Members of the Lower House yesterday took two hard-hitting decisions: one reducing parking fees charged by the City Corporation of Monrovia and a stay order on the imposition of US$0.14 for the termination of international calls.
The House resolved that the parking fees charged every vehicle in Monrovia should be reduced from LD$50 to LD$30 per hour.
The decision stemmed from recommendations by an AD-HOC Committee setup by plenary to probe the MCC parking system.
In its recommendations, the House Judiciary Committee suggested that the 15% of revenue to MCC should be reduced to 10%; that the previous 10% allotted to the Ministry of Public Works be abolished; and the reduction in fees and percentages should in no way affect the employment and salaries of workers.
The committee recommended that in accordance with the Public Procurement and Concession Commission (PPCC) laws, contracts to manage the parking system be advertised to allow potential Liberian companies to participate in the bidding process for transparency purposes.
It also provides that the city management should be given the authority to expand on its collection areas.
The committee discovered that the contract with City Parking Management, Inc. expired five months ago, and that City Parking Lots issued for these services are public services that have been overly commercialized.
According to the Committee Chairman, Montserrado County Representative Sekou S. Kanneh, the two companies were not treated equally in terms of percentages and payment.
They observed that Liberia services Corporation, as per the agreement, was forced to pay US$136,000 on an annual basis before any money was shared. Consultant was made to pay 25% of all proceeds generated from the services.
A communication was then forwarded to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf by the House notifying her office about the changes and requesting her to contact MCC about the necessary changes and act accordingly.
Also recommended in the Legislature yesterday was that a stay order be placed on the imposition of US$0.14 or any other tax to provide for involvement of Finance, Post and Telecommunications ministries, LTA and the service providers, the mobile phone companies.
Any additional fees or tax should not lead to a cost that exceeds the average amount paid in the sub-region for the termination of international calls, the Committee on Post and Telecommunication recommended.
The house’s latest move came as a result of a communication from Maryland County Representative James Biney requesting plenary to probe into US$0.14 charge by LTA on international calls from Liberia.
Plenary setup a committee to investigate the matter and the committee held two public hearings and made the above recommendations.
