The Government of Liberia has run to court to repossess public parks outsourced to a private company for management.
By: Kruah Thompson
Monrovia, Liberia, October 31, 2024 – The Government of Liberia, through the Ministry of Justice, has filed a lawsuit against Green Park Management, a local company contracted by the former Weah administration to manage sports parks built by the Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs under a special presidential project.
The government is seeking to repossess five public parks currently under the company’s management, including Unification Park, PHP Park, Invisible Sports Park, New Kru Town Park, and West Point Sports Park.
On Tuesday, October 29, 2023, the Minister of Information, Culture Affairs, and Tourism, Jerolinmek Piah said this action followed a GAC audit report of the Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs’ special project, which uncovered significant issues with management arrangements for these state-owned properties and recommended that the government reclaim the parks.
The GAC report indicates that the parks were verbally turned over to the Monrovia City Corporation, which then entered into a 30-year management contract with Green Park Management. Notably, the report revealed that Green Park Management was established on August 23, 2023, just a month before the October elections, and is owned by Wilfried Paul, a 60% shareholder, and Fatu Kromah, a 40% shareholder.
Based on the GAC report, government has filed a lawsuit against the company to recover the properties and all funds generated under the Boakai administration.
The Ministry of Justice is representing the government in this case, aiming to return management of the parks to the Ministry of State, which will ensure proper management of public investments. Editing by Jonathan Browne
