‘Fire 24 Officials’

‘Fire 24 Officials’

-Ombudsman Recommends

“The Office fined Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti US$500 to be paid within the revenue account of the government within 72 hours…. She has been accused of personalizing government resources.”

If recommendations from the Office of the Ombudsman of the President of Liberia are anything to go by, then we can be sure that President Joseph Nyuma Boakai will dismiss 24 of his officials soon. These 24 officials, according to reports, are accused of “violating the Code of Conduct (CoC).”

The Office of the Ombudsman said in its investigative report on the adherence to Part V, or Political Participation of the Code of Conduct, that it has unearthed what it says are clear violations by many officials who were appointed by President Boakai.

According to a release, an investigation of political participation of Labor Minister Cllr. Cooper Kruah et al, “and all those similarly situated, has found them to be in violation of sections 5.1(a)(b)(c) and 5.8 of the Code of Conduct (as amended). These violations, as stated by the Office of the Ombudsman and dated July 25, 2025, were allegedly carried out during the period of July 30, 2024 to May 23, 2025.

The Office of the Ombudsman has since fined Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti US$500, to be paid within the revenue account of the government within 72 hours upon the receipt of this report. The foreign minister has been accused of “personalizing government resources,” after she ordered or instructed Jeddi Armah, an official of government, to represent her “personal interest” before the investigation. This, according to reports, was a violation of section 8.3 of the Code of Conduct, which states: “…A Public official or an employee of government, who directs or concurs in the use of public funds contrary to the existing regulations or instructions shall be accountable and liable for any loss arising from that use and shall be required to make full restitution of the loss, even if he or she has ceased to be a public servant.”

Other defendants in these proceedings, according to the Office of the Ombudsman are:

Emmanuel Tuley, Board Chair, Liberia Electricity Corporation, Cllr. Cooper Kruah, Minister of Labor, Lucia Massalee Yallah, Environmental Protection Agency, Emmanuel Zorh, Jr., Ministry of Labour, and J. Luther Tarpeh, Board of Director, National Port Authority.

Others are: Amos B. Tweh, Liberia Petroleum Refining Company, Cornelia Kruah-Togba, Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Whroway Bryant, Superintendent, Montserrado County, Emmanual K. Farr, National Fire Service, Ambassador Sheikh Al Moustapha Kouyateh, Ministry of State, Ben A. Fofana, Commissioner, Liberia Telecommunication Authority, and

 Patience Randall, Director General, Liberia Business Registry.

The rest are: Edmund Forh, National Transit Authority, Melvin Cephus, National Transit Authority, Lucia Tarpeh, Development Superintendent, Montserrado County, Robert Bestman, Paynesville City Mayor, James Yolei, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Collins Tamba, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Selena P. Mappy, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Kansualism B. Kansuah, Member of the Board, Liberia Special Economic Zone, Counsellor Kuku Y. Dorbor, Liberia Special Economic Zone Authority, Jacob Smith, Liberia Petroleum Refining Company, Daniel Sando, Ministry of Information, Ansu V. S. Dulleh, National Disaster Management Authority, Mandella Cooper, Senior Political Advisor to the President, Ministry of State, Kelvin DJ Mattaldia, Ministry of Commerce.

Questions

The investigation reviewed the pieces of evidence as presented by the National Elections Commission (NEC); letters of complaints from concerned members of the Unity Party; a letter of complaint  from one Amos Gbowah, a citizen of Liberia and member of the Unity Party and the attachment thereon; the prohibition petition filed by the Unity Party, the Movement for Democracy and Reconstruction, the African Liberation League; Kansualisam B. Kansuah, and Attorney Ansu V. S. Dolley, Counselor Emmanual Tulay, Daniel Sando and the Jacob Smith testimonies; the signing of the CoC by some of the defendants on December 13, 2024; the February 13, 2025, ruling of the Supreme Court; the oral complaints from citizens and residents along with the testimony of Mr. Gbowah. All these, according to reports, have raised questions.

In the end, two questions have been identified, to resolve the matter of political participation; namely, the defendants.

Recommendations and remedial actions

The CoC mandates the Office of the Ombudsman to investigate and, on its own initiative, act on complaints filed by any person or organization in violations of the CoC by any officials and employees of government. Thus, the Ombudsman investigated – based on complaints and on its own initiative – allegations of Section 5.1(a), (b) and 5.8 of Code.

The CoC carries a single penalty for the violation of Part V. It uses the mandatory language “shall” and notes that after “due process is accorded” the violator, only then can a penalty be imposed. The Code states at Section 5.9 that “Any public official, after due process, who is found guilty of violating any provision of this section shall be immediately removed from the position or office held by him/her; and thereafter, no part of the funds appropriated by any law for such position or office shall be used to pay compensation to such person.”

Unlike other sections of the Code, the Office of the Ombudsman is mandated to apply section 5.9 of the Code after due process on section 5 infringements.

The defendants in the proceedings, with the exception of those who either resigned or suspended political affiliation because of their positions in the government, are all adjudged guilty of the violation of section 5.1 (a) and (b), and section 5.8 of the Code, “because they were all actively engaged in political activities and/or political management owing to the managerial roles they continue to play within their various political parties;” while at the same time serving as public officials appointed by the president.

“It is herewith recommended to Joseph Nyuma Boakai, that the defendants be removed from the various public positions they are each occupying upon the receipt of the transmittal letter along with the judgment, pursuant to section 5.9 of the Code, which mandates: “Any public official, after due process, who is found guilty of violating any provision of this section [5] shall be immediately removed from the position or office held by him/her, and thereafter no part of the funds appropriated by any law for such position or office shall be used to pay compensation to such person.”

Emphasis added

Pursuant to investigative oversight as mandated at section 12.1, Code of Conduct (amended 2017), all those who are or would be similarly situated as the defendants, holding positions within the government along with positions within various political parties, and not specifically named within this judgment, are ordered to relinquish any one of the positions. If they choose to maintain the positions within the government, they are required to provide evidence of their resignations from actively participating in other political activities and or political parties’ management position(s) within 48 hours of the receipt of this report.