MONROVIA – Members of the Lofa County Legislative Caucus are said to be divided over the latest ruling from the Supreme Court of Liberia, mandating the incarceration of Senator-elect J. Brownie Samukai for misapplying money belonging to soldiers of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) along with two others.
The Supreme Court is the final arbiter of justice in Liberia
On Thursday, January 27, the High Court ordered the imprisonment of Mr. Samukai and two others for their alleged failure to meet up with the 50% payment of the US$1.1 million money of soldiers of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) money which was misapplied by them.
Mr. Samukai, who is the former Minister of National Defense, Joseph Johnson, former Deputy Minister for Administration and James Nyumah Dorkor, former Comptroller were found guilty of the crimes of theft of property, misuse of public money and criminal conspiracy.
Senator-elect Samukai was ordered jailed for two years, while the co-defendants were given six months jail terms each but with a condition that their sentences shall be suspended if they restitute 50 percent of the fund within six months and make full payment within a year.
Though Senator-elect Samukai claimed to have paid his portion of the money through his supporters, the High Court mandated his imprisonment in its latest ruling on grounds that the 50% payment has not been met by the trio in its totality.
Embracing court’s ruling
Speaking when she participated on Radio Kintoma Morning Show following the court’s ruling, Lofa County district # 4 Representative Mariam Fofana stated that the decision reached by the court will deter others from mismanaging public funds.
“I want to state that I agree with the ruling and we all should see that as a deterrent to mismanaging the trust of the people when given to us-and what has happened to the army people and their money will not happen again and I hope that will give us a closure”.
“I am also waiting to further see what will happen with the local people seat. We will be waiting-now that the decision has been made by the Supreme Court, whether NEC will be able to declare this seat vacant so Lofa people can go back to election and decide who they want to be their Senator”.
Not witch-hunt
Opinion leaders, stakeholders and locals in Lofa have pointed accusing fingers at the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) led government of President George Manneh Weah for the lawsuit filed against Senator-elect Samukai.
They believed that Senator-elect Samukai was being witch-hunted for his refusal to accept an offer to contest on the ticket of the CDC during the December 2020 senatorial election.
But the government has denied the accusation.
According to Representative Fofana, the matter involving Mr. Samukai is more legal than political.
“I don’t see the motive why this government will want to witch-hunt one person. There is no reason or motive to convince me that this was a witch-hunt. I think this is justice that has been served. We cannot be asking for justice to be served in other cases than when it is our own criminal we say prosecute everybody but protect our criminal”.
Representative Fofana claimed that the former Unity Party led government took Samukai to court for the AFL money, and not the CDC administration.
She pointed out that the court’s ruling against their kinsman Samukai could have been avoided if a report from Counselor Miller Catakaw was endorsed by executives of the UP at the time to prevent Mr. Samukai from contesting on the ticket of the party.
She added that Senator-elect Samukai was not the best choice for the former ruling party to contest on the CPP’s ticket, but he was erroneously endorsed and presented to citizens of Lofa over other qualified and competent contenders.
“They still went ahead and selected somebody who has been convicted. This man (Samukai) was convicted before the election. I don’t see the motive of the President or the CDC led-government to witch-hunt a single individual in the Senate. He (Samukai) cannot do anything; you have to work with your colleagues”.
Stop fooling our people
Representative Fofana used the medium to cautioned politicians and others against inciting citizens of Lofa against the Supreme Court’s ruling.
She blamed Senator Steve Zargo and Representative Francis Nyumalin along with the Standard Bearer of the UP, Mr. Joseph Nyuma Boakai for being the masterminds behind the current situation Lofa is faced with.
According to her, the two Lofa County lawmakers, along with Mr. Boakai allegedly misled citizens of the county to vote for Senator-elect Samukai who was already indicted.
“Anybody who is going around fooling our people-and telling them that this thing is politics, they have no basis to this. They are just saying it to manipulate our people; to ride on the sentiments of our people. They are lying to our people”.
Declare the seat vacant
Sometimes ago, Representative Fofana was petitioned by a cross section of citizens to contest the seat won by Senator-elect Samukai if it is finally declared vacant by the Liberian Senate.
But critics accused her of stage-managing her own petitioning ceremony because she is “over-zealous and desperate” to become a Senator.
She claimed that citizens of the county, especially traditional leaders have been waiting for Mr. Samukai’s seat to be declared vacant.
Representative Fofana added that despite the current situation, some citizens of the county are politicizing traditional leaders over the matter.
