Monrovia, Liberia—Senator Amara Konneh of Gbapolu County has raised alarm about what he called Liberia’s long-standing cycle of political retaliation, cautioning that anytime state power shifts hands in the future, the same actions will be taken. Senator Konneh pointed out in a scathing statement that Liberia’s political past demonstrates that political parties frequently seek power just to further their personal agendas rather than to foster enduring national cohesion.
He declared, “There is nothing new in Liberia except the history you don’t know or the one you conveniently forget to justify your actions.” Every time a new administration takes power, he claims, the nation continues to see a trend in which people lose their jobs, chances, and means of survival due to their political affiliations.
Senator Konneh noted that a number of UP officials lost their jobs due to their allegiance to party during the 2018 transition from the Unity Party government to the Coalition for Democratic Change administration. He claimed that similar actions are currently occurring under the present administration, with certain CDC-affiliated officials allegedly being fired from government positions for publicly engaging in political events while donning party regalia.
Sen. Amara Konneh released two images on Facebook: one showing Civil Service Agency Director General Josiah Joekai wearing a National Independent Movement for Boakai (NIMBO) T-shirt at the pro-Boakai movement’s launch on Saturday, May 23, and another showing former NaFAA Director General Emma Glassco wearing a CDC T-shirt during the 2023 elections.
As a result, the Ombudsman punished Glassco, the Boakai government suspended her, and she was later dismissed. In spite of this, Joekai continues to lead the CSA, whose rules he blatantly broke over the weekend. The administration fired employees of the Monrovia City Corporation and the Executive Protection Service earlier in Boakai’s term for attending political rallies while wearing CDC regalia. According to the administration, these terminations were required to uphold the conduct policy and prevent state personnel from disobeying it.
Senator Konneh pointed out that the Labor Committee is still holding up a Senate letter asking for the reinstatement of those MCC employees. The most well-documented instance of applying the same Code under Boakai is the Glassco precedent. The National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority’s director general at the time, Emma Metieh Glassco, was suspended in February 2025 following a resolution issued by the NaFAA Board that cited financial and managerial inefficiencies.
Given Joekai’s attendance at Fallah’s NIMBO launch, it is now unclear if the Ombudsman, under the direction of Cllr. Finley Y. Karngar will apply the same criteria to a current government official who represents the president while wearing party regalia.
