NACSUL Condemns GAC Report On GTMS”

NACSUL Condemns GAC Report On GTMS”

The National Civil Society Union of Liberia (NACSUL) said, it observed that the General Auditing Commission (GAC) Report in the National Port Authority’s (NPA) contract with Global Maritime Tracking Systems (GMTS) for managing the Cargo Tracking Note (CTN) program did not do due diligence on the company.

NACSUL said that reporting allegations of financial irregularities and legal violations against the company was not correct.

According to a NACSUL press release, “In its March 2025 Audit Report covering July 1, 2018 to October 31, 2024 on the GTMS Contract with the government  through the NPA, the GAC claimed that the GTMS Contract did not follow required procurement procedures with no payment record  for US$3 million initial investment, and that the audit found no evidence that GTMS paid US$2.15 million in throughput fees over five years, including US$50,000 in 2020, US$250,000 in 2021, US$370,000 in 2022, and US$580,000 in 2023, and an additional US$900,000 in 2024 under the current Unity Party (UP) administration.”

NACSUL said it wants to fundamentally establish that GTMS entered into a legal contract with the government (GOL) in 2018, with the initial investment of US$3 million.

“It is unfortunate that the GAC auditors didn’t capture this initial investment portfolio, as investment expenditure documents in our possession show that GTMS met this requirement.

NACSUL’s investment also established that, contrary to the GAC findings that the audit found no evidence that GTMS paid US$2.15 million in throughput fees over five years, including US$900,000 to the current UP Government, payment records in our possession show that the company paid all throughput fees to the National Port Authority (NPA), as legal representative of the government per the contract.

We are left to believe that the GAC auditors didn’t do due diligence by omitting the payment of throughput fees made by GTMS directly to the management of the NPA over the course of the company’s operations.

“The National Civil Society Union of Liberia wonders as to how could GAC be recommending NPA to account for US$2,150,000.00 in throughput fees for the period from 2020 to 2024, if said amounts have not been remitted by GTMS as required by the terms and conditions of the contract.

The silence of the NPA Management on the GAC audit findings clearly supports the fact that the NPA received the US$2.15 million remittance from GTMS.

It is also misleading for the audit findings to also call for full settlement of arrears of throughput fees by GTMS to NPA when the company has adhered to the approved payment plan over the years.

In fact, the management of NPA performs monthly reconciliation between throughput fees as required by the contract and actual throughput fees remitted by GTMS.

We have evidence showing copies of bills, bank statements, and other relevant supporting records, regularly filed for review by NPA.

Furthermore, NACSUL’s investigation reveals that the NPA Management has operationalize a functioning Monitoring, Evaluation, and Compliance Committee that periodically monitor, evaluate and ensure compliance on the CTN operations consistent with the terms and conditions of the contract.    “We want to make it unequivocally clear that the findings contained in the GAC Audit on GTMS contract with the NPA on the CTN Program is full of omissions of important documents, including investment expenditure incurred, payments of throughput fees by GTMS to NPA Management, and other deliverables of the company in Liberia.

How could GTMS commence operations without the US$3 million initial investment? How has GMTS been allowed to operate if the company has not been remitting throughput fees? Why are the issues of initial investment and throughput fees being raised after 6 years of GTMS operations in Liberia? We see sinister motive behind the nature of the GAC audit findings, given the stiff competition that exists between the operations of GTMS and MEDTECH in Liberia.

The priority being placed on the GAC Audit Report on GTMS and not MEDTECH shows how GTMS has been targeted by some top government officials, including legislators, for their selfish interest.  It is ridiculous for the Liberian Senate to disregard the illegal and dubious operations of MEDTECH and open investigation on GTMS operations when the Government of Liberia just renegotiated the contracts with the company.

The Government of Liberia, represented by the ministries of Justice, Finance, NPA and other relevant authorities recently renegotiated the contract with GTMS because the company has been in full compliance with the terms and conditions of the contract. 

   “We recognize the laudable deliverables of GTMS in creating an effective and efficient cargo tracking system, restoring the country’s maritime image.

Due to the effective cargo security measures instituted by GTMS, the US Coast Guard removed Liberia from the list of countries affected with the US Port Security Advisory, which required vessels arriving in the US after visiting ports in the Republic of Liberia.

The Tracking System has greatly minimized the issue of missing containers and improved shipping delivery, facilitating trade in both sea and land freight cargo by providing one-stop global logistics management hub, vessel routing, value and duty assessment and port terminal handling advisers.

GTMS has truly revolutionized maritime and ports security, through the services of real time tracking, high security standards for cargoes and fast and efficient delivery of shipping services.  

   “We urge all stakeholders to allow GTMS to operate, because the company’s continuous operations in Liberia is cardinal to maintaining the country’s increased revenue base, economic growth, safe shipping in Liberia. We call on the Liberian public not to lend credence to the GAC’s Audit findings that there is no evidence that GTMS paid the initial investment fees and remitted throughput fees in the last 6 years. Such findings are unfounded and lack merit.

As President Boakai fights to meet his ARREST Agenda, GTMS serves as a major contributor to raising domestic resources for implementation of the agenda. Hence, we commend the Government of Liberia, led by His Excellency Joseph Boakai, for extending the GTMS Contract with the Government of Liberia through the National Port Authority,” the NACSUL release observed.