always expressed its willingness to cooperate and assist with any investigation aiming to get to the bottom of the controversy dubbed, Knuckles-Gate II.
Dr. D. Elwood Dunn, a professor of political science at Sewanee: The University of the South and a former Minister of State for Presidential Affairs in the Liberian government has been tapped by President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf to head of an Ad Hoc Independent Commission to investigate the Knuckles-Gate II controversy.
That promise included our willingness to release all published and unpublished e-mails to a team of investigators or commission set up to probe the controversy. But despite our honest attempt to cooperate and help the administration get to the bottom of the saga, it seems at every turn of our efforts, we are being viewed as being in the tank or "Trojan Horses" of the opposition.
Through it all, we ignored everything thrown our way and embraced the commission set up by President Sirleaf and headed by historian, professor and former Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Dr. Elwood Dunn.
That embrace was further illustrated on Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2008 when the editor had a first meeting with Dr. Dunn where the editor reassured the head of the commission of FrontPageAfrica’s willingness to assist him in any way necessary to get to the bottom of controversy. The editor even went a step further to give Dr. Dunn, a few of the unpublished communications and a couple of bank accounts from the e-mails and communications which could be easily traced to the source or sources.
Besides e-mails, most of the communications include letters and documents that could be easily authenticated. Nevertheless, FPA went along with Dunn’s quest to “authenticate” the communications before moving to other aspects of the investigation.
The Editor has pleaded with Dunn to speed up the process so that many of those named in the probe would not cover their tracks while he spends his time trying to authenticate e-mails which even the President has admitted bear some truth.
For example, in one of the unpublished communications FPA was able to verify banking information of questionable accounts tied to Justice Minister Philip Banks with a simple inquiry at one of the banks in question. The accounts involved an apparent deal with a group of Israelis and include the following account numbers:
Seven Bank Accounts Tied to Minister Banks
Fizabue, Inc.: 13210004952018
Liberia International Business Investment, Inc.: 13210005052018
Mesudu Corporation Limited: 13210004852013
Liberia Mining & Investment Corporation, Inc.: 13210004352018
Liberia Consolidated Mineral Comp., Inc.: 13210004652014
SCNL, Inc.: 13210004552017
Liberia Mineral & Mining Enterprises Limited: 13210004452015
International Corporate Ventures (Libreria), Inc.: 13210004752019
A week after his first meeting with the Editor, on October 7, 2008, Dr. Dunn again returned to New Jersey, this time, along with Counselors Mohamedu F. Jones and Counsellor Jallah Babu, who Dr. Dunn claimed were prominent Liberian practicing lawyers in the United States and sole objectives was in the interest of Liberia.
Please keep in mind that the Editor deliberately met Dunn and these lawyers without the presence of a counsel as a sign, first of FrontPageAfrica’s confidence in the e-mail chain and to simply assured Dr. Dunn that we really had nothing to hide or no beef to grind.
During the meeting which was held in Dr. Dunn’s hotel room, the Editor again explained how the e-mails surfaced and reassured the committee that FPA was willing to cooperate in whatever manner necessary to authenticate the e-mails, short of revealing the source.
To the Editor’s dismay, on Oct. 8, a day after the Oct. 7, meeting, with Dunn and the two legal aides, FrontPageAfrica learned from an unimpeachable source that the entire meeting in Dunn’s hotel room was recorded. The source went as far as to provide details about what was discussed in that meeting. The Editor immediately called Dunn to express concerns. Dr. Dunn assured the Editor, that he would check with the two lawyers - Cllrs. Jones and Babu - to see if any of them had a recorder during the meeting, but assured the Editor that he had no role to play whatsoever and was unaware of the meeting being recorded.
Still puzzled and disturbed, the Editor, later that evening, wrote Dr. Dunn the following message via e-mail:
Hotel Meeting Recorded, FPA Learns
Dr. Dunn,
Hope all is well. In the wake of recent developments, I can no longer assist the committee with the ongoing investigation into the Knuckles-Gate affair. As I stated, the presence of Cllr. Mohamedu Jones, a former legal aide to Mrs. Sirleaf on the legal team makes me uncomfortable especially in the wake of what my sources tell me that the discussion in your hotel rooms with Cllrs. Jallah and Jones were recorded and relayed to the government.
If key details of what were discussed and where the meeting took place are already in the knowledge of some of the players involved, it has given me pause to reconsider how much more assistance I can give.
The bottom line is, I am only the conduit of the information and it seems that certain officials and presidential aides are obsessed with how the information was obtained then the content therein even after the President herself has acknowledged that some of the contents are true.
Furthermore, a flashback at some of the questions Mr. Jones asked appear to be in line with Mr. Cohen’s theory that someone concocted and manufactured the communications. I’m no hacker or criminal so I do not know from where that theory comes. Furthermore, the long this thing is drawn out, the more those involved are going to cover their tracks.
Also, one of my sources have informed me that their families are being interrogated and questioned. The family of another friend in Monrovia who has nothing to do with the communications is also being targeted as a result of this.
I really want to help and do what is right as illustrated by my openness and willingness to cooperate with you in the beginning but with this latest episode, coupled with a similar experience I had with the Executive Mansion in which some of the communications were sent to them for response was shared with Mr. Knuckles, I really feel uncomfortable with any further face-to-face meetings.
I hope you understand the dilemma I am facing, especially in the wake of recent incident where the back tires of my car were slashed with a knife. My security and the protection of FrontPageAfrica is the most important aspect for me right now. I’m not sure I can protect some of my sources by going further and assisting you.
The State Department and Justice Department have some of the communications, perhaps you can work with them in the quest you seek. I’ve furnished you some information including bank accounts which can be easily traced to the source or sources. As I said, the trail leads to IB Bank. That is the best I can do right now, considering what has transpired.
Sincerely
Rodney D.Sieh
Editor-in-Chief
FrontPageAfrica.com
editor@frontpageafrica.com
Dunn Mentions Firm tied to Chiluba's Fall
Lost in the Editor’s mind during the first and second meeting is the continued plea from the commissioner and his legal aides for FPA to surrender all the communications in its possession.
In a bid to protect its sources, the Editor agreed with Dr. Dunn that FPA may be willing to work along with an internationally-recognized or independent computer expert to help the commission authenticate the e-mails. Dr. Dunn noted that he was in the process of establishing link with a London-based firm which was involved in investigation leading to the fall of former Zambian President Frederic Chiluba.
The Editor was impressed with Dunn’s thinking and assurances that his commission would remain impartial. The editor was further impressed when a representative from the London-based firm called Dr. Dunn during the Editor’s first meeting with Dr. Dunn on Oct. 7, 2008.
Still troubled and taking a cautious approach especially to figure out how to assist the London-based firm without revealing the source, the Editor called Dr. Dunn on
London firm out? DLA Piper in: More Disturbing Revelations
Dr. Dunn,
I find it very disturbing to now find that Cllr. Mohamedu F. Jones has also offered legal aid to the Liberian International Shipping Registry(LISCR), managed by Mr. Yoram Cohen, one of the key players in the Knuckles-Gate controversy. The following is taken from his legal offices’ website: (http://www.liberianlegal.com/lawyer.htm) Liberia is a major non-resident corporate and maritime domiciliary. Liberian corporations, LLC’s, partnerships, and not-for-profit organizations are easily formed. We draft articles of incorporation and corporate governance documents, certificates of formation and other organizational documents, to facilitate the formation process, and act to maintain the corporation in good standing. Liberia is the world's premier open ship registry. It has a reputation for quality, efficiency, safety, and service. We offer Liberian maritime law counsel, as well as provide services for entering and maintaining registration in Liberia's registry.
I wish you had shared this with me prior to our meeting in New Jersey. I find this very deceptive and disturbing in the wake of recent incidents in this controversy including the tape-recording of our meeting in your hotel room and the slashing of my car tires. I hope and pray that this is news to you and that you were not part of any conspiracy to set me up or entrap me.
This offers FrontPageAfrica and myself more room to be skeptical about the true intentions of the Dunn commission, especially in the wake of our revelation that DLA Piper, the law firm which you have selected for me to turn over the published and unpublished e-mails to for an independent probe, was once managed by Lester Hyman, a former Charles Taylor lawyer, credited with bringing Mr. Yoram Cohen, head of the Liberian International Shipping Registry into the Martime fold.
In the wake of these developments, FrontPageAfrica has been advised by counsel to cease communications - either by e-mail or face-to-face - with the commission until a truly independent investigation can be sanctioned by the international community.
Good luck with your ‘investigation’
To our readers, a few things continue to disturb FrontPageAfrica:
Counselor Jones advertises on his website services relating to registration of Liberian off shore corporations and touts the benefits of such registration. Because LISCR is the exclusive agent for Liberian off shore corporation world wide, any lawyer doing corporate registration will have to deal with LISCR. A relationship with LISCR is desirable in providing the best corporate services to one's clients. Certainly, a perception of conflict may exist even if there are no actual conflict because Mr. Jones is put in a position where he has to investigate dealings of the corporation vital to the expansion of his internet practice, and a clean bill of health for LISCR from him will enhance his relationship with the registry. An investigation of this kind must certainly avoid those kinds of conflict. Because of the interconnectedness of key actors in the corruption probe with the investigators, it is best to en panel a more neutral set of investigators who neither stand to benefit or lose base on the outcome of the investigation.
That is our fear, despite our strong respect for Dr. Dunn and his qualifications for the job, we feel he may not have exercised the proper due diligence in recruiting aides to carry out his work. The task at hand is a very simple one. All the Liberian government has to do - if it has nothing to hide - is inquire from those officials named in the e-mails whether it came from their inboxes, suspend all involved pending the probe and look at the dates, times and events that have transpired in the aftermath of the controversy - as a result of the e-mail revelations: The LISCR deal has been put on hold, the bid for Western Cluster has been cancelled, an American businessman, Dr. d'Alesandro, one of many who fell prey to Mr. Knuckles’ alleged ills has gone on the record to detail his ordeal - a loss thousands of dollars. Furthermore, FPA has been able to authenticate the emails with the help of a credible computer expert and verification of several bank accounts unearthed from the e-mail chains. But here lies our dilemma: The direction of the investigation so far, appears to be an attempt to find out from FPA, the source of the e-mails as compared to getting to the bottom of the contents in e-mails.
About Madam Korpo and Oretha - Can't Make Ends Meet
To our readers, after fourteen years of civil war, when Liberia and Liberians need every penny to restore economic sanity, the revelations of the communications suggests something is wrong. All we are asking is a thorough, independent, transparent and objective look at the documents and communications by a reputable body with no strings attached.
To our readers, we wish to reassure you that this is not an opposition thing neither is it a vendetta thing aimed at the current administration. This is about Madam Korpo Kolllie, mother of six who told FPA recently that she cannot afford the L$25 per cup of rice, venting her anger as she described the Taylor regime as better than the current. This is also about Oretha Flomo, a resident of Louisiana says she and her family have resulted to eating bulgur wheat and kiss meat, a local iron meat collected from the swamp all because she and her family cannot afford to make ends meet. This is about thousands of Liberians stranded in exile, hoping for the right environment to return home and rebuild their shattered nation, emerging from war. This is about scores of Liberians in the United States whose temporary status is on the verge of coming to an end. Where do they go? Where do the call home? How can they harbor optimism of return home when the conditions that led them to exile remain the same?
This is about officials who may have used the office of the President for the selfish aims as implied in the following communications involving the Director General of the Cabinet Medina Wesseh:
medina wesseh wrote:
Uncle Willis
We might have to consider the cement activity now as there is a shortage than previously stated. Banke called and she is frantic wanting dates of arrival. so i have put some things in motion.
talked with tom jeff..and he will get feed back from steve. brief my mother on this. she is okay. so we might get the back up from ib. we might need deeds for our props.. mildred and I are standing by with ours.
want to see if we can even sell before it lands. if all is set it will be for may ending.
aside from lac and firestone who will be the other big users..mital being still on hold..
Snr. Executive Assistant to the President/
Director General of the Cabinet a.i
Monrovia, Liberia
Tel. xxx x xxx xxx
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