“I am therefore constrained to resign my position effective immediately.”
MONROVIA: Matthew Nyanplu, Assistant Minister for Information Services at the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism has resigned from his position following his indefinite-time suspension by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai.
Posting on his official Facebook page a copy of his communication to the President, Nyanplu expressed gratitude to President Boakai for the opportunity granted him to served the country, but however, very sad at the President’s decision to suspend him for time indefinite.
Nyanplu thinks he committed no wrong to necessitate the action suspending him for “Time-Indefinite” so feels been unjustly targeted by some powerful people around the President.
According to him, the President’s decision was triggered by his Facebook post of November 15, 2024 denouncing the “national disgrace” that the Foreign Minister has brought upon the Country, by what he describes as her “unqualified association with “am and premature and deceptive announcement of a $ 25million “work-study-loan” program for 250 Liberians in the United States.
Nyanplu moreover said his decision to come out in the public is to save Liberians from an extortion is in accordance with Section 5(1)(d) of the Whistleblower Protection Law of Liberia, which protects public officials who disclose information when the health or safety of individuals is at risk.
Matthew said it’s his moral and professional obligation to act in the public interest under every circumstance. In this case, he cannot in good conscience stand by while Liberians are misled into pursuing a program that offers none of the benefits it promises.
NEKOTECH “work-study” program endangers the economic security of Liberians.
Nyanplu also alledged that the Foreign Minister made the President attend and preside over the launch of a program that is charging Liberians at least $236 for preparatory support to submit graduate school applications to graduate schools in the United States. And that these Liberians will be granted admissions to study in the US and have the opportunity to work for three years in the United States after their course of studies in STEM programs.
Making further disclosure the former Assistant Minister said the Foreign Minister did announce at the MICAT briefing on November 5, that the Government of Liberia had secured this opportunity for Liberians and that the first batch will be processed for January 2025 intake and possible intake for another batch in September 2025.
This initiative according to Nyanplu is charging money to Liberians when the Foreign Minister told the nation that the Government had secured a loan opportunity for them, and that it was the Government, same as confirmed by Information Minister Jerolinmek Piah, that would shoulder the loan obligations on behalf of these students.
“It has turned out that the students will shoulder the loan obligations themselves, not the Government, as NEKOTECH has told the candidates.”
“NEKOTECH is charging the students to pay at least $236 for the service they say they will render to these 250 Liberians.”
Former Assistant Minister Nyanplu further wonders as to why should Liberians pay for a program that the Foreign Minister and the Information Minister announced that the Government had secured for them?
“The contradictions and misinformation in this “work-study” program being promoted by your Foreign Minister bring serious disgrace to our country.”
At the most basic level Nyanplu said, work-study in the United States is funded by the US Government.
According to him, if a foreign student has to complete their studies and earn a degree before being granted the opportunity to work, the scheme is no longer “work-study”.
“It is OPT-optional practical training, opportunity provided by the US Government for foreign students who earn an academic degree to work for one to three years depending on the course of study.” Nyanplu Discloses
He warned that Liberians should not be made to believe that NEKOTECH has what he termed as the magic to grant them admissions to graduate schools in the United States, secure study visas for them and the opportunity to work.
He moreover insists that Liberians do not need to pay any money to a foreign organization that is “deceptively” promoting US Government OPT as a “work-study” program that NEKOTECH says they can help Liberians earn in the United States.
“Every minute that the Foreign Minister and NEKOTECH promote this narrative is hurting our country, it is hurting Liberians, and it is extortionate. She made you sit in, endorse and launch a process through which a foreign organization is profiting or would profit from Liberians.”
“This is callously deceptive and the fact the Foreign Minister has not disavowed this is really a disservice to our country. It is your prerogative, Mr. President, to act against your officials.”
Matthew Nyanplu said he firmly believe as mentioned to Minister Piah, the Foreign Minister’s promotion of a scam program that is charging Liberians to pay for a process that they have been told that, their Government has already secured for them, has done serious reputational damage to the country and to the Government.
“There should be no further promotion of NEKOTECH scam “work-study” program and Liberians should not pay one cent to NEKOTECH for so-called work-study. It is extortionate and must be ended immediately.” Matthew insists
“This is the strong view I hold. I provided facts to Minister Piah.”
Despite persistent engagement with Minister Piah, his immediate supervisor, who also transmitted the facts of his investigation to the Foreign and Education Ministers, it became evident that while there was acknowledgment of these facts in private, there was a collective unwillingness to publicly correct the misinformation disseminated to the Liberian public.
Matthew also narrated that in spite of all the admonition that this program should be discontinued and not be promoted, given the deceptive nomenclature and the fact that Liberians are being extorted, it is still being promoted because apparently Foreign Minister Nyanti wants to save face or probably, she has some vested interest.
“Public officials that err must own up to their errors and apologize to the country. This is what integrity is. They cannot cover up their actions and use power to suppress junior officials [as they have done to me] who come out in defense of the public. I have a very clear conscience.” He Concludes