A sport promoter group is calling for investigation into allegations on the heel of startling revelations by the resigned Manager for Media Affairs at the Liberia Football Association (LFA), Danesius Marteh, over allegation of financial impropriety and misapplication of funds.
The group under the banner of ‘Citizens United for the Promotion and Development of Sports’ said the allegations by Mr. Marteh are grave and as such, they must be given attention by the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC).
In a statement issued on Wednesday, June 12, 2024 in Monrovia, the group called on the LACC to launch a probe into the matter at hand at the LFA.
It can be recalled that on June 6, 2024 the Manager for Media Affairs of the LFA Mr. Marteh tendered in his resignation, vacating the position as LFA media personality on scores of issues with some bordered on financial impropriety and misapplication of funds belonging to the LFA.
Marteh, in his resignation letter revealed how he was misled the president of the LFA, Mustapha Raji, to issue a release to the public that the headquarters of the LFA was valued at U$1.5 million, but a recent audit report, in which an expressed qualified opinion was rendered by the auditors, valued the headquarters at US$1.89 million.
He said Mr. Raji conceded to the report in the management letter noting,
“You misled me to issue a release to the public that the headquarters was valued at U$1.5 million but Montgomery revealed what a lot of us didn’t know. And the recent audit report in which an expressed qualified opinion was rendered by the auditors valued the headquarters at US$1.89 million to which you conceded to in the management letter.”
Marteh stated in his communication that, “And although then secretary-general Kollie A. Dorko (Atty.) admitted to the valuation of the project mentioned in the audit, you cleverly tried to reject the cost in the meeting you had with the finance and media departments by claiming that the case is in court.”
“I just laughed because it was a continuation of your pathological lies from waiting for the retention period of 90 days to now awaiting an outcome from the Commercial Court. Is the case about the valuation of the project or accumulation of interest from the retention fund? Didn’t all our projects, except for the headquarters, had a fixed cost, including the retention? So why is the headquarters project such an embarrassment? You have become the first LFA president to sue your former secretary-general but you and your lawyers have yet to request for an assignment since you filed your lawsuit in December 2023. I am encouraging you to pursue the case if your plan wasn’t to silence Isaac by putting him in jail and asking him to write an apologetic letter.”
Accordingly, amid these startling revelations, the Citizen United for the Promotion and Development of Sport is calling for urgent attention of sports lovers in Liberia, and by extension for the LACC to step in to investigate this grave allegation.
“The Citizens United for the Promotion and Development of Sports has been following issues within the LFA. And as a soccer enthusiastic organization determining the focus of soccer development, we are concern with deep interest as it relates to the tons of internal battling which has led to the resignation of two key staffs of the LFA. Major among them is the issue of financial impropriety raised therefore we think there is a need for a probe to be launched into this.”
“This issue of the LFA headquarters has been dragging ever since the official opening of the headquarters and we have been watching. But with that information coming from an insider; in fact, the media manager, then there is a need for concern and investigation.”
The citizens united for the Promotion and Development of Sports is a group of intellectuals from various backgrounds of professionalism, whose quest is to ensure that soccer development and promotion in Liberia are paramount and key, and was established in September, 2018.
