A reputable member of the Liberia National Bar Association (LNBA) and former Magistrate, Cllr. Lawrence Wah Jackson, wants the President of the LNBA, Cllr Bornor M. Varmah to resign immediately. Cllr. Jackson believes the LNBA President unjustifiably brought the Law professional Organization to public disrepute, thereby denigrating the sacredness of the Supreme Court, the highest Court of the land.
Cllr. Jackson indicated that the judicial power vested in the Supreme Court by the Constitution must be upheld at all times. According to him, chapter 7, article 66 of the 1986 constitution of Liberia provides that the Supreme Court shall be final arbiter of constitutional issues and shall exercise final appellate jurisdiction in all cases whether emanating from courts of record, courts of not record, administrative agencies, autonomous agencies, or any other authority, both as to law and fact except cases involving ambassadors, ministers or cases in which a country is party.
Cllr. Jackson Maintained that the constitution further provides that in all such cases, the Supreme Court shall exercise original jurisdiction and the Legislature shall make no law nor create any exceptions as would deprive the Supreme Court of any of the powers granted herein.
Cllr. Jackson stressed that the manner and style the President of the LNBA responded to the recent Supreme Court’s opinion on the Bail of Information filed by embattled Speaker Fonati Koffa and some members of the House of Representatives, is undoubtedly political.
According to him, the LBA should have exercised restraint, by waiting for the ruling of the re-argument that is before the Supreme Court, before releasing its statement. He also maintained that the LNBA President’s recommendations advanced in his speech undermine the ruling of the Supreme Court.
According to Cllr. Jackson, the LNBA President should have balanced his speech by disagreeing with the Supreme Court and at the same time calling on the Executive to honor and enforce the ruling. In fact, the re-argument petition before the court stands at a stay, so the bar statement is premature, Cllr. Jackson indicated.
Cllr. Jackson, a candidate for Masters in Social Justice and Human Rights, at the Arizona State University, the United States of America, further reiterated that his call for the resignation of the president of the Liberia National Bar Association (LNBA), aimed at redeeming the highly revered institution from public disgrace, saying “resign now and save our beloved institution that the Liberian people have a high respect for.”
Reflecting on the historical perspective of the existence of the LNBA, Cllr. Jackson noted that since the establishment of the LNBA in 1907, no leader of the LNBA has ever disrespected the Supreme Court in this manner, as done by the LNBA president.
Commenting on counter arguments from some quarters, including Youth and Sports Minister, Cllr. Jeror Cole Bangalu’s statement, noting, “Even Cllr. Gongloe as LNBA President, fundamentally disagreed with the Court several times…” Cllr. Jackson acknowledged the assertion. He, however, maintained that Cllr. Gongoloe respected the decision of the court. According to him, disagreement should be done with respect, meaning the LNBA president can disagree, but he must respect the decision of the court, and that was missing in his speech.
Cllr. Varmah has come under sharp criticism from some of his peers in what some members of his leadership team noted that he issued the statement unilaterally.
The Liberian legal community has been thrown into turmoil following controversial remarks by the President of the Liberia National Bar Association, Cllr. Bornor M. Varmah, regarding a recent Supreme Court ruling on the Bail of Information filed by embattled House Speaker Cllr. J. Fonati Koffa and other lawmakers. Cllr. Varmah’s statement, which many of his colleagues say was issued without consultation from the LNBA leadership, has been widely criticized for undermining the authority of the Supreme Court and dragging the Bar into partisan politics.
Prominent legal minds, including the Bar’s Vice President, Cllr. F. Juah Lawson, and Cllr. Moriah Yeakula-Kporpor, have distanced themselves from Varmah’s position, accusing him of eroding the Bar’s neutrality. Critics argue that Varmah, who previously ran on the ticket of the Unity Party, blurred the lines between his political affiliations and his professional obligations. Some warn that his public defiance of the Court’s ruling threatens the integrity of Liberia’s judicial system and risks damaging the public’s trust in the legal profession.
