Summary: Two former officials of the immediate past government have claimed that the 14 Military Hospital was built in the first six months of the regime of former President George Weah. We have checked the facts and found that their claim is misleading.
Two former government officials of the past administration have been comparing the administration’s performance in the first six months to that of the Unity Party’s claiming that by this time (July 2018), during former President George Weah’s regime, the 14 Military Hospital in Magibi County was already constructed.
One of those making the claim is former Grand Bassa County Superintendent Janjay Baikpeh, who said on July 15, 2024 that by this time under former President George Weah, the 14 Military Hospital was set for dedication.
Mr. Baikpeh made the claim at the 2:42:01 timestamp when he phoned on the OK Conversation to compare the first six months’ performance of the Unity Party-led Government with the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) in 2018.
Another person making this same claim is former Assistant Public Works Minister Jefferson Chesson, who also phoned on the “OK Morning Rush” on June 18 and claimed that the 14 Military Hospital was constructed in the first six months of the past administration.
The Claim
Mr. Baikpeh’s exact words were: “In six months’ time, we were already thinking about dedicating the 14 Military Hospital”.
In addition, Mr. Chesson’s exact words were: “By this time under the previous government, the Military Hospital was constructed.”
Rating Justification
To fact-check these assertions, we reached out to the former officials via WhatsApp after the radio talk show for the sources of their information.
Mr. Chesson responded to our inquiry by saying it was a misuse of the word “constructed” but he meant to say the “construction of the hospital has started”.
We then initiated the review of several credible news reports relating to the construction and dedication of the 14 Military Hospital.
The decision to build the Military Hospital was announced on February 12, 2018, by former President George Weah, while speaking at a program marking the celebration of the 61st Anniversary of the Armed Forces of Liberia.
Six weeks after the pronouncement, Mr. Weah performed the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the 200-bedroom Hospital on March 26, 2018, and later performed the first brick laying on May 3 that same year.
The construction of the hospital took a little over three years and was dedicated on September 1, 2021.
Conclusion
Based on the review of the evidence, we conclude that the claims made by former Grand Bassa County Superintendent Janjay Baikpeh and former Assistant Public Works Minister Jefferson Chesson that by this time (July 2018) during the administration of Mr. Weah, the 14 Military Hospital at the Edward Binyah Kesselly Military Barracks in Schiefflin, Margibi County was already constructed is misleading.
The construction of the Military Hospital took more than three years under the previous administration and not six months as claimed by the two former officials.
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