The Center for Transparency and Accountability in Liberia (CENTAL) through its Program Manager, Gerald D. Yeakula, has described the April 23, 2025 ruling of the Supreme Court of Liberia as “final and binding”, calling on President Joseph Nyuma Boakai and all parties to respect the court’s decision without delay or selective application.
Speaking Monday, April 28, 2025, in Monrovia, Yeakula explained that continuous engagement with the bloc of lawmakers led by Representative Richard Koon is an affront to the judiciary and the rule of law.
Similarly, the CENTAL Program Manager called on the Executive Branch of Government to proceed in respecting the Supreme Court’s decision until it says otherwise. He stated, “The legitimacy of Liberia’s democracy rests squarely on adherence to the Constitution and the rulings of the nation’s highest court.”
Yeakula narrated that despite the Court’s unambiguous ruling, President Boakai’s public remarks appeared hesitant to recognize embattled Speaker J. Fonati Koffa’s leadership.
He also described the president’s remarks as a dangerous precedent undermining constitutional governance and democratic norms in Liberia. According to him, any argument suggesting that the Executive must work with Koon’s bloc to keep the government functioning holds no legal merit. “The Supreme Court made it clear that a quorum achieved without the duly elected Speaker presiding is invalid and therefore any legislative actions taken under such circumstances are null and void,” he said.
The CENTAL Program Manager explained that the Legislature’s failure to promulgate rules compelling attendance of its members, something mandated by the 1986 Constitution nearly four decades ago, cannot now be used as an excuse to flout the Court’s decision. He stressed that lawmakers have an individual duty to respect the Supreme Court and attend sessions presided over by Speaker Koffa.
“Absent members cannot effectively remove the Speaker by boycotting legislative sessions,” he said. “If they wish to challenge his leadership, they must do so through lawful procedures during properly constituted sessions,” he noted. Yeakula acknowledged the Petition for Re-Argument filed by the Koon, but insisted that until the Court overturns or modifies its previous decision, the April 23 ruling remains the standing law of the land.
“The filing of the Petition for Re-Argument is itself an acknowledgment of the Supreme Court’s authority,” he added. “It demonstrates that the Koon bloc recognizes the binding nature of the Court’s decision, even if they seek to challenge it.”
Yeakula further explained that any attempt by the Executive to continue recognizing or engaging with the Koon bloc as a legitimate body risks further constitutional crises and damages Liberia’s already fragile democracy. He expressed disappointment in the Supreme Court for its previous delays in ruling on the Bill of Information filed by Speaker Koffa, arguing that the slow pace of judicial processes contributed to the escalation and prolongation of the legislative crisis.
