Africa-Press – Liberia. By Lincoln G. Peters
Temple of Justice, Monrovia – April 15, 2026: Liberia’s Deputy Minister for Budget at the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP), Madam Tanneh G. Brunson, on Tuesday told the court that neither she nor, to her knowledge, anyone at the ministry was aware of a US$6.2 million transaction allegedly carried out by former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah Jr.
Testifying during direct and cross‐examination in the ongoing corruption trial, Madam Brunson said the transaction in question did not pass through the regular processing channels of the MFDP.
When questioned by the defense on whether there are certain financial transactions undertaken by the Minister of Finance without her knowledge, Madam Brunson responded that such a situation was “possible.” She explained that, under normal circumstances, any transaction to be processed within the system must be budgeted and follow the established procedural chain.
She further told the court that toward the end of each fiscal year, her department typically requests execution reports for record‐keeping purposes. According to her, she did not initially focus on the transaction until she began hearing reports about it in the media.
“From the execution report, I observed a transaction of US$6.2 million in the direct debit column. This transaction was not processed through the regular MFDP channel,” Madam Brunson testified. “I took note of it and conferred with members of my staff and other departments, since such a transaction is not limited to the Department of Budget. Apparently, no one had any knowledge of it.”
She added that she was later invited to the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC), where she explained what she knew and did not know about the transaction. At that meeting, she said she obtained a copy of the report and shared it with the commission.
To provide further clarification, Madam Brunson explained that a direct debit is a transaction executed by the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) in which funds are automatically deducted from a government account. She noted that such communications ordinarily go through the Office of the Accountant General and then pass through the allotment process.
She also explained that advances from the CBL are treated as credit facilities that are eventually repaid. However, she said the appearance of the direct debit raised concerns for the Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA), as the agency had no knowledge of, nor reason for, such a transaction from the CBL.
“Normally, adjustments to allocations and budgets are done through supplementary budgets or reallocations, which are reflected in changes from the original to the revised budget,” she stated. “In this case, the FIA’s report still shows the original appropriation, with the final figure increased solely as a result of that direct debit.”
Following her testimony, the prosecution and defense agreed to rest with the witness, and Madam Brunson was subsequently discharged by the court.
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