Top: An overview of B\u2019hai Jozon, a border town in the Gbarzon District in Grand Gedeh County that separates Liberia and Cote d\u2019Ivoire. The DayLight\/Varney Kamara<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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By Varney Kamara<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
ZWEDRU \u2013 A cocoa lease agreement between Grand Gedeh County and a Burkinabe businessman has been canceled, County Attorney Wilkins Nah announced today on a local radio station. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nah said he had observed several irregularities in the deal that needed to be corrected, including not getting local people\u2019s consent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cUpon learning about those things, I immediately called the superintendent and informed him that the Minister of Justice has ordered that we put a halt to everything until we can put in those things that are required,\u201d said Nah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe superintendent and I agreed that we needed to correct some procedural errors in the agreement,\u201d Nah added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Grand Gedeh County administration recently signed the 30-year lease agreement granting Boubou Sebu the right to plant cocoa on 500 acres of land in the B\u2019hai administrative district. The deal is valued at US$600,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But local people, prominent citizens and civil society have criticized the deal for lacking consultation and transparency, among others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The announcement followed Superintendent Alex Grant\u2019s admission to an error in the cocoa agreement with a Burkinab\u00e9 businessman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI regret that the locals were not informed by the district\u2019s authorities.\u00a0 I think is a procedural error,\u201d Grant told a team of reporters in an interview in Zwedru City. \u201cOnce they don\u2019t agree, and we agreed, we can both come to the negotiation table and have a conversation around it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Grant said he signed the deal because he believed it protected the land from illegal activities and to generate revenue for the county.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The land in question, Grant said, had been conflicted in the past, and that signing a legal agreement was a way of ending that conflict. He thought the district\u2019s commissioner had informed local people of their consent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Commissioner of Gbarzon District, Kelvin Kayee, conceded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI signed it because I did not want to disrespect my boss,\u201d said Kayee. \u201cAfter that, I called a big meeting of community people and I apologized to them for not letting them know about it before signing it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Excluding the affected communities violates their right to consent, as stipulated in the Land Rights Act of 2018. The law requires consultations and the consent of communities before signing agreements regarding ancestral territories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The deal sparked outrage, with locals calling for the return of their land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know anything about this agreement. Nobody told me about it, and we only heard this news on the Toe Town radio station the day before yesterday,\u201d said Moses Taryor, Town Chief of B\u2019hai Jozon. \u201cI don\u2019t agree to it today, tomorrow, and forever.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe bush is for us. But people from outside are telling us that they sold our bush. We are not happy about it. We will tell the government to return our land,\u201d said Sam Nah, General Town Chief of B\u2019hai Niko Clan.<\/p>\n\n\n\nOne of several Burkinabe cocoa farms in the B\u2019hai Administrative District, Grand Gedeh County. The DayLight\/Varney Kamara<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
On Monday, a group of Grand Gedeh citizens had petitioned the southeastern county\u2019s legislative caucus, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the Liberia Land Authority for the cancellation of the deal, recommending disciplinary action against Superintendent Grant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe can no longer move freely in our forest to hunt, farm, or gather food,\u201d the petition read. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before that, the Grand Gedeh Bar Association criticized Grant for a lack of transparency, demanding a review of the deal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur goal is not to obstruct development but to ensure that every development is lawful and genuinely beneficial to the people of Grand Gedeh,\u201d Kanio Bai Gbala, President of the association, posted on Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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