The intensifying war against illicit drugs has taken a sharply political turn after former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah accused President Joseph Nyuma Boakai of “inventing charges” against former government officials.
Tweah warned that politically motivated prosecutions could undermine the judiciary, and rule-of-law institutions.
He made the controversial remarks when he questioned government’s handling of criminal investigations involving prominent figures of the previous administration, including Jewel Howard-Taylor.
His comments come amid one of the most consequential narcotics investigations in recent years, following the seizure of cocaine worth hundreds of millions of dollars, and the subsequent arrest, and prosecution of Howard-Taylor.
Tweah acknowledged that a government has the legal authority to investigate, and prosecute suspected crimes, but argued that such authority must be exercised on the basis of credible evidence rather than political considerations.
“The government has the right to place charges,” Tweah said, while arguing that authorities must not manufacture allegations to achieve political objectives.
He warned that if the state begins creating criminal cases against political opponents, the consequences could extend beyond individual defendants to the credibility of the justice system.
“If the government invents charges, it destroys the judiciary, and the legal system.”
Tweah was particularly critical of the charges brought against Jewel Howard-Taylor, describing the allegations against her as “invented” and insisting that she is not guilty.
He specifically rejected allegations connecting Howard-Taylor to drug trafficking, saying: “she did not do any drug trafficking.”
Howard-Taylor, who served as Liberia’s vice president from 2018 to 2024, was arrested on August 19, 2026, at Roberts International Airport while attempting to leave the country.
The Ministry of Justice subsequently announced multiple charges against her in connection with an alleged transnational narcotics network.
The charges include unlicensed importation, sale, distribution, and transportation of controlled substances; illicit trafficking; criminal solicitation, facilitation and conspiracy; and money laundering.
