MONROVIA – The legal spotlight has sharply turned on the Liberian Senate after Criminal Court “A” at the Temple of Justice moved to compel the production of key financial records tied to damning audit findings by the General Audit Commission. The action follows a formal petition filed by the Ministry of Justice seeking a Writ of Subpoena Duces Tecum against top Senate officials.
The petition, filed during the February Term A.D. 2026 before Resident Circuit Judge Roosevelt Z. Willie, names as Respondents the Secretary of the Liberian Senate, J. Nanborlor Sengbeli, the Comptroller Accountant of the Senate, and the Finance Officer or Accountant in the Office of the President Pro Tempore, along with “all those acting under the scope of their authority.”
In the court filing, the Ministry of Justice, represented by Special Independent Counsels Cllr. George D. W. Sagbeh, Cllr. Aloysius Toe, Cllr. Elisha T. J. Forkeyoh, and Cllr. Tomphy Dogba, states that it is investigating findings contained in the Auditor General’s System Review of the Financial Management System and Accounting Processes of the Liberian Senate for the period ended March 31, 2024.
According to the petition, the audit report “alleges possible financial statement fraud and misappropriation of public funds,” prompting the Ministry to seek judicial intervention to secure documents believed to be in the possession of Senate authorities.
The court document outlines several troubling audit observations. Among them, the audit allegedly found that payments were made from the budget line item “Grants” for salaries and operational expenses that were already budgeted under other line items. It further alleges that funds under “Operational Expense” were used for committee hearings and printing costs that had separate allocations.
One of the most alarming discrepancies cited in the petition concerns a massive variance in reported expenditures. The filing states that the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning fiscal outturn report for FY 2022 recorded operational expenses of US$7,730,897, while the Senate IFMIS ledger reportedly reflected US$15,242,090, leaving what the Ministry describes as an “unexplained variance of US$7,511,193 in unapproved expenditure.”
The petition also references expenditures spanning fiscal years 2018 or 2019 through 2023. While an approved budget of US$85,984,262 was reportedly allocated to the Senate during that period, the IFMIS ledger allegedly shows spending of US$117,984,169, resulting in an “unexplained and unapproved variance” exceeding US$26 million. Even when compared to the MFDP budget outturn report of US$91,040,129, discrepancies remain.
Further, the Ministry cites inconsistencies for FY 2023, noting that the Senate IFMIS ledger reported expenditures of US$18,138,150.03, while financial statements reflected only US$15,438,653. The MFDP fiscal outturn report reportedly captured US$18,529,108, deepening questions about reporting accuracy.
The court filing additionally flags non-remittance of employees’ and employer contributions to NASCORP, non-withholding and remittance of GST, payments allegedly made without evidence of contracts, and transactions lacking payment vouchers, invoices, or delivery notes. It also raises concerns about third party payments to employees instead of direct payments to service providers.
In its plea to the court, the Ministry argues that the requested documents including bank statements, contracts, payment vouchers, receipts, completion certificates, and records identifying individuals responsible for authorizing and disbursing funds are necessary “to ascertain whether or not public funds were abused and misappropriated, and establish the existence of probable cause.”
