Summary: Martin K.N. Kollie claimed the Liberian Government Travel policy forbids more than five representatives on any government-funded trip to attend a program outside the country. We have checked his assertion by reviewing the policy and found it to be correct.
On September 6, Martin K.N. Kollie, a political activist, claimed in a Facebook post that the Liberian travel regulation entails that the total number of people “representing Liberia on a government-funded trip held outside Liberia shall not exceed five persons regardless of how many entities are involved.
Kollie made the claim following President Joesph Boakai and his delegation’s trip to Beijing, China for the Forum On China-Africa (FOCAC. He claimed that Pres. Boakai has violated this law.
Even though Martin did not mention the number of people on the trip with the president in his post, we found a Ministry of Information August 29 press release showing that 17 people were on the trip.
Martin’s post had gained attraction, garnering 329 reactions, 243 comments, and 31 shares.
The Claim
Martin posted: “Total GoL-funded representation at any program held outside Lib shall not exceed 5 persons in total regardless of how many entities are involved.” GOL Travel Law. Pres. Boakai has violated this.”
Rating Justification
We fact checked to verify the authenticity of Martin’s citation of the travel regulation. To do this, we launched an online search and obtained a copy of the GOL REVISED TRAVEL ORDINANCE 2016/2017 which applies to all government-funded foreign and domestic travels by officials and staff of Ministries, Agencies, and Commissions.
Paragraph three of the “policy on travel abroad by officials and employees of the government of Liberia” shows that the “Total GoL funded representation at any program or event held outside Liberia shall not exceed five (5) persons in total regardless of how many entities are involved.”
The travel ordinance was developed by the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning to ensure government officials’ smooth processing of travel requests. It was revised and has been in effect since 2016.
However, to establish if it is still in effect, we contacted Mrs. Patience Senkpeni-Kumeh, Communications Director of the Ministry of Finance and Development planning, via WhatsApp and she confirmed that the policy is still in effect.
Conclusion
Based on the GOL REVISED TRAVEL ORDINANCE 2016/2017, we conclude that the claim made by Kollie is correct. The policy is the single authoritative source to authenticate this claim. It shows that “Total GoL funded representation at any program or event held outside Liberia shall not exceed five (5) persons in total regardless of how many entities are involved.” Therefore, Kollie’s claim is correct.
This report is produced with funding from the USAID Media Activity. The funder has No say in the editorial decisions leading to the production of this content
