The Assistant Minister for Urban Affairs at the Ministry of Internal Affairs Mike Jabateh has rained praises on President Joseph N. Boakai for allowing him (Jabateh) to face justice without interference of the Executive, after he threatened the life of Montserrado County District #10 Representative Yekeh Kolubah.
Speaking with a team of reporters Monday, August 26, 2024 at the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Monrovia, Minister Jabateh thanked the president for allowing him to go through the legal process including police investigation.
According to him, when he arrived at the Monrovia City Court at the Temple of justice, he (Jabateh) spent three hours on prisoner’s bench and was later permitted to have his lawyer file a bond for him. But throughout the process as an official of the government, President Boakai did not interfere.
The Assistant Minister for Urban said the action of the president shows he is a president for all Liberians and will not back any of his officials whenever they do wrong. “I have caused my own problem, so the President has nothing to do with it. I will face my own problem,” he said.
Assistant Minister Jabateh said he was angry to have heard a lawmaker insulting a sitting president; that was why he threatened the life of Representative Kolubah, but said threat means nothing. “What I said was a joke. I was only joking with the lawmaker. Yekeh is my friend. I cannot do anything to Yekeh; that was a practical joke,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jabateh has since regretted his action on Representative Kolubah, but asked the lawmaker and all other Liberians to stop insulting the president. It can be recalled, on July 24, 2024, Minister Jabateh threatened that he would kill Representative Kolubah if he did not refrain from insulting President Boakai.
In a phone recording, Representative Kolubah initiated the call, saying: “Hello, hello.” Assistant Minister Jabateh responded: “Honorable Yekeh Kolubah, this is Mike Jabateh.” Representative Kolubah replied: “Yes Mike, you were calling me yesterday, and I just missed your call again. How are you, sir?”
Assistant Minister Jabateh then said: “Honorable Yekeh Kolubah, let me tell you something, I don’t want to lie to you. I’m a trained man from Russia; I spent two years in Russia. If you continue to insult the President, calling the President all types of names, I swear to Allah, we (government) will bring missionaries to kill you. If it doesn’t happen, don’t trust me. If it doesn’t happen, call me a Mandingo dog. If you continue to insult the President, we will kill you, I swear to God, try it. I give you three weeks from now, and you will see what is going to happen to you. You are a very foolish man.”
