New York, USA – Jefferson Koijee (Koijee), a prominent figure in the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) political party and the mayor of Monrovia, Liberia, has been designated by the U.S. Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC). Koijee is known for inciting violence and has a strong hold on the young people of Monrovia according to the Treasury Department.
“He controls paramilitary-style organizations associated with the CDC which allegedly recruits former combatants and recently released prisoners. OFAC has reason to believe that Koijee has instructed these organizations to violently disrupt demonstrations conducted by government critics or political opposition.”
The U.S. Department of the Treasury added Koijee and his supporters have been involved in violence in connection with: an opposition rally in July 2022, students attending a memorial service for former Liberian president Amos Sawyer in March 2022, an anti-rape protest in August 2020, a student graduation ceremony in December 2019, and an opposition rally in November 2018. Koijee has also engaged in corrupt acts, including bribery and misappropriation of state assets for use by private political movements and pressuring anti-corruption investigators to halt corruption investigations.
“Koijee is being designated for being a foreign person who is responsible for or complicit in, or who has directly or indirectly engaged in, serious human rights abuse and for being a foreign person who is a current or former government official, or a person acting for or on behalf of such an official, who is responsible for or complicit in, or who has directly or indirectly engaged in, corruption, including the misappropriation of state assets, the expropriation of private assets for personal gain, corruption related to government contracts or the extraction of natural resources, or bribery pursuant to E.O. 13818.”
In light of the most recent steps, the department demands that all property and interests in property belonging to the above-described designated individuals be prohibited and reported to OFAC if they are in the country or under the control of Americans. Furthermore, any entities that are 50 percent or more owned, directly or indirectly, by one or more blocked individuals, individually or collectively, are likewise blocked. OFAC’s regulations typically prohibit any transactions by U.S. individuals or within (or transiting) the United States that include any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons, unless authorised by a general or specific licence given by OFAC, or exempt.
Koijee has been able to unite the fervent youth and is the only CDC official with a record of keeping the party together during a crisis. Koijee kept the CDC going even though it was opposed for twelve years, giving the party’s operations all of his attention while other CDC officials looked for other employment.
The CDC is going through a very tough time now that Koijee is subject to sanctions, and many analysts think the party is on the verge of collapse. The CDC will find it quite difficult to get rid of Koijee. Furthermore, Koijee, who considers the CDC to be a part of his life, might not be able to see beyond the party he adores.
The United States of America State Department imposed Magnitsky sanctions on McGill, Bill Twehweay, and Syrenius Cephus, three CDC government officials, following the outrageous accusations made against Weah and his officials, before, Koijee.
