Nathaniel McGill is Correct on 2024 Budget for C.H. Rennie Hospital Renovation, But
W
Webmaster
·
8 views
By Patrick Moryor,Margibi Fellow
Claim: "CDC Administration allocated US$ 600,000 for C. H. Rennie Hospital Renovation."
Source: Nathaniel F. McGill, Senator of Margibi County
Full Text: Current senator, Nathaniel F. McGill served as Minister of State for Presidential Affairs and Chief of Staff of former Liberian president George M. Weah.
He was one of eight officials of the government that were sanctioned by the United States for crimes of corruption and human rights violations during Weah's administration.
Like some sanctioned officials, McGill made his way to the national legislature following his election in 2023.
During a recent consultative engagement with citizens of Dolo Town, Lower MarGibi County, McGill claimed that the CDC Administration allocated US$ 600,000 during their last budget year for the construction of the C.H. Rennie hospital.
McGill statement (4:23 seconds) at the Dolo Town Hall told the citizens that the government process is slow, making a special emphasis on the delay in constructing the county only referral health facility, C.H. Rennie.
He said there have been many allocations made, including the $600,000 toward the reconstruction of the facility but that has not been achieved.
Built in 1970, the hospital was a major referral hospital in Northeastern Liberia until it was destroyed by fire on August 15, 2021, due to what was believed to be an electrical shock.
The hospital, which had an 85-bed capacity, has left the county health system running without a public referral hospital in the county since its destruction.
Verification: To verify McGill's claim, we researched the 2023 and recast the approved 2024 National Budget of Liberia. We realized that in 2023, US$45,000 was allocated, while in 2024, recast US$ 600,000 was budgeted for the hospital renovation.
The money, according to the budget line, was allocated to help renovate the only government referral health facility in the county.
We reviewed the 2023 outturn, and it showed that even though US$45,000 was allotted for the renovation of the facility, only US$25,000 was spent.
The recast 2024 budget showed that US$600,000 was originally allocated; only US$300.000 was appropriated in the same year after the recast.
C. H Rennie Allocation Meanwhile, since then there has been little or no construction work carried out on the premises of the hospital, even though ex-Liberian President Weah broke ground for the construction of a state-of-the-art 150-bedroom hospital in the compound of the hospital.
Conclusion: From our research, we can confirm that Senator McGill's claim of US$ 600,000 being allotted for C.H. Rennie Hospital renovation is partly correct, as the recast budget showed US$ 300,000 was allocated and the recast was done with the consent of the Senate, where McGill sits as a lawmaker.
