Liberia: CDC Links Tweh’s Removal to Weah

Monrovia — The opposition Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) has linked President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s removal of Justice Minister Cllr. N. Oswald Tweh to an alleged disagreement over the arrest of former President George M. Weah.

Montserrado County District #9 Representative Frank Saah Foko alleged that Tweh was removed after refusing a purported request from President Boakai to have the former president arrested upon his return to Liberia.

Foko did not provide documentary evidence to support the allegation, and there has been no official confirmation that President Boakai ordered Weah’s arrest.

President Boakai replaced Tweh as Minister of Justice and Attorney General and Augustine Fayiah as Solicitor General in a series of appointments announced Wednesday.

Cllr. Betty Lamin-Blamo was appointed Minister of Justice, while Cllr. Abrahim Boimah Sillah, Sr. was named Solicitor General. The Executive Mansion said Tweh and Fayiah would be reassigned to other positions in government but did not disclose the reasons for their replacement.

The changes came as the Ministry of Justice handles several high-profile cases, including an ongoing drug-trafficking investigation involving former Vice President Jewel Howard-Taylor and other defendants.

Foko claimed that ahead of Weah’s arrival in Liberia Wednesday, the CDC received information about an alleged plan to arrest the former president.

According to the lawmaker, Tweh allegedly advised against such action because there was no known charge or indictment against Weah and warned that an arrest under those circumstances could trigger unrest.

“Because the Justice Minister refused to arrest Weah, President Boakai has dismissed him,” Foko alleged.

“What does Boakai want to do to Liberia?” he asked.

Foko also linked Tweh’s removal to the former Justice Minister’s alleged opposition to actions against former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah Jr., although he provided no evidence that either disagreement influenced President Boakai’s decision.

“Even though the Justice Minister had been irresponsible, reckless and corrupt, I want to say thank you to him for resisting Boakai because, if that were going to happen, you could not imagine what would happen,” Foko said.

The Boakai administration has previously denied reports that the government planned to arrest Weah upon his return to Liberia.

Shake-up Draws Scrutiny

Meanwhile, the replacement of the Justice Minister and Solicitor General has generated public debate over the timing of the changes, particularly as the government pursues several major criminal cases.

Among those questioning the timing is commentator Abraham M. Keita, who argued that the President has not sufficiently explained why the two senior Justice Ministry officials were replaced at this stage.

Keita pointed to controversies that had surrounded the outgoing officials, including allegations raised during judicial proceedings following the corruption trial of former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah Jr.

“Now, if you can recall, the outgoing Solicitor General spent a considerable time denying, in testimony before the judicial inquiry at Criminal Court ‘C,’ that he had any relationship with the forelady of the jury that acquitted former Finance Minister Samuel Tweah in May,” Keita said.

He noted that Fayiah rejected the allegation but argued that the controversy nevertheless placed one of the State’s senior prosecutors under heightened public scrutiny.

Keita argued that prosecutors handling major criminal cases must be able to withstand scrutiny from defendants, international partners and the Liberian public.

He maintained that if President Boakai intended to change the leadership of the Justice Ministry, the decision should have come earlier rather than during the ongoing proceedings involving Howard-Taylor.

“President Boakai did not act too early; rather, he acted late,” Keita argued, saying the changes should have been made before the Howard-Taylor case reached its current stage.

Keita further warned that changing the two senior officials while major criminal investigations and prosecutions are underway could raise questions about continuity within the Ministry of Justice.

He argued that the transition could attract scrutiny from the opposition, defense lawyers and Liberia’s international partners involved in combating transnational drug trafficking.

The Executive Mansion, however, has not linked the removal of Tweh and Fayiah to Weah, the Howard-Taylor case or any of the controversies cited by Foko and Keita.

Tweh and Fayiah are expected to remain in government in new capacities, according to the Executive Mansion.

By New Dawn.