MONROVIA – The Chairperson of the Law Reform Commission, Cllr. Boakai N. Kanneh is on record for calling for the rewriting of the 1986 Liberia Constitution. The erudite lawyer has never minced his words when it comes to the review, reform and rewriting of laws that are not in the interest of the country and its people in modern day.
It can be recalled Chairman Kanneh when awarded a certificate of recognition quite recently for works the Law Reform Commission has done and continue to do, he emphasized a civilized country is not only having super or mega infrastructure, but rather being governed by laws and, that makes a country civilized. “You can’t have rule of law if you do not have good laws on the books. So, we at the Law Reform Commission are in the vanguard to ensure that we have good laws and laws that will be respected and be enforced.”
The LRC chairman made the assertion back then, on March 24, 2025, at the headquarters of the LRC on Sekou Toure Avenue in Mamba Point when he was awarded a certificate of recognition for works the Law Reform Commission has done and continue to do. Cllr. Kanneh and the LRC were awarded the certificate by Excellent Media Incorporated, a local media group in Liberia.
According to Cllr. Kanneh, once the LRC can ensure that the country has good laws, he can assure Liberians and the international community that the country will be on a trajectory of transformation in regards to the laws of the land.
“In respective of how many roads we construct or how many skyscrapers we build, if they are not governed by laws or good conduct, we could destroy them and go back to square one. You don’t want a country that is operated on the snake and ladder theory – you go up and then you fall back. You take two steps forward and then you take three backwards. So, we don’t want that kind of zigzag movement of the country, that is why the Law Reform Commission is doing everything within its capacity to ensure that we try to assist the organs of government in promulgating good laws,” Cllr. Kanneh noted.
The profound Liberian legal luminary also stated that most of the laws Liberia is dealing with presently were promulgated between 1972 and 1978. “So, you can imagine that they have been overtaken by time. And by extension even the Constitution of Liberia that was promulgated in 1986 has also been overtaken by time and has its own challenges. You know that we have been yearning for Constitution review, meaning that we recognize the need to review our laws and to bring them in conformity with present day reality.”
Stressing on the functions of the LRC, Cllr. Kanneh iterated that the Law Reform Commission keeps the laws under review, advises the Legislature and by extension the government on laws that need to be changed, either amended or repealed. “This is all part of the function of the Law Reform Commission. It is a good thing that this government has realized that the rule of law is part of the transformation of this country, it is part of the ARREST agenda. I think it is pillar II of the ARREST agenda. The Law Reform Commission falls in that pillar as to the transformation of the country.”
According to Chapter I, Section 1.4 of the Act the created the Law Reform Commission, which highlights the Objective and Purposes of the Commission states: “The objects and purposes for which the Law Reform Commission is established shall be to keep under review the laws of Liberia to ensure their systematic development and reform, including, in particular. the unification and codification of the laws, the elimination of anomalies and the generation of consistency and harmony in the law, the repeal of obsolete and unnecessary enactments, and generally the simplification and modernization of all branches of the law.”
Bearing the Act in mind, Liberians who spoke on a call-in talk show on a local radio this morning on May 15, 2025 in Monrovia have called on the Law Reform Commission to take the lead to review, reform and rewrite laws that are outdated and do not conform to present day reality.
In a concerted tone, Liberians voiced out their opinions that the Law Reform Commission is critical to the review, reform and rewriting of outdated laws, and that the Government of Liberia, through the National Legislature must provide the LRC with needed funds to carry out its mandate in line with the Act the created the Commission.
The Liberian Post has learned that the codification process of laws in Liberia has not been done for more than 20 to 24 years and also, the Commission has not codified the opinions of the Supreme Court and the Statutes of the Legislature. This is troubling according to legal luminaries, who have noted that it is very problematic. “But codification is not just an ordinary legal exercise, it requires some extra-legal training – drafting and codifying. Those are areas we need support from the government and our partners,” Cllr. Kanneh said recently when he was awarded a certification of recognition for the works the LRC has done and continue to do.
The LRC Chairman has always pushed the cause of the Commission. Quite recently, he proffered recommendations he thinks that can uplift the Law Reform Commission to another level, noting one cannot have an entity effectively running if you don’t have competent manpower. “When I say competent manpower, especially I mean average legal minds. It not just taking any lawyer it is also recruiting the right set of lawyers and training them – of course you can’t have lawyers without the required support staff. Once we can have a set of committed lawyers who are trained to do what we are purposed to do, that will be very helpful for the work that we do and by extension the country. And so, training is key to our work.”
Meanwhile, legal pundits and luminaries have stressed that the call by Liberians to urge the Law Reform Commission to review, reform and rewrite laws that are not benefitting the country at the moment and its people in modern day, is legitimate and upright, adding: “If Liberia is to move to another level and be on par with the comity of nations, laws that are outdated must be reviewed, reformed and rewritten. These pundits have also called on the Government of Liberia to increase the budget of the Commission in order to properly serve the Liberian populace at large in keeping the Act that created it.
