In what is shaping up to be one of the most consequential oversight exercises of the 55th Legislature, the Joint Public Accounts, Expenditure and Audit Committee of the House of Representatives has announced a full public hearing and decentralization exercise scheduled for Wednesday, July 15, 2026, to interrogate the Auditor General’s findings on Liberia’s management of tax revenue.
The hearing will center on the Special Reconciliation Audit of Government Tax Revenue Collected through government transitory bank accounts and the consolidated accounts for the fiscal period from July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2024, a 6½-year window that spans two political administrations.
The Committee said the exercise is grounded in Article 34 of the 1986 Liberian Constitution, which mandates legislative oversight of public expenditure, and Section 13.1 of the Public Financial Management (PFM Act, which requires accountability for all government revenue.
The Auditor General’s report is not routine. It is a “Special Reconciliation Audit,” focused specifically on “Government Transitory Bank Accounts”- accounts used by the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP), the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA), and the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) to temporarily hold tax and non-tax revenue before consolidation into the central government account.
Transitory accounts are intended to be short-term holding points. When poorly managed, they become a major red flag for revenue leakage, commingling of funds, delayed remittances, and lack of audit trails. The 2018–2024 period covers the final years of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) government under former President George Weah, and the first year of the current administration.
While the Committee has not released the Auditor General’s specific findings in advance, the decision to summon every top finance, revenue, and monetary authority who served during the period signals that material discrepancies, unreconciled balances, or accountability gaps were identified.
According to the Committee’s communication, both incumbent and former officials are required to appear as witnesses to respond to concerns raised in the report. All testimony will be under oath and on the public record.
Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan-September 2024 to Present. Ngafuan, a former Foreign Affairs Minister, now leads MFDP and will be expected to explain corrective measures taken since taking office.
Others include Boima S. Kamara, Former Finance Minister, January 2024 to July 2024, who served during a critical transition period. Samuel D. Tweah, former Minister of Finance, January 2018 to December 2023, was the longest-serving Finance Minister during the audit period. Mr. Elwood T. Netty has been Controller General from January 2024 to Present. The Controller General is the government’s chief accounting officer and custodian of the Consolidated Fund. Other Key persons of interest are Mr. Prince Lighe, Deputy Controller and Accountant General, July 2015 to Present. Lighe’s tenure spans the entire audit period, making him a key witness on accounting procedures. Mr. Janga A. Kowo, former Controller General from January 2018 to December 2023, managed government accounts for most of the CDC administration and is presently serving as the National Chairman of the CDC. His appearance is expected to draw significant political attention given his central role in fiscal policy and budget execution.
James Dorbor Jallah-Commissioner General, January 2024 to present; Rufus Mahn Commissioner for Internal Audit, January 2018 to present. Mahn’s continuous tenure makes him critical to explaining internal controls and audit responses over six years.
Henry F. Saamoi, Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) Executive Governor from July 30, 2024 to present; Jolue Aloysius Tarlue, former Governor of the CBL from November 2019 to July 30, 2024; Nathaniel R. Patray, former Governor of CBL from 2018 to November 2019, and Milton Alvin Weeks, former Governor of CBL from April 2016 to 2018, will also appear.
Because transitory accounts are domiciled in commercial banks, representatives of Afriland First Bank Liberia, Ecobank Liberia, Bloom Bank Africa Liberia, International Bank Liberia Limited, GTBank Liberia, LBDI, UBA Liberia, and First International Bank, FIB Liberia, are also expected to appear. Lawmakers are expected to question them on account mandates, signatory authorities, remittance timelines, interest earned, and reconciliation before the media and civil society organizations.
