PHOTO: House Speaker Cllr. Fonati Koffa in the US recently
By Moses D. Sandy,mds66.sandy@aol.com
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA- Liberia’s House of Representatives embattled Speaker, Cllr. J. Fonati Koffa, says the criticisms against President Joseph Boakai’s foreign travels by some Liberians including politicians are nothing but mere “politics”. Speaker Koffa says the President’s foreign travels are necessary for building Liberia’s image abroad.
He noted, “Those criticisms have nothing to do with statesmanship, or patriotism.” The Speaker maintained, “The dividends of Liberia’s international partnership outweigh the annual one or two million US dollars budgeted for presidential foreign travels”. Since January of this year when the Boakai administration was inaugurated, the President has made many international travels in search of monetary, technical, and logistical supports for the resuscitation of the Liberian economy, social services, and the health and educational sectors.
However, some political parties including the former ruling party, Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), which Speaker Koffa is an executive member, have repeatedly disparaged President Boakai and the Unity Party (UP) for what they labeled as wasteful spending. Speaker Koffa is currently faced with a leadership crisis in the House of Representatives.
The conflict started on October 17, 2024, when 47 members of the House reportedly signed a petition seeking his removal as head of the legislative branch of government. The aggrieved representatives expressed their lack of confidence in the speaker’s leadership and called for his removal, or resignation. The disgruntled representatives also made a litany of allegations against the speaker including conflict of interest and other acts of malfeasance.
However, Speaker Koffa has since distanced himself from the charges and described same as frivolous. He vowed not to resign, or submit to the wishes of the renegade lawmakers. As a result of the prevailing leadership conflict, all legislative functions in the House of Representatives have been halted. Speaking recently in the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, when he delivered the keynote address at a benefit dinner hosted by the Association of Liberian Journalists in the Americas (ALJA), Speaker Koffa said, “I am puzzled when I hear about these criticisms of the president and his foreign travels. They don’t make sense”.
He said, “We are a fragile and small country with limited capital and extended dependence. That begs the question that any leader of Liberia will be the chief salesman of Liberia, or that person who must get on that plane early in a new administration to sell Liberia to our international partners”. The Speaker underscored, “That’s the job of the president”. The benefit dinner was one of many activities organized and hosted by the ALJA leadership as part of the Association’s12th Annual National Convention. Cllr. Koffa spoke on the convention’s theme, Addressing Liberia’s Fragility Through War Crimes, Accountability, and Social Economic Development. The Speaker told his audience which was predominantly made of diaspora-based Liberians that their country of nativity, Liberia, is a broken country coming out of many years of civil wars. He added, “We have institutions that were setback for years; and they need to be rehabilitated during our time”.
He continued, “The fragility of our country leads us to implore each other to try to spend much time to being statesmen than politicians”. Liberia’s first civil war commenced on December 24, 1989, in Butuo, Nimba County, when rebel forces of the disbanded National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) invaded the country. The 1989 military invasion was followed by successive civil wars that ended in 2003. The civil wars decimated thousands of human lives and properties valued at millions of US dollars. The wars also caused the internal and external displacement of thousands of Liberians.
Commenting on the May 2, 2024, executive order which President Joseph Boakai signed for the establishment of a war and economic crimes court in Liberia, the Speaker said he support the initiative because he believes in the rule of law; and he would like to see those who caused mayhem in Liberia during the civil wars brought to justice and held accountable for the crimes committed. The Speaker said there are some Liberians who erroneously believe that the prosecution of warlords and those who committed war and economic crimes during the civil wars is tantamount to undermining Liberia’s peace and stability, and the destabilization of the West African region. However, he said, “I differ. That’s not true”. He noted, “Liberians are war wearied. Our people don’t want war anymore”.
Speaker Koffa said, “No one has the power to return Liberia to its ugly past. It is impossible”. He said in recent years, Liberians have developed a democracy that they are proud of. He cited former President Weah and the CDC acceptance of the 2023 presidential election result as a graphic example of the maturity of the Liberian democracy. In 2023, former President Weah narrowly lost to then presidential candidate Joseph Boakai during the runoff election. Mr. Boakai was elected President of Liberia with over 50 % of the vote while former President Weah obtained a little over 49 % of the final results announced by the National Election Commission (NEC).
Touching on the Liberian economy, the head of the legislative branch of government said, “As Liberians, we need a change in mindset for moving our country forward”. He said the task of rebuilding the Liberian economy is the collective responsibility of all Liberians. Meanwhile, Speaker Koffa has underscored the role of the Liberian media in the betterment of the Liberian society. He said the media is an integral part of the Liberian society; and its role in building and sustaining the Liberian democracy, peace, unity, and reconciliation can’t be overstated. He said that’s why credible and balanced reporting by journalists and media institutions are imperative.
However, the Speaker acknowledged that since the advent of social media, it has become challenging for some local media institutions to take control of messages and do fact checking before the publication or broadcast of news stories. The Speaker said, “This has gotten out of hand”. He called on ALJA to help in addressing some of the unethical challenges in the Liberian media.
ALJA is a conglomeration of current and retired Liberian journalists residing in the Americas. The Association is a 501c (3) non-profit organization. ALJA was founded in 1998 with the objectives of fostering companionship and unity amongst its members. The Association is also committed to advancing press freedom through media capacity building and the fostering of good governance in Liberia through media advocacy.
On October 12, 2024, the Association elected and inducted a new corps of officers. Those elected and inducted are journalists Joey Kennedy, National President, Priscillia Mah-Belloh, National Vice President, and Melissa Chea-Annan. Journalist Stanley McGill, Assistant Secretary General, was retained from the past ALJA leadership led by former National President Pewee Baysah. The officers were elected at the just ended ALJA 2024 National Convention held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
They were elected for a one-year term. Their election will climax the tenure of former National President Baysah and National Vice President Kadiatu Conteh-Brohiri. Mr. Baysah and former Vice President Conteh-Brohiri were elected in 2023 but resigned their respective posts early this year and relocated to Liberia.This year’s national convention brought together ALJA members from various states in the US. Some delegates from the Press Union of Liberia (PUL) and the Female Journalists Association of Liberia (FeJAL) also attended the convention. This year’s convention was held from October 10th through the 13th.