Monrovia — The Secretary General of the opposition Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), Jefferson Tamba Koijee, has leveled serious allegations against the management of the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company (LPRC), accusing it of engaging in secret petroleum importation deals that bypass legal procurement processes.
Speaking at a press conference in Monrovia, Koijee claimed that LPRC, under the leadership of Managing Director Amos Tweh, has imported petroleum products without conducting an international tender, a move he described as a “direct assault on the Liberian people.”
“Fellow Liberians, what is unfolding at the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company is nothing short of a carefully orchestrated fraud against the Liberian people,” Koijee declared.
While the LPRC has yet to issue an official response, Koijee referenced the amended and restated Public Procurement and Concessions Act, which mandates that all public procurement must go through the Public Procurement and Concessions Commission (PPCC). He alleged that the LPRC’s recent petroleum importation did not follow this legal process.
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“Today, Amos Tweh, the Secretary General of the Unity Party who now sits as Managing Director of the LPRC, has brazenly violated this law by secretly importing petroleum products without any international tender,” Koijee said.
He further alleged that the move is part of a broader scheme to enrich members of the ruling Unity Party and potentially manipulate the outcome of the 2029 elections.
“This is not just mismanagement, it is a deliberate criminal conspiracy designed to rob our nation of hundreds of millions, enrich a small circle of Unity Party loyalists, and quietly prepare the ground to rig the 2029 elections,” he warned.
Koijee challenged the Liberian public to demand accountability and answers from the LPRC leadership. He raised a number of pressing questions regarding the legitimacy of the petroleum contract:
“Was the contract subjected to PPCC processes? What is the value and duration of the contract? Which company was selected, and under what terms? Was a “No Objection” from the PPCC obtained?” He asked.
Koijee added: “Amos Tweh and his Unity Party cartel are using the LPRC as their private bank, looting public funds and enriching themselves while the majority of our people struggle to buy a cup of rice or a gallon of gasoline.”
He went on to describe the alleged actions as “organized economic gangsterism” disguised as governance.
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“We say enough is enough. Liberia is not for sale to a cartel of greedy men who think state power is a business venture. We will not remain silent while they mortgage our future and use petroleum dollars as a war chest to hijack the will of the people in 2029,” he said.
Concluding his remarks, Koijee called on both the Liberian public and the international community to take note of what he termed “economic crimes” being committed under the Unity Party-led administration.
“Let the nation and the world hear this loud and clear: the Liberian people are not asleep. We will resist with every fiber of our being. This country belongs to all of us, not to a handful of thieves hiding under the Unity Party banner,” he said.
As of press time, the LPRC has not responded to the allegations.
