Society-Legislature Senator Wants Video, Night Clubs Closed By Hilary Vasco Wiagbe MONROVIA, August 10 (LINA) - Sinoe County Senator Mobutu Vlah Nyenpan has called for the closure of night and video clubs to enhance efforts aimed at containing the Ebola virus. Senator Nyenpan said the continuous operations of these entertainment centers is counter-productive to the fight against the killer Ebola disease in Liberia, according to the Liberia News Agency (LINA). He made the call Friday when members of the Liberian Senate deliberated on a communication sent to them by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on August 7, 2014, requesting Plenary to concur with the State of Emergency she declared on August 6. Nyenpan argued that since these clubs attract huge crowds, the Ebola virus could easily be spread among those who go there, thereby thwarting efforts by the government and partners to combat the disease. The Sinoe County Senior Senator also underscored the need for the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare medical teams and the military to work together in areas where the movement of residents is restricted so that the people can build confidence in the process. Nyenpan, who voted for the endorsement of the State of Emergency, pointed out that given the past record of the Liberian military, the huge presence of military personnel in affected areas could instill fear within the residents, especially when the soldiers operate alone. Meanwhile, the Senator has urged Plenary to set up a team to liaise with the National Task Force on Ebola to better explain to their constituencies as to how the State of Emergency will impact their lives and communities. LINA HVW/JGT/PTK Society-Meat Two Nabbed In Bomi Over Dried Bush Meat By David Seedee, LINA Bomi County Correspondent TUBMANBURG, August 10 (LINA) - Agents of the Forestry Development Authority (FDA) have arrested two persons in Bomi County for alleged illegal possession of bush meat with the intent to engage in commerce. Messrs. Morris Sotee and Momo Johnson were arrested on July 29, 2014 shortly after the government placed a ban on the sale of bush meat as one of the measures to curb the spread of the Ebola disease, according to the Liberia News Agency. A charge sheet signed by the Senior Magistrate at the Bomi County Magisterial Court, Zuannah Darkoi, said Sotee and Johnson were traveling from Gbarpolu to Monrovia when they were arrested by FDA personnel at the Klay Checkpoint for possessing a variety of dried bush meat. According to the charge sheet, the vehicle the pair was riding in with license plate number BC 7941was loaded with the meat. The charge sheet said the defendants’ actions are in violation of the Regulation 25 of the 1988 new Wildlife and National Park Law and the recent ban announced by government. Meanwhile, Sotee and Momo have been released on bail awaiting court trial. LINA DPS/JGT/APTK Health-Ebola-Experts Senator Ballout Suggests Gov’t Seeks Expert Aid By Hilary Vasco Wiagbe MONROVIA, August 10 (LINA) - Maryland County Senior John Ballout wants Liberia to also solicit ‘technical and professional support’ from countries that have experienced the outbreak of the Ebola disease, and not financial support alone. Ballout stressed that it was prudent for experts from Ebola-experienced countries to come to Liberia to share with Liberians methods and strategies they applied to successfully contain the disease. According to the Liberia News Agency (LINA), the Senator spoke Friday when members of the Liberian Senate deliberated on a communication served them by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on August 7, 2014, requesting Plenary to concur with the State of Emergency she declared on August 6 this year. Ballout noted that doing so will go a long way in helping Liberia to score success in the fight against the Ebola virus. At the same time, the Senate Committee Chair on Post and Telecommunications has underscored the need for members of the Liberian Senate to exercise their oversight responsibilities in the implementation of the State of Emergency by educating their people. He reminded his colleagues that they are under obligation to defend the interest of the people whom they represent at all times, even under a State of Emergency. Ballout further said that attempts by Liberians to combat the Ebola virus must be ‘substantive but not rhetorical’. LINA HVW/JGT/PTK Health-Ebola-Religion Religious Leaders Join Ebola Fight In Lofa By Korboi Gbelewala, LINA Lofa County Correspondent VOINJAMA, August 10 (LINA) - Religious leaders in Lofa County say they will continue to fast and pray for God’s intervention in the fight against the deadly Ebola virus in the county. During their presentation at a Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) meeting held recently in Voinjama, they said there was a need for the involvement of religious leaders in the fight against the deadly virus, especially as government was faced with financial constraints. The religious leaders promised to do away with funeral services and to sensitize their congregations in churches and mosques on the danger and preventive measures against Ebola. They also pointed out that the people of Lofa are dying daily, noting that they as religious people needed to invoke God’s divine intervention in order to curb this national catastrophe. They are at the same time calling on Lofians as well as other Christian and Muslim communities elsewhere in the country to join them in seeking God’s role in the fight against Ebola not only in Lofa, but the country as a whole. LINA KKG/TSS/PTK Health-Ebola-Corridor Massalay Wants Corridor In Ebola-Affected Areas By Hilary Vasco Wiagbe MONROVIA, August 10(LINA) -The Senior Senator of Grand Cape Mount County, Abel Massalay, has called on government to open “an humanitarian corridor” to areas affected by the Ebola Virus, where the movement of the people is restricted under the State of Emergency. He said this was necessary to allow the population access to food, medicine, water and other essentials during the lifespan of the emergency. Massalay spoke Friday when members of the Liberian Senate deliberated on a communication served them by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on August 7, 2014, requesting Plenary to concur on the State of Emergency instituted by her on August 6, 2014, according to the Liberia News Agency. He expressed fear that failure to open the corridor would result to serious humanitarian crisis in the Ebola-affected areas, putting the health, safety and security of the people at risk. The Grand Cape Mount Senator also admonished the government to ensure the reopening of all health centers shut down across the country due to the outbreak of the deadly disease to help reduce the increasing non-Ebola death rate among the people. He stated that information available to him suggests Liberians are dying from common curable diseases because they do not have access to health facilities. LINA HVW/JGT/PTK Society-Emergency Monrovians Embrace State of Emergency By Richard Stephens MONROPVIA, August 10 (LINA) - Several residents of Monrovia have praised the government for declaring a State of Emergency as part of efforts to contain the deadly Ebola virus around the country. The residents, including members of the Liberia Marketing Association who spoke in separate interviews with the Liberia News Agency at the weekend, said the decision was in the right direction because it would ensure the deadly virus is quickly contained. Madam Korpo Flomo, a dry goods seller in the Red Light Market in Paynesville and John Sackie, advisor to the Superintendent of the market, admonished their compatriots to adhere to the State of Emergency because it is intended to save lives. Both Flomo and Sackie pleaded with the government to pay civil servants for two to three months while they are waiting at home for the 90-day period of the State of Emergency to expire to enable them cater for their families. Also speaking, Alieu Kamara, a commercial driver, who commutes between Monrovia and Gbarnga in Bong County, added that while the imposition is necessary, it would, however, hinder their operations, especially in areas that are quarantined by government. Kamara appealed to the government to formulate a program that would enable Liberians who are not employed by government to continue to feed their families while the battle against the Ebola virus rages. President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf declared a state of emergency on August 6 for 90 days as part of measures to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus that has claimed scores of lives in Liberia. LINA RS/JGT/TSS/PTK Health-Ebola-Senators Senators Want Access Passes To Ebola-Affected areas By Hilary Vasco Wiagbe MONROVIA, August 10 (LINA) - Members of the Upper House of the National Legislature have underscored the need for the National Ebola Task Force to issue them access passes to visit areas affected by the Ebola virus without molestation. The Senators said they are prepared to contribute their quota to the fight against the disease, especially in their constituencies, noting that they cannot do so because of the restriction placed on the movement of people under the State of Emergency. According to the Liberia News Agency (LINA), the lawmakers made the request Friday when they were deliberating on a communication served them by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on August 7, 2014, requesting Plenary to concur on the State of Emergency she declared on August 6, 2014. The request originated from Bong County Senator Henry W. Yallah, who is Chairman of the Senate Committee on Information, Broadcasting, and Tourism. The Senators expressed fear that the military could molest or deprive them access if they venture into restricted areas since the soldiers do not know them individually as members of the Senate. Responding, Senator Peter Coleman of Grand Kru County, who is also a member of the National Ebola Task Force, assured his colleagues that he will take their request to the Force. LINA HVW/JGT/PTK Society-Appointments Grand Gedeh Supt. Solo Swaps County Staff By Chris Nyenapee, LINA Grand Gedeh County Correspondent ZWEDRU, August 10 (LINA) - Grand Gedeh County Superintendent Peter L. Solo has made two new nominations in the administration of the county. The Commissioner of Tchien District Josephus Garley was nominated as County Inspector, while the Commissioner of Tarlueville Township, Abraham G. Garduo, was named Tchien District Commissioner. A release from the superintendent’s office said the two men will act in their respective positions pending their confirmation by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. Their appointments, the release added, follows the death of retired Brig/Gen. Joseph D. Jarlee, former County Inspector, after a brief illness on July 4, 2014. LINA CTN/JGT/PTK Health-Ebola-Taskforce Bassa To Set Up Ebola Task Force In Districts Johnson Liway, LINA Grand Bassa County Correspondent BUCHANAN, August 10 (LINA) - In an effort to combat the deadly Ebola epidemic, Grand Bassa County is to shortly establish Ebola Task Force in all five districts of the county. At a just-ended two-day meeting with district superintendents, commissioners, paramount and clan chiefs, Zoes and Elders in the provincial capital Buchanan, Grand Bassa County Superintendent Etweda Cooper said the safety of the citizens is paramount and so she will do all within her power to save their lives. She said to carry out this exercise would require a budget of about US$250,000, covering border points, districts, chiefdoms, clans, towns and villages in the county. Cooper, who made the disclosure recently in an interview with the Liberia News Agency, said the county was mandated by the Internal Affairs Ministry to set up Task Forces at all levels. She disclosed that a few cases of suspected Ebola have been reported, but the surveillance team is investigating them. Supt. Cooper said during the meeting, the districts asked for thermo flashes to be used at the Timbo River bordering Rivercess County, the St. John River and other border points so that trained health workers and security forces can detect people with high temperatures leaving or entering the county. About 125 persons participated in the two-day meeting. LINA JBL/PTK Society-Crime Four Indicted For Alleged Kidnapping In River Gee By Chris Nyenapee, Grand Gedeh County Correspondent FISH TOWN, August 10 (LINA) - The Grand Jury at the 14th Judicial Circuit Court in Fish Town, River Gee County, has indicted four persons for allegedly kidnapping of a four-year-old boy in April this year. According to the Liberia News Agency, Klabo Kayee, a school principal, Betty Nyema of Klaboken Town in Chedepo District, River Gee County, and two others who were not identified, were arrested and charged by police for the kidnapping of Eric Mannie Nyema, Jr. in Klaboken Town. The police report said “Little Eric,” as he is commonly called, mysteriously disappeared from the town on April 29, 2014 and has not been found since despite massive search for him by both the police and residents of the town. The police report indicated that during preliminary investigation, all four accused had allegedly confessed to kidnapping the boy, but refused to say whether or not he is dead or alive. The accused are presently in police custody awaiting trial at the 14th Judicial Circuit, according to the police report. LINA CTN/JGT/PTK Society-Judiciary Lesser Crowd For 2nd Judicial Circuit Court Opening By Johnson Liway, LINA Grand Bassa County Correspondent BUCHANAN, August 10 (LINA) – There will be a lesser crowd at the opening of the August Term of Court at the 2nd Judicial Circuit Court in Grand Bassa County on Monday, the Court’s Clerk has disclosed. In an interview with the Liberia News Agency at the weekend, Clerk Emmanuel Kwehgar said the assigned Circuit Judge William B. Sarnor will preside over the August Term of Court. “As part of the fight against the spread of the deadly Ebola epidemic, no large crowd will be allowed to attend the opening ceremony,” Kwehgar told LINA. He named those to be in attendance as the County Superintendent, Magistrates of the county, local Bar Association, Public Defenders, prosecuting attorneys and essential staff of the Circuit Court. He disclosed that for the August Term of Court, there are six criminal and 10 civil cases on the trial docket. LINA JBL/TSS/PTK
Posted on: Sun, 10 Aug 2014 20:24:33 +0000
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