Gbarmue – Calm has returned to Gbarmue town, in Jorpolu Clan, as residents in the area have entered into a new Memorandum of Understanding with the Huiren Mining Company Inc. following a long-standing dispute among residents of the area and the company for unfair treatment.
Recently, residents of the clan, especially Gbarmue town expressed serious disenchantment over the reported failure of the company to live up to a previous Memorandum of Understanding signed between the company and citizens in 2018.
The Gbarmue residents, in their disenchanted, allegedly set fire to the only bridge connecting the town to Jackson Village, where the company operates, thus stalling the movement of vehicles to the mining sites.
The situation raised serious concern, calling the attention of local authorities of the county, including Bong County Superintendent Hawa Loleyah Norris, the district representative Josiah Marvin Cole, and the Liberia National Police, Bong Detachment.
Following the intervention of the local county authority, two separate meetings were held with residents of the area to find a remedy to the situation before the signing of a new Memorandum of Understanding on Sunday, February 16, 2025.
The signing ceremony was witnessed by Superintendent Loleyah Hawa Norris, Hon J Marvin Cole , Bong County Attorney Jonathan Flomo, the Media, and representatives from the company and the affected communities.
Before the signing of the new agreement, a sum of twelve Thousand United States Dollars (USD $12,000) was paid to the affected communities by the company as debts owed for its previous agreements.
The new Memorandum of Understanding focuses on Environmental Protection and Management, Employment and Economic Benefits, and Social Responsibility and Community Development.
Under Environmental Protection and Management, the company agrees to comply with all environmental laws, regulations, and standards to minimize environmental impact on its operations, while the community pledged to monitor and report any environmental concerns or violations by the company.
For Employment and Economic Benefits, the company agreed to prioritize the hiring of residents of the affected communities who have the required technical knowledge, education, and or qualifications for vacancies, providing fair wages, safe working conditions, and opportunities for skills development as prescribed and regulated by the laws of the Republic of Liberia.
Under Social Responsibility and Community Development, the company agreed to engage in Community Development projects including, but not limited to, education, employment, healthcare, infrastructure, and cultural preservation like repairing damaged hand pumps at the cost of not more than five hundred United States Dollars (US $500).
In that, the community will give a listing of areas where hand pumps will be repaired, while the company will send a team of technicians to bring a proforma for the repair costs and ask if needs are required in which community the work will be done.
Additionally, the company agreed to construct seven additional hand pumps in the affected communities in Jorpolu Clan, complete the unfinished school building in Gbarmue town, and further renovate the current school to ensure the damage to the roof and other damages to the building are repaired.
Moreover, in section 5.1.4, of the agreement, the company agreed to on its own accord take the initiative to conduct an assessment of the road from Wainsue-Gbarmue, Gbarmue-Kpai, and Gbarmue-Jackson Village including the only bridge connecting Gbarmue town Jackson Village, that the company obligated to rehabilitate these corridors and the bridge to an acceptable standard for use by the company and citizens.
Meanwhile, in section 5.2, the company agreed to make available, as part of its social corporate responsibility the amount of five thousand five hundred United States Dollars (5,500 USD) to the affected communities every five months beginning April 1, 2025. The agreement further that the money will be paid in an account belonging to the affected communities, supervised by a Committee established by the community.
Those heading the committee include Bong County Superintendent Hawa Loleyah Norris, Madam Fatu Binnay, Commissioner of Jorpolu Clan, and two eminent sons of the affected communities, Moses Kotogboe and Otto Dunbar.
Section 5.3.2 of this agreement states that no withdrawal of funds from the account will be made without the consent and or approval of the superintendent, but upon agreement by three signatories, including or not including the superintendent, a withdrawal shall be approved and made for reasons of undertaking an approved development project within the community.
In section 6, which highlights Communication and dispute resolution, the agreement clarified that any disputes arising from the interpretation or implementation of this agreement must be amicably resolved through dialogue and, if necessary, mediation.
At the end of the signing of the new agreement, residents of the affected communities commended representative Josiah Marvin Cole, superintendent Loleyah Hawa Norris, and attorney Jonathan Flomo for their intervention in the matter.
This agreement was signed and sealed under the signatures of the below individuals: Fatu Binnay, Commissioner Jorquelleh Administrative District; Joseph B. Mulbah, Paramount Chief, Jorquelleh District-3; Alice Bonah Cammue, Clan Chief, Jorpolu Clan, Ma. Annie Tokpah, Women leader, Gbarmue town, and Benedict Belekabolu, Youth President, Gbarmue town for and on behalf of the affected communities.
The company was represented by Daniel S. T. Toe, Administrative Manager, Huiren Mining Company.
It was attested by Madam Hawa Loleyah Norris, Superintendent, Bong County, Honorable Josiah Marvin Cole, Representative Jorquelleh District-3, and Mr. Varnnie F. Sheriff Sr. Administrative Manager, Huiren Mining Company.
