The third state witness in the ongoing US$500 Million cocaine trial at Criminal Court “C” at the Temple of Justice disclosed that the 9 Ghanaians suspected of bringing the drug into the country are also involved in what he called ‘Trans-Atlantic Trade’

The Criminal Investigation Division (CID) of the Liberia National Police (LNP), Steve Zargo, in his testimony yesterday told the court that during investigations conducted with other international security institutions revealed that the defendants were involved in the trade.

Witness Zargo, testifying for the government of Liberia, told the court that that the IMO (6906559) Blue Atlantic vessel arrested with the 92 barrels of cocaine, along with the accused, is owed by a Nigerian citizen.

According to the witness, the investigations revealing that the defendants were involved in Trans-Atlantic Trade, as well as charges of illegal possession and distribution of dangerous drugs, were conducted with the import of the Americans, Germans and French high security personnel.

The American-trained security officer told the court that the accused also used a canoe in New Kru Town and the Township of West Point to arrive on the shores of the Atlantic.

“We discovered that the vessel had secretly gotten into contact with a canoe in West Point and whatever was brought on shore could not be readily revealed other than an explanation that they had brought a sick man on shore.

The CID boss told the court that the cocaine found in the OMI (6806559) Blue Atlantic vessel was the largest in the history of Liberia, further revealing to the court that during the discovery and arrest of the drugs, all of Liberia’s security apparatus heads were present at the port of Monrovia.

He narrated that it took the security personnel who were present during the discovery and subsequent arrest of the cocaine 10 hours to reach an agreement before destroying the drugs.

He also testified that there were two sets of the already-destroyed cocaine, identifying one as Kangaroo and the other as Butterfly and added that the French vessel discovered special net that had the 92 barrels of cocaine.

According to the government of Liberia, the suspects were chased from the Ivory Coast by the French vessel and were arrested along with the ship on January 29, 2008 in Liberia’s high sea.

Meanwhile, the CID chief is expected to continue his testimony today, as Judge Emmanuel N. Kollie has advised all lawyers in the trial to be in court by 8:00 a.m.

NEC Wants Parties Engage Legislature

The Chairman of the National Election Commission (NEC) James Fromoyan has called on political parties in the country to encourage the national legislature to enact the electoral bill submitted to the body sometimes ago.

The commission in a release quoted its chairman as making the call to heads of political parties Wednesday during an inter-party consultative committee meeting held at its 16th Street headquarters.

Chairman Fromoyan said: “If there is any attempt to derail the election process as reflected in the lawmakers’ refusal to pass the other electoral bill, there could be an offset set in elections activities in the country.”

He called on parties to inform their members that the delay tactics as employed by the National Legislature relative to the passage of the electoral bills could have ripple effects on voters’ registration, the envisaged national referendum, the holding of local as well as national elections.

Before then, the oversight commissioner for political parties, David Menyongar said the delimitation of the clans, towns and cities as well as the demarcation of constituencies to a large extent depends on the passage of the electoral bills currently before the National Legislature.

Article 80 (d) of the constitution enjoins the Legislature to set a new threshold when ever a population census is conducted and there is a shift in the population figure while Article 80 (c) gives the mandate to the NEC to reapportion constituencies in keeping with the threshold set by the Legislature.

According to the NEC release, political parties at the consultative meeting were generally of the view that the Legislature should have passed the electoral bills before going on recess so as to give the NEC ample time to begin the process of delimitation and reapportion of constituencies.

The three other electoral bills are seeking to set new threshold, repeal laws that created all cities in the counties, with the exception of capital cities and to amend the electoral reform law of 2004, the release said.