The_Open_Door_deel1

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tax in Liberia but only after a series of deductions, including
administrative and operational expenses In respect of the
development of the Wologisi concession area. The Joint Venture's
profits would be subject to a 50? tax but as a result of the
construction proposed by Detwiler, to which the steel companies
had already agreed, the effective corporate income tax would
only be some 33?. The Liberian Government would be assured of
only this portion of profits as the income from taxes paid by
LISCO would be very uncertain (119).
When the negotiations were not immediately successful Detwiler
tried to put pressure on the Government by temporarily suspending
the exploration work (120). On the one hand, the Liberians were
anxious to conclude a concession agreement for the development
of the Wologisi Mountains as after 1969 the country would be
faced with accelerated debt-service payments as the result of
the re-scheduling of the country's debt in 1963. This explains
why President Tubman wanted the agreement concluded by
September-October 1966 (121). On the other hand, Planning
Secretary Weeks - both on the basis of past experiences and not
wanting to establish a precedent - stressed the idea of
gradually improving the terms upon which concessions would be
granted, e.g. by requiring a minimum equity share in the total
capital of the company, a limitation of the fiscal exemptions,
a clearer definition of the obligations of the concessionaire,
the removal of those provisions of Detwiler's draft agreement
which were in conflict with existing Liberian legislation, and
the questioning of the appropriateness and justification of the
depletion allowance Detwiler had demanded (122). The steel
companies seemed to be genuinely interested in the Wologisi
ore, although they did not give the impression of wanting to
rush things - unlike Detwiler. They demanded equality of treatment
as compared to other U. S. steel companies operating in
Liberia: Republic Steel (L.M.C.) and Bethlehem Steel (LAMCO J.V.)
(123). One can say that where the Open Door Policy stands for
equality of treatment, their demand was fair and justified.
The Government's policy during the negotiations in the second
half of 1966 was to bring the steel companies directly into
the negotiations thus reducing their reliance on Detwiler, the
investors' chief negotiator. At the end of 1966, however, when
no agreement had been reached, the steel companies withdrew from
the Project. Little is known about the details of the subsequent
negotiations in 19 67 between Detwiler and the Liberian
Government. However, in March 1967 Weeks was appointed Secretary
of the Treasury and was succeeded at the Department of Planning
and Economic Affairs by Cyril Bright, until then his Deputy at
the Planning Department. At that time negotiations with
prospective investors for the conclusion of concession
agreements were entrusted to the Department of Planning and
Economic Affairs, so that Weeks was no longer the principal
negotiator with Detwiler. On August 1, 1967 LISCO's exploration
permit with respect to the Wologisi area expired and seventeen
days later a concession agreement was finally concluded.