By Patrick N. Tokpah (Bong County Correspondent)
Residents of Gbondoi Town in Bong County District 6 have vowed to file a lawsuit against the county’s legislative caucus for allegedly squandering the controversial Gbondoi Clinic fund.
The Gbondoi residents described the alleged action of the Caucus as wickedness to the highest degree, on grounds that their health needs as citizens cannot be overemphasized.
The citizens, expressing their disenchantments through one Morris Borbor who narrated that since 2014, they were promised by the former Bong County Senator, now Vice President, Jewel Howard Taylor to construct a clinic in the area; but according to them, the promise has not been fulfilled.
According to the citizens, to their utmost surprise, it has been rumoured in some quarters of Liberia that there is a health facility in Gbondoi that has been in the national budget in the past budget years.
The disenchanted Gbondoi residents described the rumour as false and misleading, noting that it has the tendency to undermine their well-being as citizens living in that part of Bong County noting, “There is no health facility here in Gbondoi; those who are saying that there is a health facility are lying to the government.”
“There has been no site identified for clinic construction here yet, so how did the government capture the so-called Gbondoi Health Center or Clinic in the national budget for the past few years? the residents wondered.
They have vowed to drag members of the Bong County Legislative Caucus to court for allegedly squandering the clinic fund but call on their lawmaker, Representative Moima Briggs Mensah of District 6 to provide clarity on the controversial Gbondoi clinic issue.
However, when contacted, the Bong County Legislative Caucus Chair who is also District 6 Representative Moima Briggs Mensah said she is not aware of any clinic in Gbondoi.
According to Rep. Mensah, during the 11th day sitting and the 6th quarter of the House of Representatives, she was surprised that when she raised the concern of the residents in plenary, Bong County District 3 Representative Josiah Marvin Cole said there is a structure in the area called Gbondoi Health Center, despite a report that no health center existed there.
Rep. Mensah challenged Rep. Cole to locate the site of the clinic, and called on CSOs, the media and citizens to demand Rep. Cole to show the location of the clinic in the county.
Mensah assured citizens that there will be no budgetary allotment for the controversial clinic under her watch now as Representative.
A document in the possession of the Inquirer Newspaper revealed that the invisible Gbondoi Health Center has been receiving a budgetary allotment since 2019 up to the present in the National Budget.
Many political pundits have branded members of the caucus as greedy politicians who are self-centred and selfish on grounds that they are only interested in their personal development in the County.
The critics of the Bong Caucus have promised to join resdents of Gbondoi Town in filing a lawsuit against the Caucus.
Moreover, they have vowed to lead a campaign against the re-election of members of the 54th Caucus, on grounds that they have been a liability to the county, since their elections.
