An investigation conducted in Gbarpolu County has established an accelerated level of illegal logging activities in the Belle Forest affecting Turkay, Gbeyanki, Guwarma and Lowoma Towns areas.
According to report conducted by journalists, has discovered has established that a company identify as Sing Africa Plantation Inc., is indiscriminately cultivating several forest trees species in the Belle Forest disregarding the FDA forestry species extraction procedures 107-7, under Liberia’s new forest management laws of 2015.
Liberia’s forest law of 2015 has established that local communities in forest areas in the country have a twenty five percent ownership of forest species and therefore when extracted, said community must benefit, through socio-economic ventures.
According to the local news agency, its investigations says Sing Africa Plantations Inc., a Logging Company, claimed that it obtained permit from the Forestry Development Authority 2012, under the former Managing Director, Mr. Moses Worgbeh for logs extraction from the Bluyeama Clan located in Zorzor District Lofa County, covering 49,444 hectares, but has over the time, illegally crossed from its operational area to Gbarpolu County into the Belle Forest, even though there was and still an existing moratorium on logging activities in the country.
The local Journalist group says its news gathering efforts have been privy to some legal documents that show activities of Sing Africa Plantation Liberia Inc., been challenged in court, thus placing a prohibition on their activities in the Gbarpolu forest, but has since ignored the authority and standing of our Liberian courts and is continuing their wanton pillaging of the Belle Forest in Gbarpolu County under the clouts of some current and former government officials from the County.
Local residents in towns that are affected by the wanton pillaging of their forest in Belle District, Gbarpolu County has detested Sing Africa Plantation Liberia Inc., for taking away from their forest without benefit to their community, hundreds of logs amounting to hundreds of thousands of United States Dollars.
The local news organ divulged, that it has a communication in its possession which has established, that Sing Africa Plantation logging group has offered a little of Seventeen Thousand United States Dollars to few residents of the Districts to buy their silence, but some residents of the county has termed the offer as an act of bribery and criminality which contravene Liberia’s legal doctrine.
In Monrovia, the central offices of Sing Africa Plantation Inc., located at the Rehab Community junction along the Roberts Field road, when contacted declined further conversations about the developments in the Belle Forest, but referred the news seeking reporters to the KEMP & Associates law firm, but since then gotten no response when the matters at hand was proffered.
However, Investigations continues.
Comments are closed.