PHOTO: Cllr. Wesseh A. Wesseh, Assistant Minister for Litigation
A serious rift is said to be brewing within the Justice Ministry, with the Solicitor General, Cllr. Syrenious Cephas being at the center, as seen in the full text of a leaked message from the Ministry’s chat room obtained recently.
“Gud morning SG, why are you on a self-collision course with me, by reporting me to some Elders from River Gee, that I have been disrespectful to you and that I have also been undermining you, because according to you, I am very too closed to the Minister and Attorney General of Liberia, than you?
All along, Chief, I have down played your threat to complain me to the elders of River Gee, until I met Elizabeth Dunkin at the GC and then Nyenpan Saytue, President of the Monrovia River Gee Development Association, in Doe community, last evening and I was told that a meeting with the elders, with you and I, is planned for this week. Why go this far my chief?
This your move is very unfortunately; in that you know very well that I have alway followed your instructions, like when you instructed me to Nolle Prosequoi the Ellen Cocokrum’s case, which you and I are aware caused me serious embarrassment, because little did I know that you where conflicted when you represented her in that Economic Sabotage case before the coming in of this government.
When I followed your unlawful instructions, to file the Nolle Pro, I ran into problem with the Minister because dismissing that major case needed his approbation.
Even to this end, when I decided to prosecute the Barrobo murder case that was transfered to River Gee you made strives to undermine my efforts to prosecution those individual!, when you on several occasions, communicated with the Public Defenders in River Gee to file another change of Venue , with out informing me as the prosecutor on the ground in River Gee.
You also attempted to kill an indictment that was brought against Narborlor Singbeh and others when you and Edwin Martin, then County Attorney for Montserrado, told Judge Roosevelt Willie not to send the case to Criminal Court C for trial, after the indictment was formed, eventhough you were conflicted, because you and Martin represented some of those parties in that case when you were in private practice.
You also did other things which I will not post in here.
Giving all of these instances, if I were that type of Assistant Minister for Litigation, having direct supervision and control over County Attorneys and other prosecuting Attorneys, at the MoJ, I would have disagreed with you in the public space. You know that I have been acting like a sleep dog because that has been by character.
I would have also lale the pressure on you in the manner and form that you handled the Sampson Pennue murder”s case, I was the one that drawn that indictment before it was filed by the County Attorney. We all know what happened to this case when the Judge dismissed the cause for prosecution’s failure to proceed, which was contrary to the real issues in that case where the evidence was overwhelmingly convincing to ask the court or jury to convict Sampson pennue.
I remaind very quiet, as my nature imbued in me by my single mother is to respect my bosses and other in similar positions.
Now, you and I are aware that I was in Kakata from December 13, 2021, January 3, 2022, prosecuting the German man’s murder case that was Venued changed from Buchanan to Kakata.
I got involved with the Korlane Investment case in early January, 2022, after Cllr Lafayette Gould, on the instructions of the Attorney General, filed the application for a court freezing order of Korlane company’s account, when you wrote the Minister that Cllr. Gould was dismissed by you
So, why are you going arround and telling some elders from River Gee, including Sen. Commany Wesseh, that I have alway being disrespectful to you, undermining you and that I am too closed to the Minister, than you and acussing me of being used by the Minister to get at you?
You also told some of the elders that I am witch hunting you for filing the indictment and that I am not helping you out with your alledged call log issues, when infact and indeed the indictment i file was not premised on any call log. Please see the indictment, which is a public record for ease of reference.
I am baffled by your assertions because you have never one day confronted me by citing instances where I have undermined you or being disrespected to you.
Further, you are also aware that the statute under which we work, makes the Minister our direct boss, in that, we operate under his direction, supervision and control.
Sir, how in this world you wanted me to have disrespected the Minister’s instructions, which was lawful, for me not to run the Korlane indictment indictment, in the wake of your alleged undermining of the investigations and the case!?
Now, you complained me to the elders including Sen. Commany Wesseh, Nyenpan Saytue and others!, that I am not working in your interest for runing the indictment and that I have the power to save you and your reputation from and fall out from the Korlane’s case, but, the indictment that I drawn and filed did not make mention of you or any other communication that you made have had with the defendants in this case.
Chief, I have long considered you as a big brother, but to have directly complained, me to the elders of River Gee, on professional issues at the work place, is a direct threat on my life and that of my family, become some of those you complain me to have long been individuals who have long been trying to being me down.
Let me say for the records that I have worked at the MoJ for closed to nine unbroken years, first as County Attorney before my current position, in that, I understand the working of my office, before I was even appointed and will remain under the direct supervision and control of the Minister who is my boss and will only follow his lawful instructions as per the statute, but will continue to respect you as my administrative boss and no manner of intimidation from you will cow me into submission, in as much as I am in adherent to the statute.
Chief, please don’t step on my toes again and be
aware that I am a qualified and competent lawyer trained by the United Nations with an LLM with specificity in Tansnational Crimes and Justice,” ends the leaked message.