Since May 2026, a damning audit by the General Auditing Commission (GAC) uncovered significant financial irregularities in the US$116 million RIA to ELWA Junction Road project. However, East International Group Inc. has not been held accountable to date.
The audit, which covered the period from April 2021 to April 2025, issued an adverse conclusion, stating that the project was not implemented in material compliance with its contract, the Public Financial Management Act, or the Public Procurement and Concessions Act.
According to the report, approximately US$99.65 million had been disbursed to the contractor. However, the 44-kilometer road project was only about 64 percent complete, despite its original completion deadline of April 2024. The deadline has since been extended to April 2027.
One of the audit’s major findings involved a US$1.15 million payment allegedly made without the completion certificate required under the contract. Auditors also identified unreconciled payment discrepancies, including a reported variance of US$577,808. They said supporting financial documents were not available to verify some transactions.
The audit further cited missing road safety infrastructure valued at approximately US$2.29 million. The items reportedly included guardrails, road signs, streetlights, and pavement markings.
Physical inspections also revealed eroded culverts, blocked drainage systems, asphalt cracks, and depressions along sections of the road. Environmental concerns included unreclaimed quarry sites, improperly stored bitumen drums, wastewater discharged into surface water, and inadequate waste-management measures.
Auditors questioned the project’s reported length as well. Although the contract provided for 45 kilometers, the constructed route reportedly measured 44 kilometers. The difference was valued at approximately US$2.58 million, but the audit found no evidence of a formally approved contract addendum authorizing the change.
The report also cited weaknesses in asset management, including the inability to verify six of 12 pickup trucks reportedly associated with the project. In addition, required contractual dispute-resolution mechanisms were reportedly absent.
Despite the gravity of the audit findings, questions remain over what concrete accountability measures, if any, have been taken against those responsible for the project’s reported irregularities. East International continues executing the project, while the road remains unfinished and the revised April 2027 completion deadline approaches.
With approximately US$99.65 million reportedly disbursed, the public deserves answers: Why have the audit findings not resulted in visible accountability? Who is responsible for resolving the financial discrepancies, missing road safety infrastructure, and contractual violations? And why does the project continue to drag on despite the millions of dollars already spent?
As the government continues to rely on East International to complete the road, the absence of publicly established consequences raises concerns about whether audit findings are translating into corrective action. Until the responsible authorities explain what measures have been taken, the project risks becoming another test of Liberia’s commitment to public financial accountability.
The central question is no longer just when the road will be completed, but whether anyone will be held accountable for the irregularities uncovered before more public resources are committed to a project already years behind schedule.
