Monrovia — The leadership of the Union of Liberian Associations in the Americas (ULAA) has debunked a falsehood circulating that it has received the initial US$100,000 that was promised to that body by the former Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Mr. Nathaniel F. McGill.
This clarification was made to a team of investigative journalists who had sought to ascertain from ULAA that the United States Government-sanctioned McGill has since made good on his promise of giving the ULAA leadership the US$100K he promised them in 2022. Even though the source, who made the claim failed to show any documentary pieces of evidence of when and how the pledge was settled by McGill, journalists still thought to reach out to ULAA’s J. Shiwol Kamara’s leadership.
The ULAA leadership said they, too, have heard and seen such “diabolical lie” that is being circulated amongst its membership. They further stated that this lie is being spewed out by some individuals in the opposition, who are vying for the leadership post within the body as ULAA heads to election on September 16, 2023 in Philadelphia, during its 49th General Assembly. Those opposition individuals made the allegation when they were guests on Focus On Liberian (FOL) on August 22, 2023.
Impeccable anonymous sources within the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning and the Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs told the investigative journalists that no money has been sent to ULAA leadership since McGill made the pledge to them.
In addition to the US$100K pledge sanctioned McGill made, which is yet to be fulfilled as was found out by journalists, he also promised the body in that same March 2022 that he would make sure that US$300K budgetary allocation is given to their Liberian Diaspora Initiative Fund (LDIF).
On March 27, 2022, the then Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, McGill, representing President George Manneh Weah at ULAA’s 47th Inauguration Ceremony held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, pledged, on behalf of the Liberian Government, US$100K in addition to promising the diasporan Liberian group another US$300K to be placed in the 2023 national budget. Again, there is no budgetary line item in the 2023 Liberian government’s approved budget that reflects in favor of ULAA.
Meanwhile, the ULAA leadership is urging the Liberian Government, especially authorities at the Ministries of Finance and State for Presidential Affairs, to come out and publically address the rumors.
According to the ULAA leadership, this will allay the concerns of the members and put to bed the lies that are being told.