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- Cllr. Cooper Kruah was a shareholder in a logging and mining company while he served as Minister of Posts and Telecommunications<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Universal Forestry Corporation (UFC) received nearly a dozen mining licenses and one logging contract while Cooper was a minister<\/em><\/li>
- Kruah tried to cover up his conflict of interest by pretending to turn over his shares with an apparently fake company document<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- With Kruah a shareholder, UFC was involved in an illegal subcontract, illicit logging, and smuggling of logs<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Amid evidence of Kruah\u2019s and UFC\u2019s offenses, both the Forestry Development Authority and the Ministry of Mines and Energy did not punish Kruah or UFC<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
MONROVIA \u2013 In May, President George Weah dismissed<\/a> then Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Cooper Kruah after attending a Unity Party rally, ending the veteran lawyer\u2019s four-year stint in the government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kruah\u2019s departure sparked an instant controversy\u2014betrayal<\/a> versus \u201cpolitical intolerance.\u201d<\/a> However, he has left a host of irregularities in the logging and mining industries with impunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These offenses range from a conflict of interest to an unlawful extraction of minerals and timber in his hometown of Nimba County. The acts violate the Liberian Constitution<\/a>, the Code of Conduct for Public Officials<\/a>, the National Forestry Reform Law<\/a> and the Minerals and Mining Law of 2000<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
UFC was established on February 9, 1986. Edward Slangar, a former presidential advisor, holds 10 percent. Jim Kyung follows with 70 percent. Naranyan Vasnani, a foreign national, holds five percent. And Cooper Kruah the remaining five percent, according to the company\u2019s legal documents at the Liberian Business Registry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
President Weah appointed Kruah in February 2018 and was confirmed by the Senate in August 2018. However, Kruah did not relinquish his shares or take other legal actions to avoid a conflict of interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
UFC would go on to have more than a dozen mining licenses and a logging contract in Nimba and Grand Bassa, while Kruah served as the Postmaster General of the Republic of Liberia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cover-up Exposed<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
The DayLight initially exposed<\/a> then-Minister Kruah in an investigation last year. After the publication, Kruah lied that UFC amended its article of incorporation in 2019. \u201cThis amendment of the article of incorporation is the best evidence for the public,\u201d Kruah said in a statement<\/a> at the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But records of the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA) show that UFC did not amend its article of incorporation in 2019. Companies pay a fee at the LRA to amend their legal documents. UFC did not make any such payment, official records show.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This new evidence reinforces The DayLight\u2019s previous reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Moreover, UFC\u2019s so-called article of incorporation, obtained by The DayLight, physically appears to be fake. The document misspells Kruah son`s name: \u201cPrince M. Kuah\u201d instead of Prince M. Kruah. It also came more than one and a half years since Kruah became a government official.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Conflict of interest aside, evidence points to UFC\u2019s violations of forestry and mining laws while Cooper Kruah was a minister.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Stealing Logs<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
A high-profile 2021 report found UFC committed a number of offenses. The report said UFC did not declare \u201cmassive\u201d harvesting of timber in the Sehzueplay Community Forest, felled trees outside of its contract area, and transported logs to a sawmill without valid documents. The report also found UFC did not pay the community and the government any fees for the logs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Illegally harvesting timber violates a number of forestry legal frameworks, including Liberia\u2019s Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA)<\/a> with the European Union. No actions were taken against UFC with then Minister Cooper Kruah as one of its shareholders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) report for 2019-2020 shows UFC skipped an environmental permit<\/a>. And The DayLight reported UFC did obtain a harvesting certificate before operating, citing a ranger\u2019s memo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/stage.thedaylight.org\/wp68\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Sehzueplay.png\")
Logs Universal Forestry Corporation, owned by then Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Cooper Kruah, illegally harvested in Tappita, Nimba County. The DayLight\/James Harding Giahyue <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n As of March 2022, UFC owed both the affected community and the government<\/a> US$155,000, according to the joint implementation committee of the VPA. This is the second-highest debt<\/a> owed by a logging company at the time. The FDA did not grant The DayLight\u2019s request for UFC\u2019s updated outstanding payment, another violation of forestry laws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
UFC subcontracted an illegitimate company without the approval of the FDA or the consent of the leadership of Sehzueplay Community Forest. The manager of Ihsaan Logging Company Mohammed Paasawe was dismissed as Superintendent of Grand Cape Mount County for corruption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The FDA could have avoided all of this, though. It ignored the Regulation on Bidder Qualification, by prequalifying UFC to operate, while then Minister Cooper Kruah remained its shareholder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- Amid evidence of Kruah\u2019s and UFC\u2019s offenses, both the Forestry Development Authority and the Ministry of Mines and Energy did not punish Kruah or UFC<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Kruah tried to cover up his conflict of interest by pretending to turn over his shares with an apparently fake company document<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Universal Forestry Corporation (UFC) received nearly a dozen mining licenses and one logging contract while Cooper was a minister<\/em><\/li>
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/stage.thedaylight.org\/wp68\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/UFC-goldmine-.png\")