‘River Cess Did Not Benefit US$604.2K from Road Fund’

River Cess County Senator Wellington Geevon Smith is requesting the national government to conduct a comprehensive audit into the collection and usage of the national road fund.

The Senator’s request is prompted by an annual report presented to the Senate, displaying graphic images that River Cess benefited the amount of US$604,263.39 as disbursement for road maintenance in the county.

“To say that in 2020/2021 the National Road Fund spent US$604,263.39, more than half a million dollars, on roads in River Cess County is yet to convince me. Rivercess did not benefit from the worth of over Six Hundred Thousand United States Dollars,” Senator Smith declared.

Senator Smith emphasized that for those Senators Senators representing leeward counties, “we are sensitive to issues that are demeaning to our people. When you are talking River Cess to Grand Bassa, you are sleeping in the mud.”

According to the report displayed to Senate reporters at Senator Smith’s Capitol Building office, the funds for the maintenance in that county was realized from the National Road Fund program for fiscal year 2020/2021.

“What informed this decision to call on the national government to audit and investigate is that injustice in one place is injustice everywhere. If the National Road Fund says it spent more than half a million dollars in River Cess then there is a reason for us to call for investigation and audit of the entire road fund.”

In fact, this report is offensive to my people. Two weeks ago, I had to send US$2,500 to the office of the development superintendent to mobilize the young people in Cestos to buy crushed rocks and shovels to fix some of the bad spots, and then you say you spent over six hundred thousand dollars,” Senator Smith said. 

According to him, he spent the entire year 2020 in Rivercess campaigning for the Special Senatorial Election that year. 

“Then you are telling me you spent that amount of United States dollars on roads in River Cess? Convince me.”

He maintained that citizens of River Cess are experiencing the inconvenience of sleeping in the mud which, he regrets, is their lifestyle presently. 

“We will make official representation to the plenary of the Senate.”

It may be recalled that the issue of the National Road Fund was one of the major factors leading to the National Legislature’s decision to launch impeachment proceedings and subsequent removal of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, Kabineh M. Ja’neh, in 2018.