Africa-Press – Liberia. A high-ranking employee at the Ministry of Transport has accused the Liberia National Police (LNP) of unleashing brutal force on peaceful civil servants with her suffering the worst hurt during a protest over a controversial contract reportedly awarded to a private company.
Tensions erupted in Monrovia on Thursday morning, July 10, 2025 as scores of employees from the Ministry of Transport accused the LNP of violently suppressing a peaceful protest aimed at petitioning lawmakers over the reported controversial contract deal that threatens their jobs.
In an emotional account in a live video, Marline Cummings, who was identified as the Director for Driver Licensing at the Ministry, explained how she and over 200 employees had gathered for the purpose of petitioning the Legislature regarding the deal that would outsource the production of driver’s licenses and vehicle license plates to Liberia Traffic Management (LTM).
The workers fear the deal will lead to the closure of the Ministry’s two major income-generating divisions- the Division of Motor Vehicles and the Division of Driver License – effective Monday, July 14, and leave 265 employees effectively idle.
“We were just walking to come to the House to petition our lawmakers. They asked us to move to the side to have a dialogue. Out of a sudden, the police commander came and said, ‘Attack!’—and we were being attacked from every side. This is police brutality,” Madam Cummings stated.
According to her, the peaceful assembly quickly turned violent when armed police, allegedly acting under orders from Inspector General Gregory Coleman, used teargas and force to disperse the group.
“They came with guns and teargas. Gregory Coleman sent his thugs – his lawless armed men on us. I got brutalized for standing up. I got brutalized for saying the truth.”
Cummings, a civil servant with ten years of service to the Ministry, said the deal not only threatens the livelihoods of dedicated public workers but also raises serious concerns about transparency and accountability.
“The only justification is you are still on payroll. So, it means we will take the government’s money and do nothing. Is that the kind of governance we want? Where is the transparency if civil servants cannot even ask questions without being brutalized?” she furthered.
She also questioned the government’s commitment to its stated pillars of rule of law and good governance.
“I thought rule of law was a pillar? I thought transparency was a pillar? Then why are we being punished for demanding answers?”
The incident has triggered widespread concern, with calls for an investigation into the police’s actions and the nature of the LTM contract.
When contacted, the Director of Press at the Ministry of Transport, Shadrach Brown, declined to respond on ground that he had not been given the permission to speak to the issue. The Liberia National Police has yet to issue an official response to the matter amid these publicly allegations.
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