NATIONAL NEWS
CAPITOL HILL – The Liberian Senate has rejected President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s proposal to nullify a multimillion-dollar telecommunications monitoring concession with Telecom International Alliance (TIA), instead recommending that the contract be renegotiated.
The decision follows an investigation by a Joint Legislative Committee, which concluded that outright cancellation could violate the agreement’s dispute-resolution clauses and constitutional guarantees of due process.
In a November 13, 2025 letter to Senate Pro Tempore Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence, President Boakai said the Executive had suspended the concession between TIA and the Liberia Telecommunications Authority (LTA), citing alleged breaches of the Public Procurement and Concessions Commission (PPCC) Act.
By: Sampson W Weah – sampsonwweah7@gmail.com
He urged lawmakers to void the deal, claiming procurement rules were ignored and that TIA’s corporate standing at the time of bidding was questionable.
The President also argued that contract amendments unfairly favored TIA, increasing its revenue share from 35 percent to 49 percent and extending the agreement by 20 years without demonstrated financial benefit to the state. He described these changes as fraudulent and grounds for cancellation.
The Senate tasked a Joint Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, Claims and Petitions, and Post and Telecommunications to probe the matter.
Public hearings involved the General Auditing Commission (GAC), Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC), Ministry of Justice, Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA), the LTA, and TIA.
Several state institutions, including GAC, PPCC, LACC, and the Ministry of Justice, supported the President’s concerns, estimating that Liberia may have lost over US$50 million in potential revenue.
However, the LRA cautioned that abrupt termination of the contract could disrupt ongoing revenue collection.
TIA Managing Director William F. Saamoi Jr. denied wrongdoing and urged dialogue rather than dissolution. “This is not a hostile engagement,” Saamoi told senators. “We respect government oversight and believe the issues can be addressed within the existing contract.” He referenced a 2024 Justice Ministry opinion validating the concession and said the monitoring system has enhanced telecom revenue collection and improved fraud detection.
The Joint Committee concluded that the dispute is contractual and should be resolved through legal channels outlined in the agreement, rather than through legislative nullification.
The report cited Clause 21.2 on dispute settlement, Article 20(a) of the Constitution on due process, and Article 25, which prohibits impairment of contracts.
Judiciary Committee Chair Augustine S. Chea noted that once the agreement was ratified, the Legislature’s authority over it effectively ended. “Ratification is not an ongoing power,” Chea said, describing the Senate’s role as functus officio.
Senators were divided. Samuel G. Kogar acknowledged the Executive’s right to challenge the agreement but warned that canceling it could hurt Liberia’s credibility with investors. Edwin Melvin Snowe supported renegotiation as a more practical solution.
Ultimately, a majority of senators adopted the committee’s recommendation for renegotiation. The Senate will now notify the House of Representatives, which previously voted to re-ratify the agreement.
Should the two chambers disagree, the issue will go to a conference committee before being forwarded to the Executive for further action.
