Liberia: Supreme Court Orders Reinstatement of NPHIL Director General Dougbeh Nyan, Rules Boakai Administration Violated Due Process

Monrovia — The Supreme Court of Liberia has ordered the immediate reinstatement of Dr. Dougbeh Christopher Nyan as Director General of the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), ruling that his removal by the Executive Branch was unconstitutional and violated statutory due-process protections.

The decision marks a dramatic judicial rebuke of the Boakai administration, highlighting the constitutional limits on the president’s authority to remove tenured public officials. It also underscores the judiciary’s commitment to upholding due process and protecting institutional independence in Liberia’s public health sector.

Background: A Controversial Termination

Dr. Nyan, a trained epidemiologist with extensive experience in infectious disease control, was appointed Director General of NPHIL in 2024. Under his leadership, the institute played a central role in Liberia’s responses to the Mpox outbreak and subsequent public health emergencies, earning international recognition for its robust interventions.

In September 2025, Dr. Nyan was abruptly terminated by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai following a resolution from the NPHIL Board recommending his removal for “gross inefficiency” and acts “undesirable to public interest.” The Board cited alleged management failures but provided no documented investigation to substantiate its claims. Dr. Nyan challenged the termination, arguing that it violated both statutory and constitutional protections.

The Board emphasized that its decisions were guided by the need to restore efficiency, accountability, and good governance within the NPHIL.

According to the resolution, Dr. Nyan’s tenure as head of the country’s lead public health institution was marked by a litany of administrative and managerial failures. The Board accused the Director General of persistently bypassing statutory oversight, operating without transparency, and making unilateral decisions that undermined the governance structure of the Institute.

Specifically, the Board stated that Dr. Nyan repeatedly failed to involve the Board in critical decision-making processes concerning NPHIL’s operations. There was an ongoing lack of coordination and collaboration between NPHIL and the Ministry of Health.

The Board also cited non-adherence to its statutory role as the governing authority of the Institute and noted that Dr. Nyan made numerous foreign trips without informing either the Board or any acting Director General during his absence.

The resolution further indicated that Dr. Nyan sent official communications to both the President of Liberia and the National Legislature without the knowledge or input of the Board. Partners also raised concerns about his leadership and conduct. The Board noted that the institutional budget was submitted without their approval and institutional affairs were often discussed in the media without their authorization. These issues, the Board said, represent serious governance failures.

In February 2025, the Board had previously suspended Dr. Nyan and requested a written apology due to a separate set of concerns involving media engagements that were deemed inappropriate. However, the same behaviors persisted throughout his suspension and afterward, leading the Board to call for his removal, according to the Board.

In the official resolution, the Board stated that “the Director General is hereby recommended for removal effective immediately for violating Section 4.4 sub c (i), ‘found to be grossly inefficient’, and (vi), ‘engages in acts that are undesirable to public interest and undermine principles of good governance’, of the NPHIL Act 2016.” The Board’s resolution also called for Dr. Sia Wata Camanor, the Co-Chair of the Board, to serve as Interim Director General to stabilize the institution and lead operations in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, other government agencies, and international partners until a new Director General is recruited and appointed by the President. The President granted the Board’s request and appointed Dr. Camanor as acting Director General, a position she stills occupies.

Through his legal team, led by Cllr. Tiawan Saye Gongloe and Cllr. Kabineh Ja’neh of Gongloe & Associates Law Firm, Dr. Nyan contends that his removal violated the NPHIL Act of 2016, which provides for a fixed five-year tenure for the Director General.

His lawyers argue that no lawful investigation was conducted and no findings of wrongdoing were presented to justify his dismissal.

The petition further asserts that the President’s action contravened procedural safeguards and constitutes grounds for prohibition, citing precedent including Yealue versus the Executive Branch.

No Investigation, No Due Process

In a decisive ruling delivered Monday by Associate Justice in Chambers, Her Honor Jamestta Howard Wolokolie, the Court held that Dr. Nyan’s dismissal lacked legal and procedural basis.

Citing Section 4.4(c) of the NPHIL Act of 2016–which outlines specific grounds for removal, including corruption, gross inefficiency, and acts undermining good governance–the Court emphasized that any allegations must be established through a formal investigation consistent with due process.

“The word ‘investigation’ does not appear anywhere among the vocabularies used in the resolution,” the ruling emphasized. Government lawyers had argued that administrative due process had been afforded, but they failed to produce evidence of a subsequent investigation justifying the dismissal.

The Court also rejected reliance on a February 2025 inquiry report that had previously led to Dr. Nyan’s one-month suspension without pay, noting that using the same findings to justify termination amounted to punishing him twice for the same conduct.

Right to Be Heard Ignored

Central to the Court’s decision was the constitutional right to due process under Article 20(a) of the 1986 Constitution of Liberia. Dr. Nyan was reportedly given only 48 hours to respond to the Board’s allegations and was dismissed the same day he submitted a detailed rebuttal.

Justice Wolokolie cited the Court’s March Term 2024 opinion in Yealue et al. v. Executive Branch of Government, reaffirming that tenured officials cannot be removed without investigation and a proper hearing. “Due process,” the Court reiterated, “is a law which hears before it condemns.”

Contractual Protection of Tenure

The Court also highlighted the contractual nature of tenured public appointments under Article 25 of the Constitution. By removing Dr. Nyan before the expiration of his five-year term without proven cause, the government remains liable for compensation or reinstatement.

“Where an official is removed… for reasons other than proven cause, the state remains liable for the benefits and emoluments that would have accrued,” the ruling declared.

Order of the Court

The Supreme Court therefore affirmed the alternative writ of prohibition; granted the peremptory writ; ordered Dr. Nyan’s reinstatement as Director General of NPHIL; alternatively, directed the government to pay him full compensation as though he had served out his tenure.

The Clerk of Court has been instructed to notify the parties accordingly.

The ruling reinforces constitutional safeguards for tenured officials, strengthens institutional integrity in Liberia’s public health sector, and sets a clear precedent limiting executive overreach.

“And it is hereby so ordered.”

Who is Dr. Dougbeh Christopher Nyan?

Dr. Nyan is a well-known Liberian medical doctor, biomedical research scientist, social activist, and inventor. He holds a medical degree from the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, affiliated with the Humboldt University of Berlin in Germany.

He has worked at the US National Institutes of Health and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, specializing in infectious diseases and public health diagnostics. During the 2014 Ebola epidemic, Dr. Nyan testified before the United States Congress, offering a public health roadmap and advocating for the establishment of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and the strengthening of national public health systems across the continent.

He is best known for inventing a US-patented diagnostic device known as the “Nyan-Test”, a rapid multiplex diagnostic tool capable of detecting and identifying multiple pathogens such as Malaria, HIV, COVID-19, Ebola, and Hepatitis in under an hour. His innovation earned him the 2017 African Innovation Special Prize for Social Impact.

Legal implications

Legal analysts say the Supreme Court’s ruling is a major setback for the Boakai administration, sharply limiting its power to remove tenured officials without proper investigation and due process. Dr. Dougbeh Christopher Nyan is legally entitled to immediate reinstatement as NPHIL Director General–or full compensation for the remainder of his term–vindicating his claims of wrongful dismissal.

Beyond restoring Dr. Nyan’s position, the decision reinforces constitutional safeguards, underscores the judiciary’s role in checking executive overreach, and sends a clear message that procedural lapses in public office carry serious legal and political consequences.

By FrontPageAfrica.