The saga in the fight for control of the Lower House of the Legislature continues, with the majority bloc claiming numerical supremacy while the minority bloc claims constitutional legitimacy, the Supreme Court of Liberia over the weekend ordered the breakaway group (majority bloc) to cease all actions and return to status quo while it reviews Speaker Koffa’s petition filed on Thursday, for a writ of mandamus to the Supreme Court of Liberia against the majority bloc challenging his removal and subsequent replacement by the majority bloc on grounds that the legal process was not followed. The Court, in a writ issued on November 22, 2024, directed the Minister of Justice and members of the House of Representatives involved in the dispute to file their responses by November 26, 2024. It also ordered the majority bloc, led by Montserrado County Representative Richard Koon, to cease all further actions until the matter is resolved. As the fight for power continues, Liberians, pundits, legislative watchers, scholars and friends of Liberia have been wondering if the Supreme Court would sidestep the issue of authority to render a decision that both sides can agree with. It can be recalled that in 2007, Speaker Edwin Melvin Snowe Jr. and his cohorts (in the minority) argued the lack of Constitutionality or due process before the Supreme Court, the Court agreed that a Speaker or any other member of the legislature couldn’t be removed without due process of law. They won the case Constitutionally; however, the Court added that it had no authority to impose leadership on another branch of government thus leaving the (majority bloc) with the numerical majority to elect their leaders. Pundits and legislative watchers are wondering how high or low is the threshold for due process in the national legislature as per their own guidelines in removing or penalizing a colleague. As the nation looks to the Supreme Court for its ruling in this matter, a researcher at the Capitol Hill, who prefers to remain anonymous had this to say; “I have been here for quite a while now, the game in this house, especially in all legislative matters is about numbers; the majority always carries the day.” However, Liberians who feel disgusted about changing speaker during the era of a Unity Party-led administration have noted that the trend undermines genuine democracy.
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