SENJEH, Bomi – Rep. Obediah Varney has accused the Western Cluster mining company of failing to fulfill its social corporate responsibilities.
Speaking on Radio Bomi on May 17, the lawmaker representing Bomi’s first electoral district said there had been no tangible development in the county since the company began operating there.
Instead, Varney suggested that the company brought more harm than benefits to Bomi. He even blamed Western Cluster for the poor conditions of the road from Tubmanburg to Monrovia.
The lawmaker expressed disappointment that a US$2.6 billion investment that extracted valuable resources from the county paid numerous employees only US$150 a month in salaries.
“We are not seeing anything happening here,” he said. “We have just a few of our people that are working with the company. This is very frustrating for a big company like this.”
Varney feared that Western Cluster could leave Bomi undeveloped, just as the Liberia Mining Company, which exploited the county’s resources in the 1960s, did.
“LMC left from here [and] we did not see any development in this county except lots of holes,” he said. “If we [do] not stand strong and put our feet hard against this company, Bomi will remain like this, and people will laugh at our leadership.”
Varney’s statement comes after the Ministry of Public Works suspended the company’s road user permit. The ministry said Western Cluster violated the permit’s terms by trucking iron ore outside the stipulated 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. period.
In its press release, the Ministry of Public Works said Western Cluster had also used trucks longer than the permitted 34 feet length and far beyond the allowable 30 tons.
Public Works also accused the company of failing to erect weighbridges at the point of departure and Klay Junction. The ministry further said Western Cluster had not maintained the corridor, making the road less pliable and difficult for other users to travel along.
The ministry threatened to elevate the suspension of the permit to a termination if Western Cluster fails to address the violations within 60 days.
Seizing on this pressure from the executive branch, Rep. Varney threatened to stop the company from operating if these conditions were not settled. He also called for the company to implement its Mineral Development Agreement with the Liberian government fully.
Pressure has been increasing on Western Cluster for its alleged failure to adhere to its legal obligations. On April 30, while assessing the rehabilitation of the Brewerville to Suehn Mecca road, President Joseph Boakai told Public Works officials that the mining company was not honoring its legal obligations and could face imminent closure. Boakai warned that the company’s operations were damaging major bridges.
Following the president’s remark, the National Bomi County Association in the Americas lauded him and pledged to push to ensure that all concession companies in Bomi do what is necessary to develop the county. The association said it would engage with the media and relevant stakeholders to hold those companies accountable.
In 2011, Western Cluster Limited signed a 25-year mineral development agreement with the Liberian government to mine iron ore in Bomi Hills, Bea Mountain, and Mano River production areas.
Featured photo by Richard Williams
