MONROVIA – On January 22, 2024 when President Joseph Nyuma Boakai was being sworn in as President of Liberia on the grounds of the Capitol, he struck a key point that caught the attention of Liberians and the global village, stating that: “There will be no business as usual” in the governance of the state under his watch.
This was not the first time that a Liberian President had made promises to change an age-old menace in Liberia, where public officials disregard the electorates and only seek their welfare and those of their families and friends when given public office to serve. Some even go to the extent of milking the country’s resources and wealth without any regard for the people who they serve. Some deliberately violate the laws and go with impunity.
And so, the assurance by President Boakai that there would be no business as usual was highly welcomed by every Liberian, because for too long they have suffered hardship and languished in abject poverty.
President Boakai was elected because he had promised to change the old way of governing the state to a better dispensation where rule of law will be respected, corruption will have no place, development will be a priority, education, health and other basic services will be top on the agenda.
But despite the tough stance taken by President Boakai against some government officials who have fallen prey to the don’ts of the government, there are some other officials who have vehemently disobeyed the instructions of the president as well as violated laws of the land that govern the state.
And so, on July 25, 2025, the Office of the Ombudsman-Liberia released three reports of infringement of various sections of the Code of Conduct, including Part V and Part XI. The reports detail wrongful political participation, discrimination in the workplace, and the failure of the Government to provide necessary work tools to an employee of the Central Agriculture Research Institute (CARI).
The Ombudsman’s office has therefore reprimanded several government officials and recommended their removal from public service for violating Part V of the Code of Conduct, a statement signed by its Chairman, Cllr. Finley Y. Karngar says.
Due to their violation of Part V of the Code of Conduct, the Ombudsman determined that 36 public officials were guilty and recommended their removal from public service for the sake of the public good.
This recommendation has been forwarded to President Joseph Nyuma Boakai for the necessary actions.
The officials involved include, but are not limited to: Daniel O. Sando the Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Information; Dr. Luther Tarpeh, Chairman of the National Port Authority Board of Directors; Emmanuel Tulay, Chairman of the Liberia Electricity Corporation Board of Directors; Ambassador Sheikh Al Moustapha Kouyateh, Ambassador-at-Large, Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs; Kansualism B. Kansuah, Member of the Board, Liberia Special Economic Zone; among others.
Also, the Ombudsman informs the public that Mr. Sekou Dukuly, Managing Director, National Port Authority (NPA), and Cllr. Pei Edwin Gausi, Legal Counsel of the National Port Authority (NPA), is reprimanded to undergo administrative training at the Liberia Institute for Public Administration for violation of the Code in the NPA.
The Ombudsman has also found the Central Agriculture Research Institute (CARI) guilty of repeatedly failing to provide necessary tools to Dr. Nykoi Jomah, despite CARI continuing to pay his salary and benefits. Nevertheless, Dr. Jomah has been instructed to submit his report for the past three years to his supervisor within 40 days.
The Office of the Ombudsman has recommended to President Boakai to dismiss the following government officials for violating Sections 5.1(a)(b)(c) and 5.8 the Code of Conduct:
See below the full list of officials the Ombudsman has recommended for dismissal:
1. Emmanuel Tulay – Board Chair of LEC
2. Cooper Kruah – Minister of Labor
3. Lucia Yallah – EPA
4. Emmanuel Zorh – Ministry of Labor
5. Luther Tarpeh – NPA Board
6. Amos Tweh – LPRC MD
7. Cornelia Wonkerleh Kruah – Deputy Minister of State
8. Whroway Bryant – Montserrado Superintendent
9. Emmanuel Kunneh Wreh Farr – National Fire Service
10. Sheikh Kouyateh – Ministry of State
11. Ben Fofana – Ministry of State
12. Patience Randall – Liberia Business Registry
13. Edmund Forh – NTA
14. Togar Melvin Cephas – NTA
15. Lucia Tarpeh – Dev. Supt, Montserrado
16. Robert Bestman – Paynesville City Mayor
17. James Yolei – Ministry of Internal Affairs
18. Collins Tamba – Ministry of Youth and Sports
19. Selena Mappy – Ministry of Internal Affairs
20. Kansualism Kansuah – Liberia Special Economic Zone
21. Kuku Dorbor – Liberia Special Economic Zone
22. Jacob Smith – LPRC
23. Daniel O. Sando – Deputy Minister of Information
24. Ansu Dulleh – NDMA
25. MacDella Cooper – Ministry of State
26. Kelvin D. J. Mattaldi – Ministry of Commerce
Will President Boakai Implement the Ombudsman’s Recommendations or Will Party Politics Becloud his Decision?
Opposition to the ruling Unity Party government headed by President Joseph Boakai has always accused the Liberian leader of being one-sided in dealing with officials who violate the laws of the land.
On many occasions they have accused him of ‘pick and choose’ in punishing or suspending officials who are accused of corruption, while leaving out those who mainly are partisans of the ruling Unity Party or associates and have alliance with the UP.
One of the instances always cited by opposition politicians when it comes to President Boakai’s fight against corruption in government is that he ‘picks & choose’ in who faces the law when it comes to alleged corrupt acts in government. While he suspends others, he leaves some off the hook.
There have been calls by Liberians for President Boakai to take action against his own Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Sylvester Grigsby for allegedly instructing NASSCORP to provide hundreds of thousands United Stated dollars used to rent vehicles during the inauguration of President Boakai for guest to use, while he was not even Minister of State.
Also, Mamaka Bility, Minister of State without Portfolio at the Ministry of State is still on the job despite being accused of shady deals in yellow machine procurement exercise that put the government in public dispute when it was discovered exorbitant fees were being charged for those machines to satisfy personal egos at the detriment of the state.
With those few examples, most pundits and the opposition bloc as well as Liberians are beginning to question whether President Boakai will have the political will to dismiss those very government officials the Ombudsman have recommended for dismissal for violating the Code of Conduct. Will the President implement the recommendation or will he allow party politics to becloud his decision on those public officials?
The ball is in the court of President Boakai to prove to Liberians that there will be no business as usual when public officials violate the laws and they should not be left to go with impunity. Will the President muster the courage as he has done with others to take drastic decision against those officials recommended for dismissal by the Ombudsman because they have violated the Code of Conduct?
Bookmakers will be watching keenly in the days to come whether President Boakai will be a different President to muster the political will to dismiss those officials who have deliberately violated the Code of Conduct despite several warnings and even suspension in the past. The pundits reiterates that the president must act now and set himself apart from former presidents who shielded their friends and cronies who violated the laws of the land.
