FPA Analysis Dissects Potential Members of Incoming President Boakai’s Government

Rodney D. Sieh

Africa-Press – Liberia. The aftermath of a grueling elections which climaxed with the demise of the George Weah-led Coalition for Democratic Change government, paved the way for the return to power of the former ruling Unity Party under the leadership of former Vice President Joseph Boakai. Riding on the campaign mantra of a rescue mission, the UP which led Liberia for twelve years prior to the ascendancy to power of outgoing President George Weah, made a lot of promises in hopes of convincing Liberians that they were in fact, the better alternative and well-positioned to make Mr. Weah a one-term President.

Now that the aura of the campaign season is over, gears are being shifted as reality begins to set in. Over the past few weeks, since the UP victory, the reality of a campaign themed around promises of a government of inclusion, is finally about to take shape as President-elect Boakai and his transitional team sifter through dozens of proposals and recommendations in hopes of putting together a team capable of rescuing Liberia from the perceived era of bad governance under former President Weah.

While campaigning for votes, Mr. Boakai expressed a commitment to form an inclusive government once elected as President. The Unity Party leader acknowledged that it is impossible to find all the best minds and talents within a single party to build and develop Liberia.

Said Mr. Boakai: “One thing I know very well is that all the talents and ideas we need to rebuild our country cannot be found within a single party, tribe, county, region, or religion. That’s why I am committed to forming a government of inclusion. We will establish a government that truly reflects the political, ethnic, regional, religious, and gender diversity of our country. We will create a government where a Liberian’s true worth is not determined by loyalty to a party but by loyalty to the country, as well as their ability and willingness to contribute to our nation’s progress.”

As Mr. Boakai ponders his choices, some political observers are already feeling jittery as the scramble for jobs intensifies – and infighting and political differences heighten within the party’s ranks. But even amid the scramble some around the incoming president appear to have ruled themselves out. The likes of Samuel Kofi Woods will likely settle for an advisory role; while former Auditor General John Morlu, who was celebrated by the party when he threw his weight behind the JNB team, is now being fought for what some party insiders consider an unorthodox approach. Amid the uncertainty and infighting, one senior aide told FrontPageAfrica, “one thing is clear, JNB will have highly qualified people in senior positions.”

For the incoming ruling party, there appears to be two warring factions: Those trumpeting the idea of managing expectations against those advocating for the delivery of campaign promises. Sadly, political observers fear; each side speaks authoritatively, leaving the public confused. The proximity of some toward incoming President Boakai, leaves little doubt that some jobs will be more than an individual’s position on governance, sounding more like preemptive government policies or strategies. If they are, Liberians will have to tighten their seatbelt for a ride filled with contradictions, infighting, and governance of silos and fiefdoms. The fact that Liberians voted for and expect campaign promises to be fulfilled, whichever faction emerges supreme will have its hands full. Political observers say, Mr. Boakai faces a daunting task of handling both factions with care while at the same time pushing for some sort of cease fire to avoid ambiguity. For the moment it appears that both sides, the ones advocating managed expectations against those looking to fulfill campaign promises are drawn in a quagmire over how the rescue agenda will be conducted.

As Mr. Boakai prepares for his inauguration and the unveiling of his government, FrontPageAfrica looks at some of the names reportedly being courted and lobbied for inclusion in Mr. Boakai’s incoming government.

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
DEPARTING MINISTER: Dee Maxwell Kemayah

THE LOWDOWN: The ministry responsible for implementing Liberia’s external policies and relations as well as managing its diplomatic missions accredited abroad endured a rocky period over the past six years amid lingering and familiar issues regarding the country’s passport falling into the wrong hands. Whoever is tipped here will also serve as the dean of the cabinet and automatically ascends to the presidency after the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Pro Tempore of the Liberian Senate.

The ministry has been rocked by multiple scandals over the past few years. Back in September 2020, the United States designated Andrew Wonplo who was then Liberia’s Director of Passport and Visas for his alleged involvement in “passport fraud that undermined the rule of law, reduced the Liberian public’s faith in their government’s management of identification and travel documents, and compromised the integrity and security of immigration processes.” Three years on, the illicit issuance of Liberian diplomatic passports remains a menace the country is grappling with.

The Liberian passport is currently ranked 91st among global passports, according to the Guide Passport Ranking Index.

On the campaign trail, Mr. Boakai was critical of Liberia’s foreign policy under the Weah-led government especially following President Weah’s order suspending the issuance of Liberian diplomatic passports. The issue of the passports prompted many to raise alarm that the recent discovery of Liberian ECOWAS diplomatic passports in the possession of several money launderers and international criminals projects an image of a country that is turning into a criminal enterprise in the eyes of the international community.

One of the most pressing dilemmas at the ministry needing urgent address is the issue of staffers stationed abroad living in dire straits. The outgoing government left vacuums at various embassies that were never filled over the past years. The incoming minister will be tasked with not just addressing the plight of diplomatic staffers but restoring respectability to the foreign service.

NAMES OUT THERE
SARAH NYANTI BEYSOLOW
UPSIDE: Beysolow-Nyanti comes with a high profile, most recently serving the Deputy Special Representative in the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and Resident Coordinator in South Sudan. She has more than 20 years of experience in international development and humanitarian affairs including in conflict and post-conflict settings, most recently serving as Resident Coordinator in Nepal (2021). Nyanti previously served as United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Representative in Yemen (2019-2020) and in The Gambia (2015-2017). Prior to her senior-level representational roles, she served in numerous technical capacities in UNICEF and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) related to setting up systems for large scale grant management, social protection/cash transfers, HIV/AIDS, health, and education.

Before joining the United Nations in Liberia where she worked during the conflict and transitional government periods, Beysolow-Nyanti held senior positions in the Ministry of Health of the Government of Liberia (1999-2003). She served as the Director of the National AIDS Control Programme and prior to that, she served as Special Assistant to the Minister of Health.

Beysolow-Nyanti holds a master’s degree in public administration from the New Charter University, USA and completed a second master’s in management and leadership from Western Governors University, USA; and is an accredited Broker with the United Kingdom-based international Partnership Broker Association managing and developing collaboration processes. She is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Transformational Leadership.

DOWNSIDE: Beysolow-Nyanti’s mention here stems from the fact that she was the Standard Bearer of the African Liberation League (ALL) in the just-ended presidential elections where she finished 18th after gathering 3,644 votes for 0.20 percent of the votes. She supported Mr. Boakai’s bid and was appointed to his transitional team. Some party insiders say the former presidential candidate came to the table late and may not be deserving of such a high-profile post. But more importantly, the ministry has a reputation for being highly political with lots of infighting. Beysolow-Nyanti, considered an outsider to a rugged system could struggle to adapt to such polarizing environment.

ODDS: 50-50

AUGUSTINE NGAFUAN
UPSIDE: An old hand at the Ministry, Ngafuan, served as Foreign Minister from 2012 to 2015 under the presidency of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. He is also a former Minister of Finance. Mr. Ngafuan is currently the country manager of the African Development Bank in Uganda.

The economist, accountant, and diplomat with a history of service in and out of government, also has previous stints with the Central Bank of Liberia as Head of International Banking, Senior Bank Analyst, and Bank Examine. He is also worked as Independent Director (Chair, Audit Committee & Member, Credit Committee) of Ecobank Liberia Limited; Secretary, Board of Trustees of the University of Liberia, and Part-time Lecturer in Public Financial Management (PFM), Liberia Institute of Public Administration. Known simply as Ngaf to his peers, Ngafuan has demonstrated strong technical and managerial skills in the formulation and implementation of public financial management and fiscal policy reforms and in working with national, international and non-governmental stakeholders in developing and achieving sustainable development, foreign policy and regional cooperation objectives. Also skilled in Project Management, Corporate Governance, Capacity Building, Negotiations, International Relations, Policy Development and Implementation, Communications, and Advocacy.

DOWNSIDE: Mr. Ngafuan, often regarded as a future leader in the Unity Party and heir apparent to the incoming president but his omission from the transition team is raising some questions as to whether he has a future in a Boakai-led government.

ODDS: 50-40

ELIAS SHONIYIN
UPSIDE: A former Deputy Minister for International Cooperation and Integration, Mr. Shoniyin is an international affairs, development, and policy professional, with more than twenty years in public service and nonprofit, where he made significant contributions to the post-war recovery and development of Liberia. He was a World Fellow at Yale University in 2019. Shoniyin’s extensive professional expertise spanned multiple executive-level portfolios. He serves as Board Chair of Foreign Service Institute, Board Member of Liberia National Commission on Small Arms (LINSA), Starz University, Liberia, etc. Shoniyin’s leadership inspired strategic reforms in Liberia’s Foreign Ministry, and he played a pivotal role in deepening Liberia’s post-conflict ties with the comity of nations and expanded cooperation on new frontiers. Mr. Shoniyin also coordinated Liberia’s resource mobilization efforts during West Africa Ebola outbreak in 2014, resulting to the earliest containment of the virus in Liberia. His multilateral work includes over eleven years as Advisor to the Liberian delegations to the United Nations General Assembly and lead negotiator at the Second, Third and Fourth Committees, African Union, ECOWAS, etc. He is a lecturer in International Relations at the University of Liberia graduate school. Elias brings to ADMA Team, the combination of drive, dedication, creativity, technical competence, experience, and leadership in contemporary diplomacy, investment policy, global trading system, policy analysis, negotiations and mediation, public sector management and capacity building. Shoniyin, an old hand to the ministry understands the innerworkings and could bring some stability and credibility.

DOWNSIDE: Despite being a long-time member of the incoming ruling party, some partisans say, Mr. Shoniyin distant himself from the party in recent years, especially during the presidential and legislative elections that led to the ascendancy of Mr. Boakai to the presidency.

ODDS: 50-40
AUGUSTINE JARRETT
UPSIDE: A former economic advisor to former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Jarrett help lead the Economic Management Team and Technical Secretariat, performing analysis of fiscal and monetary data prepared presidential briefings on emerging economic and financial issues related to banks, FX, liquidity, etc., and worked with the central bank to secure government funding.

In that role, he authored Presidential memos to seek legislative ratification of $300 million in long-term loans from partners (World Bank, European union, African Union, and USAID). Worked with DFID to organize and develop a new forestry management framework in Liberia. This included: securing $15 million in funding for the Liberia Forestry Development Authority, developing a baseline understanding of the logging sector post-moratorium, reorganizing concessioning and resuming commercial and economic activities, understanding the impact of investments made in the industry by government and private sector prior to 2012, identifying managerial and capacity issues.

Jarrett holds a master’s degree in development economics and international development from Northwood University and an AA Banking, Corporate, Finance, and Securities Law as well as a bachelor’s degree in economics from Northwood and a Bachelor of Arts – BA Business Administration and Management.

Jarrett is also the founder, Chair, and Chief Executive Officer of a mineral exploration company. Organized research and analysis for project selections; led acquisitions of selected investment properties; lead fundraising activities. Manage daily progress of workforce and operational functions; oversee targets and achievements over the scope of financial, managerial, and operational activities.

He was a strategic advisor to a global top 20 Asian iron ore mining company, and an EU-based forestry management company. In that role, he developed investment and execution strategies to implement work programs, developed documentation to guide corporate policies of both firms operating in different sectors and across the globe and focused on policy and program alignments for clients as they engaged local market constraints and global supply chains. He also successfully supervised multistakeholder negotiations.

Sources close to the incoming President says, Dr. Jarrett’s name has been coming up a lot as the man Mr. Boakai is hoping to lead his administration policy.

DOWNSIDE: While Jarrett is said to be on the incoming president’s radar much of his experience is in finance. He managed a $30 million investment strategy for NRDC local timber companies in Liberia while seeking new business opportunities, and implemented strategic initiatives, and created partnerships to increase the long-term profitability of Resource Development Capital, Ltd. and the NRDC group. Perhaps the most damaging glitch to Dr. Jarrett’s profile is that he was part of the team behind the ill-fated and controversial Elinilto deal which rocked the Sirleaf administration that shortchanged Liberia.

ODDS: 50-30

AMB. GEORGE S. W. PATTEN, SR.
UPSIDE: Pattern’s professional career spans more than twenty-five years of dedication to public service, serving and representing Liberia, and building bilateral and multilateral relationships. In those roles, Pattern, who most recently served as Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Liberia to the United States, Canada, and Mexico, where he was required to engage at all levels of government, and across regional, sub-regional, the United Nations System, Non-governmental organizations, etc. Forged relationships, and build consensus around critical issues-political, economic, and social to achieve desired objectives.

A career diplomat, Pattern has also served as Ambassador to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Ethiopia, and Kenya. Additionally, he has served as Permanent Representative to the African Union Commission (AUC), and the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).

Ambassador Pattern’s journey has taken him to the Permanent Mission of Liberia to The United Nations in New York where he served as Acting Chief of Mission of the Permanent Mission of Liberia to the United Nations in New York, Minister Counselor- Political and Legal Officer.

He was Desk Officer at the Bureau of African & Asian Affairs, First Secretary & Consul-Political Officer, at the Embassy of Liberia – Tripoli, Libya and Accredited to Tunisia.

Served here as Deputy Chief of Mission, Finance Officer, Consular Officer & Head of Chancery

Ambassador Pattern is a Ph.D. Candidate: Public Policy & Administration, Liberty University – Virginia, USA and holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB), from the St. Mary’s University College – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

He also holds Master of Arts: International Relations, from the IBB Graduate School, University of Liberia, and an BBA in Business Administration, from the University of Liberia.

DOWNSIDE: Pattern faced Senate scrutiny and was forced to apologize for taking up assignment without going through Senate confirmation following his appointment by President Weah. Pattern regretted his action following his appointment and promised to write a formal letter of apology although he said he was implementing the President’s mandate.

ODDS: 50-30
MINISTRY OF FINANCE & DEVELOPMENT PLANNING
DEPARTING MINISTER: Samuel D. Tweah

THE LOWDOWN: The ministry tasked with formulating and administering economic development, fiscal and tax policies for the promotion of sound and efficient management of the financial resources of the Government, is expected to play a major role as the incoming president looks to live up to his campaign theme of “Rescuing Liberia.”

Emphasis will no doubt be placed on administering the revenue program of the government, including supervision of the collection of the revenues which will be the centerpiece of the government’s economic agenda. Whoever assumes the position will be tasked with reporting the financial activities and financial position of the government to the President and the Legislature; maintaining the central accounting records of the government and prescribe for all Government agencies of accounts reporting and documentation necessary to safeguard the assets of the Government. The incoming minister will also be tasked with formulating fiscal policies for financial planning; disburses Government funds by legislative appropriations; and performs all such services relating to the Government finances imposed by law.

Order of Succession:

Under the Weah-led government, the economy grew 4.8% in the last year, but double-digit food inflation continues to take its toll on Liberians. More than half of the country’s five million people are estimated to be poor, according to the World Bank. Three in four Liberians often did not have enough money for food in the past year, a poll by Gallup found. Most Liberians surveyed reported feeling that their standard of living is falling.

On the campaign trial, Mr. Boakai pledged to prioritize “resuscitating” the country’s economy, which is why whoever is appointed here will have their hands full. Key among the challenges will be producing a clear-cut strategy to encourage the private sector to “do business and pay their taxes which will create the fiscal space to deliver basic services in health, water, and sanitation.

The incoming president has promised to take a close look at mining concessions in a bid to ensure they benefit the country. Ironically, during Mr. Boakia Unity Party’s 12-year rule, an audit found that almost all the concessions awarded from 2009 to 2013 were not in compliance with the law.

In a report commissioned by Boakai and his boss, former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf — the report found that only two out of sixty-eight resource contracts worth US$8 billion were conducted properly.

Concessions granted in agriculture, forestry, mining, and hydrocarbons — including a lucrative deal with oil company Chevron — were either wholly or partially flawed, London-based accounting firm Moore Stephens, said.

This damning report was preceded by an equally damaging revelation of corruption and fraud in the forestry sector that became known as the Private Use Permit (PUP) saga — a situation that constrained the Sirleaf administration to place a moratorium on the commercial logging sector for years.

But the Moore Stephens report was a major blow to a government that had vowed to fight corruption, as it pointed to several flaws, including a lack of competitive bidding, non-stakeholder participation, lapses in procurement procedures, and missing documentation.

While Liberia made significant progress by making its executive budget proposal publicly available within a reasonable period, by making major state-owned enterprise debt information publicly available, and by making basic information on natural resource extraction awards publicly available, the departing government did not make its enacted budget or end-of-year report publicly available within a reasonable period.

Additionally, according to the United States Fiscal Transparency Report for 2023, information on debt obligations was widely and easily accessible to the public, including online.

The report noted that the government maintained off-budget accounts not subject to audit or oversight. The supreme audit institution did not meet international standards of independence and did not make its audit reports publicly available within a reasonable period. The government specified in law or regulation and appeared to follow in practice the criteria and procedures for awarding natural resource extraction contracts and licenses, but there are reports of corruption and inconsistent application of regulations in practice.

Whoever is appointed here will be responsible of ensuring that most of these issues are addressed. Most importantly, however, the incoming government, which was very critical of the outgoing government’s downsizing and massive salary deductions, will be keenly watched to see how it restore salaries to status quo as promised on the campaign trail.

NAMES OUT THERE
DR. ANTOINETTE SAYEH
UPSIDE: Widely regarded as the economic recovery assassin, Dr. Sayeh was the engineer behind former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s government’s revival of Liberia’s post-war economy, taking a two-year break from the World Bank. Dr. Sayeh is formerly a distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Center for Global Development (CGD) and Co‐Chair for the 19th Replenishment of the International Development Association (IDA19), the World Bank’s Fund for the poorest. She previously oversaw and significantly enhanced the International Monetary Fund’s engagement with its sub‐Saharan African members as Director of the African Department between July 2008 and August 2016.

While in Washington, DC recently, insiders say the incoming President sought to convince the IMF to give the former finance minister a leave of absence for two years to help resuscitate the Liberian economy. But insiders tell FrontPageAfrica that Dr. Sayeh was apparently unhappy at the fact that meetings were established without her involvement with “low level” IMF staffers.

As Minister of Finance in post‐conflict Liberia (January 2006 through June 2008), Dr. Sayeh led the country through the clearance of its long‐standing multilateral debt arrears, the HIPC Decision Point, the Paris Club, buy‐back of its commercial debt, and its first Poverty Reduction Strategy, significantly strengthening its public finances and championing public financial management reform. Before joining President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s Cabinet, Ms. Sayeh worked for the World Bank for 17 years, including as Country Director for Benin, Niger, and Togo; Senior Country Economist for Pakistan and Afghanistan, as well as an Advisor in the Bank’s Operations Policy Vice Presidency and as Assistant to its principal Managing Director. Before joining the Bank, Ms. Sayeh worked in economic advisory positions in Liberia’s Ministries of Finance and Planning.

Dr. Sayeh graduated with a bachelor’s degree with honors in economics from Swarthmore College and a PhD in International Economic Relations from the Fletcher School at Tufts University. While at CGD, Ms. Sayeh also served on the Board of Managers of Swarthmore College; Board of Directors of the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Presidential Center for Women and Development; and Board of Directors of Emerging Public Leaders.

Word in the corridors of Mr. Boakai’s close circle is that the incoming president is looking to convince the IMF to allow Dr. Sayeh to return to Liberia to help restore Liberia’s financial standings.

DOWNSIDE: Dr. Sayeh, an apolitical technocrat may fall prey to the ongoing dogfight in the Unity Party for high-profile jobs although Mr. Boakai appears eager to bring in someone with not just the experience but one with the connections and understanding of the international monetary networks. This will no doubt be the most important appointment of Mr. Boakai’s presidency and could set the tone for the next six years.

ODDS: 50-50

JOHN S. MORLU

The former auditor general of the Republic of Liberia is a CPA in the District of Columbia. He also holds multiple professional certifications include CFE, CMA, CIA, CITP, CGMA, CGFM, CGA and CFM. Mr. Morlu holds an MBA in Finance from Johns Hopkins University, a master’s in international commerce and policy from George Mason University, and double bachelor’s in economics and international Relations from the University of Virginia.

In 2006, after an extensive international search, the European Union recruited Morlu to become the Auditor General of Liberia. Morlu assumed office in April 2007 and his tenured ended in April 2011. Morlu has extensive background in public accounting and management consulting, working major companies in the USA such as Unisys and BearingPoint.

John Morlu produced more reports, including financial, compliance, internal controls, operational and fraud investigative reports that indicted high-profile officials. Morlu audits are highly cover by local and international media including Newsweek, Businessweek, Africa Confidential. Morlu audit reports are also referenced in State Department Reports and UN Secretary General Reports to the Security Council on Liberia.

DOWNSIDE: When Mr. Morlu threw his weight behind Mr. Boakai during the presidential elections, many of Mr. Boakai’s supporters trumpeted the move as a plus as the party sought to convince Liberians that it meant business, with the backing of a strong anti-corruption icon. Since the end of the elections however, Mr. Morlu appears to have been sidelined, described as too tough on pushing the anti-corruption agenda the party promised on the campaign trail.

ODDS:50-50

AUGUSTINE NGAFUAN
UPSIDE: The economist, accountant, and diplomat with a history of service in and out of government, also has previous stints with the Central Bank of Liberia as Head of International Banking, Senior Bank Analyst, and Bank Examine. He is also worked as Independent Director (Chair, Audit Committee & Member, Credit Committee) of Ecobank Liberia Limited; Secretary, Board of Trustees of the University of Liberia, and Part-time Lecturer in Public Financial Management (PFM), Liberia Institute of Public Administration. Known simply as Ngaf to his peers, Ngafuan has demonstrated strong technical and managerial skills in the formulation and implementation of public financial management and fiscal policy reforms and in working with national, international, and non-governmental stakeholders in developing and achieving sustainable development, foreign policy, and regional cooperation objectives. Also skilled in Project Management, Corporate Governance, Capacity Building, Negotiations, International Relations, Policy Development and Implementation, Communications, and Advocacy.

An old hand at the Ministry, Ngafuan is also a former Minister of Finance. Mr. Ngafuan is currently the country manager of the African Development Bank in Uganda.

DOWNSIDE: The omission of the former Finance and Foreign minister from the JNB-JKK Transition team is raising some questions about whether Ngafuan has a future in a Boakai-led government.

ODDS: 50-20

BOIMA KAMARA: Kamara is an old hand here, serving in the position from April 2016 to 2018. Prior to this appointment, he served as the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Liberia. As minister, Mr. Kamara was responsible for fiscal policy formulation and implementation to ensure macroeconomic stability where jobs are created and there is strong economic growth.

Kamara has not hidden his desire for the job, saying recently, “Be assured, there’s going to be a departure from mediocrity in macroeconomic governance. We must grow the national budget to over US4 billion before the JNB-led administration comes to an end. There’s going to be a paradigm shift, a new economic order shall be birthed by the leading of the Holy Spirit. Not by might, nor by power but by my spirit said the lord, Yeashua Hamashiach. Shalom.”

Political observers say Kamara’s ambitious agenda could pose a challenge – and six years may not be ample time to deliver. Ironically, the idea of a billion-dollar budget was previously rejected by many during the 2017 presidential elections when it was flirted with by some presidential candidates.

Over the past few years, Mr. Kamara was highly critical of the Weah administration’s economic policy, slamming the outgoing government of harping on the country’s burgeoning economy based on projections from global financial statistics. Mr. Kamara often called on the government to reset its economic priorities especially relating to how limited revenues are spent.

Providing a pedantic analysis of how the country fared under the Sirleaf regime and what is the current debt situation, vis-à-vis the allocation of development loans that benefit the people of Liberia, Mr. Kamara tried to lay the premise of a completely wrecked economy inherited by former President Sirleaf who also had to battle getting Liberia out of the HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) categories to qualify for debt relief.

During a radio appearance on the eve of the elections, Mr. Kamara lamented that Liberia’s economic woes are especially tied to how present and past regimes missed out on prioritizing programs and projects that increase the wellbeing of the citizens, but would rather focusing of enriching the purse of public figures through budgetary allocations while important state institutions remain derelict in terms of budgetary support.

DOWNSIDE: Kamara’s views have made him a fan favorite amongst Unity Party’s faithful for the position, but he could face strong competition in a field Mr. Boakai will be depending on the define his presidency.

ODDS: 50-40

AUSTIN FALLAH
UPSIDE: Fallah left an indelible mark as the Assistant Commissioner of the Motor Vehicle Division of the Internal Revenue Department, Ministry of Finance, Liberia. In the United States, he has served as a supervisor in the financial analysis and accounting department of Minnesota’s largest county government. He distinguished himself as an internal auditor in the State of Minnesota, later ascending to the position of Special Sheriff in the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Department. His commendable efforts in drug enforcement led to certification and recognition by the USA Department of Justice. Furthermore, he contributed significantly as a member of the Excellent Committee of the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States of America and Canada.

In the private sector in the United States, Mr. Austin S. Fallah has held diverse roles such as Supervisor, Assistant Financial Comptroller, Senior Accountant, Finance Director, Senior Accountant, General Accountant, Cost Accountant, and Team Lead.

Fallah’s journey encompasses institutions such as Zaweata Elementary and Junior High School, Bong Mines; Boatswain Elementary and Junior High School, Jamaica Road, Bushrod Island; Cathedral Catholic High School, Monrovia; Saint Mary’s Catholic High School, Bushrod Island; University of Liberia; University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA; Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota; University of St. Thomas, Saint Paul, Minnesota; Hamline University, Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA; Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA; University of St. Catherine, Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA. He has also been the recipient of a scholarship to the Boston University of Law and is currently pursuing a Master of Law degree at Hamline University School of Law, Saint Paul, Minneapolis.

His book, “Diversity as the New World Currency,” is currently available on major platforms, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other reputable bookselling sites. Additionally, he is poised to release three more books: “Labor Pattern of Economic Growth: Navigating The Way to Economic Freedom of the Third World and Developing Countries,” “Education the Way to Economic Independence for Immigrants in the United States of America,” and “Crafting Public Policy for the Common Good of the People who are Govern and Those who Govern.” These forthcoming publications promise to contribute substantially to the discourse on global economic growth, education, and public policy.

DOWNSIDE: While Fallah possesses a strong academic credentials, some insiders to the incoming President are not so sure he has enough connections and international influence to push an aggressive agenda the JNB administration would need to resuscitate the struggling economy.

ODDS: 50-30

MINISTRY OF JUSTICE
Departing Minister, Frank Musah Dean
THE LOWDOWN: The ministry tasked with instituting all legal proceedings necessary for law enforcement and overseeing the codification of Liberian statutory laws has a major role to play in the revamping of Liberia’s justice system which has come under massive scrutiny over the past few years.

The incoming president’s soon-to-be predecessor endured similar challenges when he faced multiple challenges, particularly regarding the issue of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), institutionalized and formalized as a core component of ensuring access to justice especially for the poor.

Stakeholders and international partners will be keen to see how the incoming government handles the delicate issue which is key to contributing to building an inclusive society, with a strong focus on promoting human rights, peace and security while addressing the critical justice needs and interests of the country and its citizens.

Perhaps the most pressing dilemma for the minister selected here would be how to handle the issue of officials from the Weah administration sanctioned by the United States government. Recently, Catherine Rodriguez, Chargé d’Affaires of the U.S. Embassy near Monrovia, called on the Joseph Boakai administration to prioritize the fight against corruption as it is paramount to the Liberian people.

Rodriguez averred, that many Liberians are eager to see those involved in or accused of corruption or human rights violations prosecuted. “It is really incumbent on the Boakai administration to fight corruption, and we are here to help, but the government has to want it, civil society has to want it, the media, and more importantly, the Liberian people need to want it,” Rodriguez added.

The overcrowding of prisons is also an issue likely to be watched as would be improving access to justice for the general population. The departing government fell short of fast tracking the implementation of legislative measures aimed at reforming the court system and reduce prisons overcrowding.

The state of the Legal Aid Bill, which was submitted in 2022, is another legislation key to reducing prisons overcrowding and pre-trial detention by establishing a comprehensive framework to provide legal aid to Liberians.

Whoever takes over the helm at justice will face a daunting task in the dispensing of justice regarding the relationship with the judicial branch of government. The MoJ faced intimidations from the Supreme Court during the ill-fated controversial not guilty verdict of Criminal Court “A” of the first judicial Circuit of Montserrado County at the Temple of Justice presided over by Judge A. Blamo Dixon in the 100-million drug bust trial.

Departing minister declared that the verdict clearly undermined the collective efforts of Liberia and its international coalition to clamp down on the illegal transit of illicit drugs using West Africa as the conduit to trade narcotics internationally from Latin America and elsewhere.

Dean lamented following the verdict that for Liberia to play its role effectively in this international fight against drug trafficking, money laundering, and other crimes associated with illicit drug transportation and sale, all three branches of the government must take this fight as a collective responsibility and not just the executive.

The incoming government could also face challenges regarding the issue of the war crimes court. International stakeholders, including the New York-based watchdog group, Human Rights Watch was on the heels of the Weah administration encouraging the government to make history and ensure that Liberia’s victims of war could at long last have a chance to see the people who committed crimes against them held to account.

During two armed conflicts – 1989 to 1996 and 1999 to 2003 – horrific abuses were committed against civilians in Liberia. These included summary executions and numerous large-scale massacres; widespread and systematic rape; mutilation and torture; and large-scale forced conscription and use of child combatants. The violence blighted the lives of tens of thousands of civilians, displaced almost half the population, and virtually destroyed the country’s infrastructure.

Whoever assumes command here will be expected to build on gains made in the 2023 Millennium Challenge Corporation scorecard where Liberia made improvements in the ensuring rule of law from 50th percentile to 52nd percentile.

All this at a time when the US and other international reports have highlighted significant human rights issues in Liberia. These include credible reports of: unlawful or arbitrary killings, including extrajudicial killings; cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment by the government; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest or detention; serious problems with the independence of the judiciary; serious restrictions on freedom of expression and media, including violence and threats of violence against journalists; serious government corruption; lack of investigation and accountability for gender-based violence, including child, early, and forced marriage, and female genital mutilation/cutting; crimes involving violence or threats of violence targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex persons; the existence and enforcement of laws criminalizing consensual same-sex sexual conduct between adults; and the outlawing of independent trade unions or significant restrictions on workers’ freedom of association.

The US report declared that impunity continued for individuals who committed human rights abuses, including atrocities during two civil wars, as multiple investigative and audit reports were ignored. “The government made intermittent but limited attempts to investigate and prosecute officials accused of abuses during the year, whether in the security forces or elsewhere in the government. Impunity continued for government corruption.”

NAMES OUT THERE
CLLR. TIAWON GONGLOE
UPSIDE: On paper, the man dubbed, “The Poor Man’s Lawyer” ticks all the boxes needed to lead a transformation of the justice system which has borne the butt of the criticisms of international stakeholders over the course of the Weah first term.

As a candidate in the 2023 presidential elections, Mr. Gongloe ran on mantra of creating a country where citizens’ rights would be protected. His 10-point plan dubbed “A Better Liberia Agenda” and a 12-point “Strategy to Fight Corruption in Liberia,” was seen as a guiding point for national reform and renewal.

Gongloe has years of experience as Managing Partner, Gongloe and Associates, Inc, a law firm engaged in the general practice of law including courtroom trials, drafting articles of incorporation and bylaws and other corporate documents for corporations.

In April 2011, Gongloe, a former Solicitor General during the regime of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, was tipped by Sirleaf to chair a special committee established by the President to investigate the March 22, 2011, police brutality against students at the G. W. Gibson High School and Tubman High School. A former Minister, Cllr. Gongloe resigned in

November 2010 over policy disagreement with the President of Liberia.

As Solicitor General Mr. Gongloe became the first in the position to prosecute a former head of State and sitting members of the Liberian Senate; in that position, participated in the renegotiation of the Metal Steel mining concession agreement in Liberia, participated in the formulation of the forestry reform law, amongst other things.

As a member of the Grievance and Ethics Committee, Supreme Court Bar, the learned lawyer has also provided legal representation for journalists illegally arrested and detained by government or held in contempt by courts.

DOWNSIDE: Although Cllr. Gongloe supported President-elect Boakai in the second round of the elections and was celebrated by Unity Party supporters for doing so, he may face stiff resistance from some aides to Mr. Boakai who may see him as too radical for the position and a maverick who is unafraid to ruffle feathers when needed. Does former Auditor General John Morlu current predicament ring a bell?

ODDS: 50-50

CLLR. BENEDICT SANNOH
UPSIDE: A seasoned lawyer and a former lecturer at the Louis Arthur Grimes, Cllr. Sannoh is a former minister of justice during the regime of President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. He previously worked as Chief Human Rights Officer of the United Nations Mission in Sudan. He is a former activist and scholar.

As a human rights officer, Cllr. Sannoh was charged with consolidating the peace by building national capacity for promoting human rights. From establishing a reparations program for victims of the conflict to organizing Human Rights Committees in each of the country’s twelve districts, Cllr. Sannoh worked diligently to implement the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).

As a human rights activist, Sannoh used his practice of the law to sensitize, advocate and litigate on behalf of Liberians. Threatened by the government of Charles Taylor, he fled Liberia in 2002 and was granted political asylum in the United States. In the aftermath of the first round of the 2017 presidential elections, Sannoh was the lead lawyer representing the Unity Party in the Liberty Party, UP failed electoral irregularities and fraud case.

DOWNSIDE: Sannoh’s tenure as Justice Minister during the Sirleaf era was marred by a lot of controversy over his handling of a number of high-profile cases. On April 7, 2016, he was forced to step down from the position as President Sirleaf accepted his resignation.

As minister Sannoh faced barrage of criticisms for creating controversy over the death of Mr. Harry A. Greaves, the former Managing Director of the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company.

The Sannoh-led justice ministry was often accused of providing conflicting information that really confused the public. Although the first and only autopsy report indicated that Greaves died from drowning, a leaked medical report from the John F. Kennedy Medical Center where Mr. Greaves’ body was deposited after it was discovered on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2016 contradicted the pathologist report which concluded that Mr. Greaves death was a result of drowning and that all the injuries on the body surfaced after his death and were from bumping into rocks in the sea.

Cllr. Sannoh confirmed the report in a news conference on February 19 but sought to convince the public that the first pathologist report was more credible than the JFK finding.

ODDS: 50-30

CLLR. KABINEH J’ANEH
UPSIDE: The former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court endorsed the candidacy of Mr. Boakai after the first round of the elections, citing the former vice president’s extensive experience, dedication to public service, and his forward-looking vision for Liberia. Cllr. J’aneh has been a strong critic of the Weah administration, trumpeting the fact that the country is grappling with substantial challenges that encompass rampant corruption across all levels in government, including a troubling disregard for the rule of law.

In 2006, Mr. Justice Kabineh M. Ja’neh, then Counsellor Kabineh M. Ja’neh was nominated and subsequently appointed Associate Justice to the Honorable Supreme Court Bench of the Republic of Liberia. Justice Ja’neh, worked collaboratively with former Chief Justice and the Associate Justices to reform the Liberian Judiciary for a more efficient and effective dispensation of Justice.

Justice J’aneh also served as Minister of Justice in the National Transitional Government of Liberia as a representative of the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD).

It is this commitment that saw Justice Ja’neh chairing the Steering Committee leading to the establishment of the James A.A. Pierre Judicial Institute where he served as the first Chair of the Board of Governors of that institute from 2008 to 2010. Mr. Justice Ja’neh is also a lecturer in Criminal Law, Department of Criminal Justice at the A.M.E. Zion University.

Justice J’aneh was impeached from the Supreme Court bench in 2018 following proceedings initiated by the House of Representatives that accused him of “misbehavior, abuse of public office, wanton abuse of judicial discretion, fraud, misuse of power, and corruption.” These charges laid the foundation for the impeachment. However, he challenged his removal before the ECOWAS Court of Justice in November 2022 and the regional court granted him justice, ordering the Liberian Government to pay him compensation of US$200, 000 (Two hundred thousand dollars) as reparation for moral prejudice suffered from violation of his rights, but the government is yet to act accordingly. Should he get the post here, many legal scholars and political observers say, J’aneh will most likely lead the charge of going after former officials sanctioned by the United States government.

DOWNSIDE: J’aneh’s ties to the LURD rebel group during the civil war often comes up whenever mention of his name is associated to a position in the judicial branch on the justice system. Nevertheless, he has survived previous controversies and served his posts with conviction.

ODDS: 50-50

MINISTRY OF NATIONAL DEFENSE
Departing Minister: Daniel D. Ziankahn, Jr.
THE LOWDOWN: Established in 1956 by an Act of the National Legislature, The MoD is charged with the responsibility to provide direction and supervision to the Armed Forces of Liberia. The minister here has complete authority over the Armed Forces of Liberia, including all matters relating to their training, operation administration, logistic support and maintenance, development, welfare, preparedness, and effectiveness.

In recent years, the West African subregion has become a hotbed for grooming of terrorists, making the region vulnerable to invasions and infiltration of political and religious extremists. Armed with the mission to provide the military forces needed to ensure the protection of Liberia’s national interest and territorial integrity, whoever ascends here will be required to maintain strong allies with Liberia’s strategic partners and stakeholders in a bid to ensure that the country’s borders are free from outside interference. All this has been bolstered by the U.S. Africa Command’s 2015 posture statement which recognized the threat of “terrorist, insurgent and criminal groups that exploit corruption, regional instability and popular grievances to mobilize people and resources, expand their networks and establish safe havens.”

To ensure that the national security interests and values of Liberia are preserved, the Minister here no doubt will be expected to ensure that the country’s borders are secured and safeguarded and ensure respect for other countries, especially in the sub-region. Most importantly, Liberia will be required to continue to engage and promote international peace and security arrangements including, the ECOWAS Standby Force (ESF), African Union Standby Force (ASF), UN Peacekeeping and others to contribute to global peace and security.

NAMES OUT THERE
STEVE ZARGO
UPSIDE: The departing Senator from Lofa County who for a long time served as chair of the Senate Committee on National Defense, Security, Intelligence and Veterans Affairs played a crucial role in Mr. Boakai’s election, as one of the strong ally of the breakaway Liberty Party stalwarts, Senator Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence and Abraham Darius Dillon’s support for the Unity Party campaign. Lofa County Senator Steve Zargo has warned of a looming threat in Liberia, saying Niger’s military coup and the attempted coup in neighboring Sierra Leone all call for concerns.

Zargo, also a former officer of the Liberia National Police once raised concerns that Liberia was at risk of potential threat following the coup d’etat in Niger. At the time, Mr. Zargo cautioned the Liberian government to prevent the potential threat of conflict and violence in the buildup to the just-ended elections.

DOWNSIDE: Mr. Zargo once raised eyebrows when he called for the enlistment of disadvantaged youths, known as zogos into the Armed Forces of Liberia, (AFL), a comment that raised questions about his understanding of the military. Defending his comment, Zargo while addressing a symposium organized by the AFL averred that the presence of zogos in the streets of Monrovia posed serious insecurity to the country, noting that if nothing is done to empower and rehabilitate, they will engage in acts of violence in the country. Many political analysts at the time had concerns about the Senator’s views, suggesting that the army is not a place for trial and error for drug-ridden zogos who may not have the discipline to serve in the army.

ODDS: 50-50

MAJOR GENERAL PRINCE JOHNSON III

UPSIDE: Disciplined, steadfast and an all-round professional, Johnson is an infantry officer in the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) who has served his country for over sixteen years and is the current Chief of Staff (COS), AFL. He was nominated by the President of the Republic of Liberia and confirmed by the Senate on February 5, 2018, and commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant after completion of the Officer Candidate School (OCS) in 2007. He has held several positions within the AFL: Deputy Chief of Staff (DCOS); Commanding General/23rd Infantry Brigade Commander; Chief of Operations, HQ AFL (ACOS J3); Deputy Assistant Chief of Operations HQ AFL (Dy ACOS J3); Chief of Logistics HQ AFL (ACOS J4); Military Assistant (MA) to the Minister of National Defense; Assistant Brigade Operations Officer, S3; 2nd Battalion Executive Officer (XO); Company Commander and Platoon Commander.

The Major General attended several military schools, including the US Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC) in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, USA; Infantry Mechanized Company Commander Course (MCCC) in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province, China Hebei Province, China; Junior Staff Course (JSC), Horton Military Academy, Freetown, Sierra Leone; Infantry Young Officer Course (YOC) at the Nigeria Army School of Infantry in Jaji, Kaduna, Nigeria.

He has received the following awards and medals: the Forces Service Star (FSS), Forces Service Ribbon (FSR), Land Forces Command Medal (LFCM), General Operations Medal (GOM), and the Professional Course Brooch (PCB). In addition, First Place Award (JSC); Best International Student Award (YOC); Distinguished Graduate Award (OCS); and Best Leadership Award (AIT). He is also an inductee of the United States Army Command and General Staff College, International Hall of Fame (IHOF), Fort Leavenworth.

Johnson holds a Master of Arts Degree in Peace Studies (MAPS) from the Kofi Annan Institute for Conflict Transformation (KAICT), University of Liberia; Post Graduate Certificate in Public Sector Management from the Institute for Public Administration and Management (IPAM) – University of Sierra Leone, Freetown; a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree in Accounting from the United Methodist University.

DOWNSIDE: Johnson took some flak over his handling of the outgoing Deputy Director of the National Security Agency (NSA), who also happens to be the owner of the pro-government Freedom FM. Sam Siryon was taken into custody by the Armed Forces of Liberia following a controversial broadcast on his FM station, which implicated Johnson as an operative of opposition leader Joseph Boakai.

ODDS: 50-50

FOMBAH SIRLEAF
UPSIDE: The former head of the National Security Agency is one of Liberia’s finest security experts. He has been recognized by U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency for outstanding contributions in field of Drug Law Enforcement and awarded by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies for participation in “Countering Narcotics and Illicit Commons.”

Multiple sources tell FrontPageAfrica that Sirleaf is highly regarded by the incoming President who has him penciled for some role in the security sector with Defense among the likely destination.

Sirleaf, the son of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is also credited for creating partnership with 30+ movements to implement innovative intelligence sharing network within the African Union and was a key driver in establishing a Joint intelligence Task Force and Analysis Center for the Liberian Government.

He also established national security coordination committee that included weekly briefings and information sharing and has been recognized as Subject Matter Expert in Strategic Planning and Management of intelligence organizations.

Additionally, Sirleaf managed eight direct reports from various national security institutions and delivered cabinet level security briefings.

Sirleaf is an accomplished professional and intuitive leader with progressive experience developing innovative national security strategies. Proven track record of engaging clients, guiding intelligence best practices, and security initiatives in support of leading organizations. Thrives in high-volume environments with the ability to optimize ever-changing security needs, improve intelligence collection, and continuously drive results. He is also adept at cultivating partnerships and building lasting relationships across diverse government sectors, including senior-level communications. Ability to achieve long-lasting gains, steer strategic vision, as well as align and execute policy objectives. Complemented by a master’s degree in organizational development from the University of Pennsylvania.

In his role as head of the National Security Agency (2006 to 2018), Sirleaf was the principal advisor to the former President of the Republic of Liberia for intelligence matters related to National and Regional Security. He also oversaw collection, analysis, and dissemination of critical intelligence briefs. Protected intelligence sources, methods of operations and other classified information. Forged productive relationships with intelligence and security agencies of foreign governments on matters involving mutual national security interests.

As a senior policy advisor and consultant at the Liberia National Police (2003 to 2006), Sirleaf advised Director of Police on democratic policing best practices and supported framework development and oversight surrounding the interface between the LNP and CIVPOL. He also provided guidance on the development of a results-focused framework by the various departmental line functions of the LNP such as re-organization, recruitment, and retraining processes. Spearheaded the development of a system-wide monitoring and evaluation mechanism to measure performance, productivity, efficiency, and effective operational interface between the LNP and CIVPOL.

DOWNSIDE: During his time at the NSA, Sirleaf was in the middle of a political scandal in 2014 after the arrest of a group of South Korean businesspeople and seizure of US$247,500 from them by the NSA. The Minister of Justice and Attorney General at time of the incident resigned and accused the President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of interference in an investigation of the Liberian NSA. A special committee appointed to investigate the incident concluded that the Korean businesspeople were not engaged in illegal activity. The investigation further found that the seizure was a criminal conspiracy by NSA operatives and co-conspirators outside of the agency who had lured the Korean businesspeople to Liberia, and recommended prosecution of all perpetrators. Sirleaf also found himself entangled in the controversial Sable Mining bribery scandal unearthed by Global Witness and rejuvenated by the Special Presidential Task Force.

ODDS: 50-40

MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS
DEPARTING MINISTER, Varney A. Sirleaf
THE LOWDOWN: The ministry responsible for designing and implementing development projects and transforming rural communities into viable towns and cities plays a crucial role in how government connects with the rest of the country, especially the rural areas. Whoever appointed here will be responsible for providing oversight and management of tribal affairs and is mandated to support democratic, effective, and efficient local governance, including implementation of the decentralization process. The minister here will also be responsible for managing tribal affairs and all matters arising out of tribal relationships as well as coordinating and implementing government services rendered through the units of Local Government.

Additionally, the minister here will be responsible for reviewing proposed budgets, taxes, projects, and programs offered by local government units, and make recommendations and takes steps necessary for the implementation of the proposed activities.

The ministry is also responsible for determining the readiness of a county or other unit of local government for increased responsibility; oversees the selection, training, and efficient performance of the administrative personnel of local government; ensures the orderly functioning of tribal government and drafts rules and regulations to effectuate this purpose. The rules and regulations shall include provisions relating to tribal domestic relations, regulating and setting procedures in tribal trials, governing cultural institutions and societies, and stating the schedules of fees to be allowed in tribal courts; Supervising the elections of Paramount, Clan Chief and Town Chiefs in cooperation with the Elections Commission; reviewing the budget of tribal treasurers and managing tribal authorities in the keeping of proper records; administering the system of tribal courts; and exercising administrative supervision over the Poro, Sande and other tribal societies through the Liaison Officer for Tribal Societies.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
FRANCIS NYUMALIN
UPSIDE: A senior inspector at the National Social Security & Welfare Corporation (NASSCORP), Nyumalin also previously worked at the Bureau of Customs & Excise at the Ministry of Finance and the University of Liberia. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and was a strong campaigner for the Unity Party during the October elections.

DOWNSIDE: Nyumalin, regarded as one of the radical figures in the Unity Party lost in Lofa County Electoral District #1 seat to Thomas P. Fallah of the CDC. Nyumalin’s tenure spanned for one term and eight months, having been elected first in a by-election in February of 2017 to succeed late Representative Eugene FallahKpakar, who died November 10, 2016.

Nyumalin’s political credentials is not without its blemishes. In 2021, while serving as a Lofa County lawmaker, was summoned by the National Security Agency for questioning over statements considered as threats against the presidency, vice presidency and other high-raking positions. Nyumalin was highly critical in his condemnation of the delay in the certification of Mr. J. Brownie Samukai as Senator of Lofa County. However, in an interview with OK FM Nyumalin suggested that there were sinister motives orchestrated by the Executive Branch of government within the National Elections Commission (NEC) and the Judiciary to ensure that Mr. Samukai does not take seat as Senator of Lofa County.

In 2019, Nyumalin denied a claim that he attempted to rename a legacy project of his predecessor, the late Eugene Fallah Kpaka. A former representative candidate in the district’s 2017 by-election, William Saah Tamba, claimed that Nyumalin had working to change the name of the Eugene Fallah Kpaka Memorial Clinic. The clinic was constructed in the town of Bayama as a joint legislative support project of Kpaka and the county’s two senators, George Tengbeh and Steve Zargo. According to Tamba, the clinic was named in honor of the fallen representative in consultation with the two senators. However, he said Nyumalin sought to have it renamed as the Bayama Community Clinic to kill the legacy of his predecessor.

ODDS: 50-40

DR. YARSUO WEH-DORLIAE
UPSIDE: The current chair of the Governance Commission, Dr. Dorliae does mince his words. Prior to his 2022 appointment by outgoing President George Manneh Weah, Dorliea, an activist and public sector expert shocked the President George Manneh Weah with a strong dissection of the problems besetting the Governance Commission.

He has an LLB from the University of Liberia, 1986 MPA, California State University, 1980 MA, California State University, 1980 BA, University of Liberia in 1976. His Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Public Policy Walden University in May 2015 featured an Abstract on the aftermath of the United Nations’ mission in Liberia (UNMIL) which ended on September 30, 2015. It highlighted how effective policing will be a security concern for Liberians. It came at a time when Liberians were expressing fears that conflict could return if ongoing police training programs do not sustain public safety.

If selected here, Dr. Dorliae may have a chance to address an area of Liberia he has been very vocal about. While addressing a one day symposium organized by family, friends and associates to celebrate the legacy of Dr. Amos Claudius Sawyer, Dr. Dorliae said the creation of the GC was borne out of several recommendations from the Accra Peace Talks that effectively ended the 14 years of civil war and paved the way for the holding of post war general elections in 2005, as he took aim at President Weah: “Mr. President since September when you signed the local government Act, this is my second time meeting you, So I want to take this time to tell you why Sawyer wanted for the government to implement the local government act.”

Dorliae’s argument was that since 1847, the governance system was made after the colonial model of a centralized totalitarian system of government. “So, we have a system of government that colonized ourselves, the government was so centralized that less than five persons in government decided to do everything for the country. So, Sawyer fought to unravel this participatory government called Decentralization.”

Dorliae’s critique and his governance views could be just what the doctor ordered at a time when the debate over the decentralization of Liberia is at an all-time high. For Dorliae, fast tracking and passage of the Local Government Act and the Gender Sensitivity Bill was aimed at accelerating the pace of development in the country. “You can elect your President , you can elect your senator, but if you don’t change your system of government you will have the same results”, he said amid standing ovation, challenging the government that if prioritizing the local government act will be a campaign message for any government to remain in power he was willing to support it.

DOWNSIDE: Dr. Dorliae’s downside may be an upside. With so much scrambling going on for jobs in the incoming government, he is not a die-hard Unity Party player which could work against him if UP faithful have their say and push him out of the picture.

ODDS: 50-50

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
DEPARTING MINISTER, Professor D. Ansu Sonii
THE LOWDOWN: Function: It works to eradicate illiteracy among peoples of all ages and all origins, manages public education in Liberia including full supervision of all public schools and all private schools and institutions of higher learning to the extent provided by law and permitted by their charters; informed the president and the public concerning the condition and operation of all schools and educational institutions, public and private, and of the general state of education in Liberia. MoE plans for, and to the fullest extent possible establishes a modern, sound, nationwide educational system; administers funds appropriated by the Government for financial assistance to individual students for study at home and abroad; and to the extent authorized by the Legislature, MoE shall oversee the establishment of public libraries accessible to the people of all areas of Liberia.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
PROFESSOR ALARIC TOKPA
UPSIDE: The veteran political scientist and lecturer at the University of Liberia is a former vice standard bearer of the New Deal Movement on the ticket headed by the late George Klay Kieh. The pair received 0.5% of the vote in the 11 October 2005. He is also the organizing chair of the Democratic Alliance of Liberia.

A notable member of the progressive’s era, Professor Tokpa has paid his dues. He was one of the many political prisoners in the notorious Belle Yallah prison. He has since used his notoriety to create good political governance through peace, unity, accountability, and transparency not only at a student level but national level as well.

Sources closed to the incoming president say, Tokpa is viewed as someone who is a product of the education system which has for years been rotten to the core. He was a national student leader in the early 1980s and has since captured public attention as a consistent advocate for progressive social change in Liberia. From 1978 to 1979, Alaric served as Chair of the Student UHURU Movement (at the William V.S. Tubman High School), the leading secondary school political party organization in twenty century Liberia. In that role, he agitated for the release of political prisoners (i.e. university student leaders, leaders of national political organizations – All Peoples’ Freedom Alliance, Movement for Justice in Africa, Progressive Alliance of Liberia) who were accused by the government of William R. Tolbert for organizing the rice uprising of April 14, 1979 in which about a hundred protesters were killed by the police. This led to a near encounter between students of Tubman High and the Guinean army in Sinkor, Monrovia. The neighboring Guinean army had been called into Liberia to back the insecure government after the mass protest.

In 1980, the year in which non-commissioned officers of the Armed Forces of Liberia overthrew the Tolbert Government in a bloody coup d’état, he entered the University of Liberia and was immediately elected Assistant General Secretary of the Student Unification Party (SUP), the most prominent university student political party in Liberia to date. In 1981, he was elected General Secretary of SUP. In the same year, he became General Secretary of the Liberia National Students Union (LINSU). Through hard work and painstaking endeavors, he and his colleagues gave LINSU prominent places in the All-Africa Students Union, the International Union of Students, and the World Federation of Democratic Youth. And through his able and selfless leadership of a vibrant secretariat, the regional unions of LINSU were organized and effective opposition to the excesses of the military dictatorship was mobilized in the 1980s. In the absence of national opposition political parties to the military junta, the national student movement played the leading role of opposition to the military government and is on record for inspiring the campaign for military disengagement from politics in Liberia. For his part in the latter campaign, Alaric was to suffer prolong neglect and humiliation; but, because of that experience, he earns a special place in the Liberian political class today.

The banning of student democratic political activities in December 1981 was mainly aimed at preventing him and his colleagues from eventually taking the leadership of the powerful University of Liberia Student Union which the dictatorship feared. Yet, this was to intensify his opposition to the draconian policies of the military dictatorship. Alaric led the advocacy and struggle for the unbanning of the student movement. Because of this, Alaric (then General Secretary of the Liberia National Students Union) was sentenced to the firing squad (January 1982) among four other national student leaders. That he and his colleagues were reprieved did not deter him from active opposition to military rule.

Tokpa has studied and held teaching positions in Ghana and the United States. After the Liberian civil war (1989 – 2003), Alaric served as Civic Education Administrator (2006 – 2007) in the training of the new post war army, the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) and was frustrated by the extent of executive imposition on the Liberian legislature in disregard for constitutional purview. In addition, he has provided consultancy for civil society organizations (i.e., Liberia Democratic Institute, Green Advocates, Foundation for Human Rights and Democracy) and INGOs (i.e., United Nations Development Program, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, the Irish International Charity – Trocaire) in the areas of training and research. Also, he is the National Investigator of Afro barometer in Liberia. Afrobarometer is a comparative series of national public attitude surveys on democracy, governance, markets, and civil society in Africa.

Tokpa has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Liberia and holds a Master of Philosophy (M. Phil) in political science from the University of Ghana. He is currently pursuing PhD research (at Clark Atlanta University in Georgia) on Diaspora studies and thinks that the Liberian Diaspora has an important role to play in the reform and development of the Liberian homeland.

He has been a strong advocate for adult literacy and night school programs and has also advocated for the allocation of more budget support to education.

DOWNSIDE: While the professor has a strong sense of the needs of the sector, he may fall short on the administrative end in a sector facing a complex set of challenges related to geographical inequities, poverty, poor child health, high rates of gender-based violence, constrained national finances and large numbers of unqualified teachers.

ODDS: 50-50

ROBTEL PAILEY
UPSIDE: Pailey is Assistant Professor in International Social and Public Policy. She joined the LSE Department of Social Policy in September 2020 where she has contributed to a range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses, including convening the undergraduate module Development and Social Change. She also serves as coordinator of the Department’s Race Matters Initiative (RMI).

Multiple sources tell FrontPageAfrica that the idea of Pailey as minister here has been aggressively pursued by Montserrado County Senator Abraham Darius Dillon.

A noted academic, Pailey is also a scholar-activist working at the intersection of Critical Development Studies, Critical African Studies, and Critical Race Studies. Much of Pailey’s work centers on how structural transformation is conceived and contested by local, national, and transnational actors from ‘crisis’-affected regions of the so-called ‘Global South.’

Pailey has more than 20 years of combined personal and professional experiences in Africa, Europe, and North America. Having worked across a broad range of fields supporting universities, governments, media institutions, multilateral, regional, non-governmental and community-based organizations, she has practitioner-based proficiencies in qualitative research, capacity development, policy design and analysis, programme management, report and grant writing, journalism, and strategic communications.

Pailey has held positions in a number of different capacities, which include: speechwriting for the first elected female president of Liberia (and Africa), as well as diaspora policy formulation and bilateral scholarships streamlining at the Liberian Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs in Monrovia, Liberia; covering “new” news out of Africa as assistant editor of The Washington Informer Newspaper in Washington, DC, USA; research, teaching and curriculum development at the University of Oxford in Oxford, UK, the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), in London, UK, the University of Liberia and Stella Maris Polytechnic in Monrovia, Liberia, the Robben Island Museum in Cape Town, South Africa, and the Buduburam Refugee Camp School in Accra, Ghana; marketing and communications development for the American University in Cairo, Egypt; podcast interviewing/editorial writing for Fahamu Trust/Pambazuka News in Oxford, UK; and providing editorial guidance for the Sea Breeze Journal of Contemporary Liberian Writings as a board member and non-fiction editor. She has also consulted for ActionAid; the African Development Bank Group (AfDB); the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAid)/Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade; the Ford Foundation; Search for Common Ground; the Social Science Research Council (SSRC); the Sustainable Development Institute (SDI); and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), amongst others.

She has undertaken several book projects, including Africa’s ‘Negro’ Republics which examines how slavery, colonialism and neoliberalism in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, respectively, have shaped the adoption and maintenance of clauses barring non-Black people from obtaining citizenship in Liberia and Sierra Leone. She has conducted multi-sited fieldwork across four continents, including in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Denmark, Ghana, India, Lebanon, Liberia, Niger, Sierra Leone, Somaliland, the United Kingdom, and United States.

Pailey is author of the monograph Development, (Dual) Citizenship and Its Discontents in Africa: The Political Economy of Belonging to Liberia (Cambridge University Press, 2021), which won both the 2022 African Politics Conference Group (APCG) Best Book Award and the 2023 African Studies Association of Africa (ASAA) Pius Adesanmi Memorial Award for Excellence in African Writing as well as contributed to the passage of Liberia’s dual citizenship law. Her work has also been published in academic journals such as Development and Change, Third World Quarterly, Democratization, African Affairs, Migration Studies, Citizenship Studies, and Review of African Political Economy, amongst others.

Previously a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at the University of Oxford and an Ibrahim Leadership Fellow at the African Development Bank Group, Robtel completed her doctorate in Development Studies at SOAS, University of London, in 2014.

DOWNSIDE: While Pailey possesses a wealth of knowledge and experience as an academic, much of her chances of succeeding here, if selected will depend on her experience as an administrator, which she may be lacking. In a nation boasting one of the West African subregion’s highest Early Childhood Education (ECE) rates, administrative and management experience will be key, especially for a sector where public expenditure on education remains low, calling to question the feasibility of achieving the country’s education objectives. Taking those WAEC scores up will be key here.

ODDS: 50-40

MINISTRY OF STATE
Departing Minister, G. Wesseh Blamoh
THE LOWDOWN: Once regarded as a non-entity, the ministry was the most important during the last six years of the George Weah-led government. Thanks to the influence of Nathaniel McGill. Created by an Act of the National Legislature in 1971, the ministry is charged with, among other things, the responsibility of coordinating activities and operations of the Office of the President of the Republic of Liberia; and providing support to the President in carrying out the Executive Functions of the State through close consultation with the Cabinet, key agencies and other institutions, i.e. private sector and civil society.

Whoever ascends here will be responsible for following through and coordinating all decisions of the Chief Executive; organizes, as the President shall direct, Cabinet Meetings and maintains of all records of such meetings; exercises such operational authority, intrinsic to his office, as the President may from time to time direct; and performs such other duties as may be assigned by the President.

SYLVESTER GRIGSBY
UPSIDE: Grigsby was the last Minister of State in the administration of President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. He served both as Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and previously as Deputy Foreign Minister for economic cooperation. He is a career diplomat of over 40 years and served as Ambassador to the Brussels and the EU under Dr. Sawyer and Ambassador under President Doe. -He was Superintendent of Sinoe during Sirleaf’s first term. Schooled in the US and Japan, Grigsby is very versed with Politics of the east versus the west. He is co-founder and Head of the Liberian Renaissance Office (LIROI), a political action group that provided technical and diplomatic cover for the political opposition.

An old head at the ministry, serving previously as Deputy Foreign Minister for International Cooperation and Economic Integration, Grigsby is a close friend and classmate of the incoming President, Joseph Boakai going far back during their days at the College of West Africa.

DOWNSIDE: Around the incoming president, Grigsby has a lot of haters, especially Unity Party supporters who see him as a supporter of Boakai’s rival in the October elections, Alexander Cummings. Grigsby’s supporters say despite the concerns, he will bring a sense of stability to the job and is non-threatening as was the previous person to hold the position, Nathaniel McGill. Unless something miraculously happens, this position appears to be the only one under lock and key as the incoming President looks certain to put aside reservations about Grigbsy’s support to ABC.

ODDS: 50-50

Dr. Olivia Precious Cooper
UPSIDE: Cooper is a young fresh face with a clean record. She worked as a Consultant for the Ministry of Finance as Chief Development Planning Advisor in the Minister’s office. She also worked in the Ministry of State under former President Charles Taylor. She holds a Doctorate in Metaphysics, master’s in public administration, bachelor’s in business administration, along with other Professional Certificates including International Organization Management.

DOWNSIDE: Was supportive of outgoing president Weah for Re-election and may have some push back from UP partisans. Is related to the President-Elect Boakai but this could work as an upside being that this position requires trustworthiness, which could work well for the President-Elect.

ODDS: 50-30

MINISTRY OF HEALTH & SOCIAL WELFARE
DEPARTING MINISTER, Dr. Wilhemina Jallah
THE LOWDOWN: This could be one of the most difficult decisions the incoming President appears to be struggling with: Deciding between a loyal and trusted ally Dr. Louise Kpoto and the internationally acclaimed Ebola hero, Dr. Tolbert Nyenswah.

With the ruin and deliberated couple with poor healthcare delivery services and indexes, anyone serving as Minister of Health at this crucial moment will need the pedigree such as local, national, and international healthcare expertise, managerial, proven leadership, health system administration, the requisite education and training, and donor confidence with integrity in managing their resources. Someone who will hit the ground running to achieve President Boakai’s 100 days delivery and beyond in the health sector based on the UP manifesto to resuscitate the healthcare sector, amid post-Ebola and COVID-19 pandemic.

Created in 1972, the MoH formulates, implements, monitors, and evaluates health policies and standards; Prevents the spread of communicable, infectious, and preventable diseases within the Republic. The Ministry is also responsible for providing medical care and treatment through public hospitals, clinics, mental institutions and rehabilitation centers for alcoholics and narcotic addicts; issues licenses and supervises medical practitioners and facilities; promotes and conduct of research in the prevention and – treatment of human diseases and the collects and compiles pertinent statistical data; supervises the collection of data relating to births, deaths, and burials; supervises and regulate the sanitary aspects of hotels, boarding houses, public eating and drinking establishments, bathing establishments, and other businesses and activities affecting public health; supervises the distribution of all relief and welfare funds granted by the Government to the needy and underprivileged; To the extent provided by law, oversees the care of juvenile delinquencies and homeless children in foster homes, hostels, and vocational institutions; promotes research, experiments, investigation and studies in the development of scientific methods for the diagnosis and prevention of social problems; offers assistance in the management of charitable organizations established within the Republic to provide maximum benefit to the public. It also performs such other functions as may from time to time be assigned by the President.

DR. TOLBERT GEEWLEH NYENSWAH, BSC., LLB, MPH, DRPH
UPSIDE: Dr. Nyenswah is currently a faculty at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of International health, USA. He is also researcher and interagency personnel at the United States National Institute of Health (NIH).

An internationally recognized legal scholar and a global public health expert, Dr. Nyenswah specializes in health policies, strategies and plans, disease control and prevention, public health emergencies preparedness and response, advising on incident management system functionalities.

He was appointed three times and Senate confirmed by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in various cabinet positions and was a central figure for Liberia during the 2014-2016 Ebola crises.

Today, he remains a key member on President Sirleaf Advisory team on global pandemic response initiatives. He was awarded one of Liberia’s highest honor, Order of the African Redemption with the rank of Grand Commander by President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, for leading Liberia’s successful response to the Ebola Epidemic.

Tolbert is the Author of the Book titled, “Collapse and Resiliency, The Inside Story of Liberia’s Unprecedented Ebola Response.” He author/co-author 107 peer reviewed scientific papers in high quality journals, such as the Lancet Global Health, BMC Public Health, New England Journal of Medicines, MMWR etc.

He recently participated in Catastrophic Contagion! tabletop exercise presented to the Gates Foundation and WHO as part of the Foundation’s Grand Challenges Annual Meeting in Brussels and was a key factor in its success.

Dr. Nyenswah has been engaged with fighting some of worst dangerous pathogens, several public health emergencies, including, Ebola, Lassa fever, Zika, Meningitis and currently the COVID-19 response. Nine (9) years fighting endemic malaria. Since COVID-19, some of the major contributions, to the COVID-19 response includes the development of an opened source contact tracing course (https://www.coursera.org/learn/covid19-contact-tracing) developed by Johns Hopkins and the Bloomberg Philanthropies that has over 1.3 million people enrollment and certificated, and over fifteen million viewers.

The course is used in all US 50 States, Departments of Health, and translated in Subtitles: Chinese (Traditional), Arabic, French, Portuguese (European), Italian, Portuguese (Brazilian), Vietnamese, Korean, German, Russian, Indonesian, English, Spanish, Nepal. Tolbert helped Harvard University on developing a Crowdsourcing surveillance course on high pathogen diseases including COVID-19 and Ebola for capacity building in diseases surveillance.

Tolbert appears on several webinars advising high level political and technical global leaders: Center for Global Development, Carey Business School, Cornell University, JHU Faculty Real time COVID-19 response. Tolbert has been interviewed by: African, North American, Asian, European, and South American media. Tolbert has been recognized as public health leader both at home and internationally as a leader in Liberia’s successful response to the 2014-2016 Ebola crisis, as Incident Manager, for the multinational and multidisciplinary response.

Prior to joining Johns Hopkins University, Tolbert was Assistant Minister for disease prevention and Deputy Minister of Health for Disease Surveillance and Epidemic Control, Ministry of Health, Liberia. His leadership has saved millions of lives in Liberia preventing the Global spread of Ebola and now globally with COVID-19. He led the establishment of Liberia’s First National Public Health Institute after the Ebola crisis and became its First Director General and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

Dr. Nyenswah has and continues to serve on many international boards and committees, including as member of the panel of experts on the Global Health Security Index; Member of the Committee on Public Health Interventions and Countermeasures for Advancing Pandemic and Seasonal Influenza Preparedness and Responses, the National Academy of Sciences and Engineering, USA. Member of the UHC2030 technical working group that drafted the new UHC2030 policy brief on COVID-19 and fragile setting led by WHO and other international partners. Tolbert holds a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) and Master of Public Health (MPH) degrees (Dean’s Scholarship Award, Student Recognition Award, Outstanding Alumina Award, Bloomberg Outstanding Emerging Leader Award, and Delta-Omega Award and many more) from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Tolbert also holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc) and Law (LLB) degrees from the University of Liberia.

DOWNSIDE: Nyenswah tenure as head of the National Public Health Institute was highlighted in an audit of the General Auditing Commission which claimed that the former NPHIL boss received double salaries from NPHIL and the Ministry of Health amounting to paid US$24,000.00 and L$624,000.00 has refuted the claims by the supreme audit body, claiming that allegations in the report are complete fallacy and lacking facts.

At the time of the findings, the management of NPHIL clarifies that contrary to the assertion made in the GAC press Release, she enjoys the confidence of her donors and is currently managing several donor projects. NPHIL stresses that donors do conduct routine audits of her finances sent to the Institution, and due to the entity’s ability to comply and report per donors’ expectations, she continues to manage projects worth millions of U.S. dollars.

In his own words, Nyenswah clarified: “As can be seen, there is no double payment indicated here. National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL) got enacted into law in December 2016, the team commenced work immediately in January of 2017 as time was of the essence. The Board approved salary of the Director General (DG) was US10,000.00 net, after a thorough vetting and analysis of other State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and autonomous agencies of Liberia, based on Civil Service Agency Recommendation. As rightly said, the Director General previously served as Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Health. Before NPHIL commenced paying the Director General, he was still on the payroll of the MOH up to April 2017. The Board of Directors of the National Public Health Institute completed salary vetting process and finally approved a salary structure of NPHIL on March 16, 2017.”

ODDS: 50-50

LOUISE MAPLEH KPOTO, MD
UPSIDE: A graduate of the A. M. Dogliotti College of Medicine University of Liberia, Dr. Kpoto received her doctorate from the University of Liverpool. She previously worked as a resident in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the Kenyatta National Hospital, University of Nairobi in Nairobi, Kenya under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Health.

Dr. Kpoto is also a former President of the Liberia Medical and Dental Association. In 2019, Dr. Kpoto was named as one of the most influential Africans and recognized by the Merck Foundation, where she graduated from its Fertility and Embryology training in India. She is one of the first fertility care specialists in Liberia. “We are making history, and we are changing the landscape of fertility care in the country,” Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO Merck Foundation said at the time.

The Merck program was crucial to Dr. Kpoto’s preparation and helped her to fill the gap and therefore provide the critically needed help for infertile couples for the first time in their home country.

DOWNSIDE: Dr. Kpoto may fall prey to a syndrome that has hurt the ministry in the past, appointing strictly medical practitioners to head a ministry lacking serious administrative handlers to deal with existing challenges in healthcare.

ODDS: 50-50

MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE
DEPARTING MINISTER, Jeanie Cooper
THE LOWDOWN: The Ministry of Agriculture charged with the responsibilities of achieving self-sufficiency in food production, increasing the country’s ability to earn and conserve foreign exchange, increasing farmers’ income and bringing them out of subsistence farming. The sector is a major sector of the country’s economy worth 38.8% of GDP, employing more than 70% of the population and providing a valuable export for one of the world’s least developed countries.

Over the past few years, international partners, such as the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) have invested in cocoa smallholder producers to improve livelihoods and raise incomes by modernizing cocoa farming, increasing production, and developing market access. Whoever assumes leadership here will face mounting challenges in boosting both small- and large-scale cocoa production and provide incentives for farmers to compete and reclaim and rehabilitate their farms.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
TORNOLOH VARPILLAH
UPSIDE: A Unity Party faithful, Varpilah previously served in the capacity of Transport and Sports Minister and earlier as a Deputy Minister of Health for planning, research, and development during the regime of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf.

Many credit him as being one of few Liberians who braved the civil war to stay in the country through the decades of conflict, doing humanitarian work.

He is the founder of the Transitional Justice Working Group, a coalition of 23 Liberian non-governmental organizations.

Varpillah spent fourteen years of his professional life working for NGOs, a feat which his supporters say, makes him primed for the agriculture sector.

In the 1990s, Varpilah was a fixture in the emergency relief program, coordinating emergency food distribution, working with internally displaced people, and working with refugees, repatriating.

In 1995, he moved into the management area and was greatly involved with grassroots organizations, organizing them into networks and providing capacity building training for them so that they could function as organizations in doing planning, organizational planning, and program planning.

Varpillah is often regarded as a people’s person. He once said: “I worked here throughout the war years. I survived mainly working for the people. I was really involved in humanitarian work. Once you get yourself involved in that and the lives of many people depend on you, your life because useless to yourself. And that is what carried me the most.”

It is a formula some say could be instrumental in dealing with farmers.

DOWNSIDE: Some of Varpillah’s detractors say, he may lack the ability to raise money for the sector.

ODDS: 50-30

JEANNIE COOPER
UPSIDE: There have been some chatters that the Boakai administration may maintain the President Weah appointment due to her ability to raise funding for the sector. Over the past six years, Cooper was instrumental in helping to secure from the French Government an additional €60 million in funding for the country’s organic industry.

Cooper is a graduate from Michigan State University in 1982 with a double B.A. in Business Administration and in French; and she has an MSc in Managing Rural Change from the University of London, Imperial College at Wye in 2003. Ms. Cooper earned a distinction for her dissertation on Capitalizing on Livelihoods in Liberia’s Rubber Sector to Anchor Post-Conflict Reconstruction.

She returned home to Liberia in the 1980s and immediately started working in the agriculture sector, first as a registered rubber buyer with Firestone and subsequently managing and operating her family farms: King Farm in Lower Careysburg; Buchanan Farm in Cinta and Ora Gene Farm in Vahnyeamah, both in Margibi County. Upon the outbreak of the Liberian Civil conflict, she worked with the first team of Mèdecins Sans Frontières – Belgium, from 1990–1996. She founded a local NGO in Liberia, the Children’s Assistance Program, which has served youth since 1991 and is a leading partner in child development. She also managed pastoral livelihoods and livestock programs in northeastern Kenya and southern Somalia with Vétérinaires Sans Frontières-Suisse (VSF-S) from 1996-2003. Mde. Cooper has supported community-initiated agricultural projects and served on the board of directors of developmental bodies and educational institutions in Liberia and in Côte d’Ivoire.

Following her time with VSF-S, Mde. Cooper served 13 years with the United Nations. Her last posting was as the Permanent Observer to the African Union and the Economic Commission for Africa and Head of the Liaison Office for the U.N. Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA). Ms. Cooper also held postings with the UN-OCHA in Kenya and for the Eastern and Southern Africa region.

Honorable Jeanine Cooper founded FABRAR Liberia, currently Liberia’s largest rice processor and producer, in 2009 and was managing the company from January 2017 to 2020. She relinquished her roles in FABRAR after being named as Minister of Agriculture. Minister Cooper put her shares in her Fabrar Liberia Incorporated into what she termed as “Blind Trust. “Her action is intended to avoid any conflict of interest with her new role at the Ministry of Agriculture. “In this public forum, I like to say something about my company FABRAR, which I was running peacefully before, but which I have now put my shares into a blind trust so that I can focus my attention on the affairs of the Ministry,” she said in published articles ran by the Front-Page Africa (March 5, 2020) and Daily Observer (March 6, 2020).

In January of 2020, H.E. George M. Weah, President of the Republic of Liberia, nominated Mde. Cooper to serve as Minister of Agriculture, Republic of Liberia. She was confirmed unanimously by the Liberian Senate and subsequently commissioned by the Liberian President. The new minister has detailed a vision of transformation of Liberian agriculture; a vision centered on elevation of Liberian farmers from subsistence farming to commercial smallholders. A vision to ensure the supply of quality agricultural products produced in a sustainable and organic manner prized in today’s market. A vision of a new direction for the Ministry of Agriculture, focusing it as a service-oriented entity.

She has completed several certificate courses on business and entrepreneurship and has published several blogs and short stories. Ms. Cooper is perfectly bi-lingual in English and French, with a working knowledge of Dutch.

DOWNSIDE: The minister endured the wrath of the Senate over the past year as the plenary through majority members found her guilty of Contempt Charge for her alleged noncompliance attitude towards the Senate’s Committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. The Senate took the decision on November 30, 2021, in keeping with Article 44 of the Liberian Constitution, which gives members of that august body legislative authority to find appointed government officials guilty of Contempt Charge upon being accorded due process.

During her appearance before plenary, Minister Cooper openly apologized to senators for her attitude of noncompliance with the Senate’s Committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and begged for mercy.

The agriculture minister disclosed that she was reportedly being misinformed by her Deputy Agriculture Minister for Administration and Planning, Robert Fagans, that he earlier appeared before the Senate to respond to inquiries but added that she lacks the power to punish the Deputy Minister but can only complain him to the President.

When quizzed about the US$16 million that was given to empower farmers across the country, Minister Cooper said the ministry has not distributed the amount and it remains in the possession of the World Bank for further action. “I personally did not deny citation from the Senate relevant Committees nor impede the function of the Liberian Senate,” Minister Cooper said.

ODDS: 50-40

MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY
DEPARTING MINISTER, Marwine Diggs
THE LOWDOWN: The ministry responsible for formulating and implementing policies and strategies aimed at promoting investment, commerce, small business development, consumer protection and fair trading in the domestic market, has struggled over the past few years. The business climate has its share of challenges and obstacles, as in many developing economies. Key amongst them include inadequate infrastructure, limited access to financing, cumbersome bureaucratic procedures, and a lack of skilled labor. The challenges are even greater in rural Liberia. Whoever assumes command here will likely face challenges in establishing and regulating commodity and trade standards.

Another issue facing the ministry is the fact that despite the government continues to advance the country’s telecommunication sector through the international fiber optic cable, an initiative that supports online business, very few businesses are taking advantage and appear ready to support an ecommerce platform. A minister who will think creatively and push such an ambitious agenda will be key here.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
AMIN MODAD
UPSIDE: Modad, who single-handedly saved the Unity Party financially when it was left for dead is reportedly a shoo in for the post.

He is a Liberian entrepreneur, politician, and trade development professional. He is the CEO of the MI Group, a 100% Liberian owned company with diversified investments in Hospitality, Real-estate Development, and Food Production. He recently served as Chair of the Unity Party and is credited for reviving the party and putting it on the path to winning the Presidential election.

Modad holds an MBA from the University of Phoenix and a bachelor’s in political science from the University of Liberia. He played a key role in Liberia’s post-war integration in the multilateral trading system by initiating Liberia’s accession to the World Trade Organization and serving as it first representative; he headed the Enhanced Integrated Framework Program in Liberia and served as Sr. Policy Advisor to the government of Liberia on trade and investment. He has played a key role in Liberia’s post-conflict recovery especially with regards leading or coordinating the development of essential policies and sectoral reforms including, but not limited to Liberia’s Trade, Industrial, and SME policies, the National Investment Code, and the National Investment Guide.

Many in the private sector and the development community hail him for his credibility, strategic approach to getting things done, and his ability to inspire and elevate others. Furthermore, as both a successful entrepreneur and trade development professional he is seen as someone who understands the constraints businesses go through as well as the policies needed to develop the enabling environment for businesses to thrive. With over 20 years of public and private sectors experience, Amin Modad is one of Liberia’s few trade development experts and postwar business success stories.

He has always been a trailblazer; he continues to invest in priority sectors linked to Liberia’s comparative advantages and development needs. In addition to owning the largest indigenous owned hotel in Liberia, his innovative investments in food & beverage production provides job opportunities in a country with exceedingly high unemployment, supports sustainable economic growth by adding value to local produce, and provides market opportunities to many smallholder farmers.

He’s also authored a book, Liberia’s Post-Conflict Trade Environment, published in 2014 and several socio-economic articles that proffer solutions to issues impacting the Liberian economy and society. He has served on numerous boards including the First International Bank, the African Methodist Episcopal University Foundation Board, the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company, and the African Methodist Episcopal University Board of Trustees.

He is happily married to Frederica Perkins-Modad for the past 15 years, with whom he has three kids; he is engaged in several philanthropic activities including building & supporting an orphanage for impoverished children, providing academic scholarships, and supporting the fine arts.

DOWNSIDE: Modad’s strengths may also be his weakness. Some of his critics fear he may fall prey to conflict of interest in dealing with businesses because he owns several businesses in the country.

ODDS: 50-50

MINISTRY OF LANDS MINES & ENERGY
DEPARTING MINISTER, Gesler Murray

THE LOWDOWN: This ministry is responsible for ensures the management of lands, mines, and energy resources for the socio-economic development and equitable growth of Liberia under applicable regulations, reviews, and in the proper cases grants or denies, applications for prospecting, exploration, and mining rights except for concessions.

The ministry is also tasked with collecting and distributing information about the mineral and water resources of the nation; conducts research and investigation in geology and related fields for new sources of supply and evolution of mineral resources and prepare topographic and geologic maps; promotes safety in mineral industries, investigates problems of mining and the preparation and utilization of minerals.

The incoming President has promised that his administration will take a close look at mining concessions to ensure they benefit the country.

One of the first steps the incoming president will be looking to tackle is dealing with the issues that have been hanging over the country, buoyed mostly by corruption and lack of basic services.

In the incoming President’s own words, Liberians have not benefited from the mining sector, despite the country’s rich mineral reserves, including diamonds, gold, iron ore and timber. “To be frank with you, the mining sector has been one of the problems in this country. I have seen our resources exploited and the life of the people remains the worse,” Boakai said, in an interview with Reuters toward the end of 2023.

It is possible that a few mining concessions could be revisited. Several companies operate in Liberia’s mining sector, including ArcelorMittal and Bao Chico Resources in iron ore mining concessions, Bea Mountain Mining and Avesoro Resources, which operates Liberia’s first commercial gold mine in gold.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
VULATE HAGE
UPSIDE: A no nonsense woman with the pedigree that could help resuscitate Liberia’s struggling mines and energy ministry. Hage is the first and only Liberian woman to obtain a master’s degree Master of Laws (LLM) in Energy, Environment & Natural Resources Law, University of Houston Law Center in Houston, Texas.

Hage is a graduate of the Louis Arthur Grimes School of Law, University of Liberia, in 2009(Magna Cum Laude); She also has a Bachelor of Business Administration University of Liberia, 1985. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) and Management (minor in accounting). University of Liberia. She has attended several Offshore Technology Conference and international conferences.

She has been a strong advocate for land rights, cautioning Liberians to be very careful on how they go about amending the laws going land, because a vast majority of people do not have land. Hage has used her platform to urge the stakeholders not to be discouraged in the advocacy for the land rights in the country, because they need to think about the succeeding generation.

Hage was selected along with the late Cllr. Allison and Kwame Jantuah, a Ghanaian expert in the oil industry, were contracted by the House of Representatives to draft new petroleum bill (Exploration and Production) Act of 2013, a law to create a separate account for all revenues coming out of the oil and gas industry.

DOWNSIDE: Hage, like many other qualified apolitical Liberians may be ruled out due to her non association with the Unity Party.

ODDS: 50-50

SANDO JOHNSON
UPSIDE: The former Bomi County Senator broke ranks with the All-Liberian Party where he served as a National Executive Committee (NEC) member and threw his support behind the Unity Party and the incoming President Boakai.

Johnson proclaimed that it is unbelievable and unthinkable for the ALP that has worked with Ambassador Boakai for so many years to somersault over its decision reached at a national convention held in Gbarnga, Bong County. “I can tell you this that the ALP may have taken a decision to go wherever they want to go; but I am not going along with them. I’m supporting Ambassador Joseph Nyuma Boakai of the Unity Party 100% and to make sure that he wins and rescue Liberia.”

During his time in the Senate, Johnson, as chair of the Senate standing committee on Concession, was a strong voice against illegal mining operations, particularly the controversial Sable Mining bribery case.

In a 2016 Global Witness report, it was alleged that Senator Varney Sherman, along with Speaker Alex J. Tyler and others allegedly took bribes of more than US952,000(nine hundred, fifty thousand United States dollars in suspicious payment allegedly made by UK firm, Sable.

The accusation sent sharp waves across Liberia and nearly brought Liberia’s most influential lawyer Cllr. Varney Sherman and others past government officials during the leadership of former president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to their kneels, prompting Johnson to call for swift investigation, going as far as pushing for a travel ban on those involved.

DOWNSIDE: Although the former Senator threw his support to the Unity Party and the incoming President, lingering infighting within the hierarchy of the party for jobs could hurt Johnson’s chances here.

ODDS: 50-40

WALTER SEWARD MCCARTHY
UPSIDE: McCarthy, a former Deputy Minister at the ministry is the managing director at Mac-Africa Consultants Monrovia, where he represents the interests of a lot of foreign companies doing mining business in Liberia. In that capacity, he plans and manages environmental, Mineral Exploration, Surveying, Geotechnical, and Mining projects for clients in Liberia. He is a graduate from the Federal University of Technology Akure and the Cuttington University Graduate School. He has a Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng.) Mining Engineering.

DOWNSIDE: During the reign of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, McCarthy was among a few administrative changes. Recently, Hamak Gold Limited announced McCarthy’s resignation as a non-executive director effective January 31, 2023, stating that McCarthy had accepted a full-time role in the mining industry which will not allow him to devote sufficient time to Hamak Gold as director. While McCarthy is said to have provided massive financial support to the Boakai campaign, some international partners fear his representation for several multilateral companies could present a conflict of interest.

ODDS: 50-20

SAMUEL G. RUSS
UPSIDE: Russ has extensive experience in government and industry, having served in the government as Deputy Minister for Operations, Ministry of Lands, Mines and Energy, Deputy Minister of Justice for Economic Affairs, Ministry of Justice and Director of Debt Management, Ministry of Finance.

His career in government has been heavily focused on economic and legal reforms for improved economic governance and investment climate. Sam led and supported a number of reform initiatives in public procurement and the mining, energy, and land sectors, including the drafting of a new Mineral and Mining Law, the Land Rights Act, Public Procurement and Concessions (PPCC) Act – 2010, etc. He was the technical and legal focal point on all major mining, energy, and land initiatives. He served as a key member of the GOL’s legal team for mining, petroleum, agriculture, infrastructure concession negotiations. Russ has worked extensively on the regulatory framework and institutional arrangement for multi-user rail administration including the Nimba-Buchanan Railway. He led two GOL delegations to Guinea for discussions on the use of the Nimba rail and the Buchannan port for the shipment of Guinean ore.

In the electricity sector, he led GOL’s team on CLSG/West African Power Pool (WAPP) negotiations – Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), Transmission Service Agreement (TSA), World Bank loan, AfDB loan. He served as the first chair of the Implementing Committee of the CLSG. He also served as Chair of the Standing Committee of the Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC) Board to review all LEC’s operations and provide recommendations for improved performance. As Director-General of Debt Management, Ministry of Finance, he provided technical support for Liberia’s debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) Initiative resulting in $4 billion debt relief.

For five consecutive years, Russ co-chaired the bi-annual Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Policy Dialogue on “Natural Resource-based Development,” in Paris, France. This dialogue brought together concessionaires, governments, civil society organizations, think tanks, development partners/donors, etc. to brainstorm on how to use natural resources to build long-term sustainable and diversified economies. He was also involved with the G7 CONNEX Initiative providing negotiation support for resource-rich developing countries.

His publications include Regulatory Reform in the Liberian Mining Sector: Striking the right balance, ECDPM’s Great Insight, Extractive Sector: African Perspective, vol 3, Issue 7, July/August 2014, and Mining Contracts: How to Read and Understand Them, Colophon, June 2014 as book contributor. Sam has served as panelist/speaker at various conferences in (USA, England, France, Canada, South Africa, Ghana, etc.) with a general focus on resource governance and management of Africa’s natural resources.

Russ was Associate Dean and Department Head – Business and Economics at Strayer University. He was also Assistant Professor of mathematics and physics at the University of Liberia.

Russ graduated BSc. mathematics and physics, Summa cum Laude and valedictorian of the University of Liberia and holds an MBA in finance and international business from Columbia University in New York and a Juris Doctor in law from William Mitchell College of Law in Minneapolis. Russ did his graduate studies in geophysics at Texas A & M University, College Station. He is a member of the Texas A & M University International Advisory Board. Sam is both a Fulbright Scholar and a World Bank Graduate Scholar.

DOWNSIDE: Although he served previously in the EJS-Unity Party government, the current configuration may find him to be an outsider, especially in an environment where the scramble for jobs is at its highest.

ODDS 50-40

MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT
DEPARTING MINISTER, Samuel Wlue
THE LOWDOWN: Whoever assumes command here will be responsible for establishing and implementing the overall transportation policy of the Republic, and develop plans for the movements of goods and people within and without the Republic; regulates the use of inland waterways and rivers, ships flying the Liberian flag in domestic and foreign commerce, as well as all modes of watercraft for civil transport and regulates the use of ports and harbors, local airports and vehicle parking lots as they affect shipping, civil aviation, and motor and rail transport.

The ministry also exercises power relating to marine administration; administers and implements the Transportation Law, the Insurance Law, and the Maritime Law, and to plan and execute policies relating to all modes of land, rail, sea and air transport; services within the Republic of Liberia and abroad; represents the Government’s interest in all negotiations in connection with Government participation in shipping and to serve the Government’s interest in international shipping and maritime conferences; collects, collates, evaluates and periodically publish such data relating to land, rail, sea and air transport services as well as insurance, as well as the maintenance of meteorological services; establishes rules and procedures and enforce standards for transport services of private and public common carriers of whatever nature and, in general, to develop, regulate, control and monitor vehicles, boats, ships, fishing vessels, railroads, aviation, ferries, canoes, rural and urban mass transit, and the inspection and safety of highways, the seas, railroads and civil aviation.

The minister here will face daunting challenges in the rehabilitation of arterial links in the country’s transport networks combined with a solid institutional and policy framework are top priorities of GoL and the international community.

NAMES OUT THERE

E. WADE APPLETON

UPSIDE: The surprise of the 2023 Presidential elections who ran on the ticket of the Grassroots Development Party finished third after securing 40,271 votes for 2.20 percent. He went on to back the Unity Party and the incoming President and is expected to be rewarded here.

He is a descendant of the well-known, and highly connected Appleton Dynasty from Maryland County. His father, the late E. Wade Appleton Sr., was a household name in the breadth of Liberia. He graduated from the University of Liberia in 1961 with a BA Degree in Political Science, and few years thereon, he graduated from Law School.

In America, he served as Senior VP and Managing Partner at the Liberia Investment Promotion, Inc based in Houston, Texas USA where he resides.

DOWNSIDE: There are concerns even within the Unity Party that Appleton lacks the experience to tackle the urgent and pressing needs of the ministry.

ODDS: 50-30

SIRLEAF RALPH TYLER
UPSIDE: The biological brother of former Speaker of the House of Representative, Alex Tyler, Sirleaf Tyler currently works as Deputy Minister for Administration/Insurance at the ministry and strongly supported the Boakai and Unity in the 2023 elections. He has been at the ministry for the past six years. In that role, Sirleaf was instrumental in pushing the ministry’s national strategic plan, which aims at reviving and making it autonomous. The strategy was seen as key to improving and setting the gateway for the Liberian meteorology service to go autonomous thereby providing the services and products that are needed to enhance the departing government’s ‘pro-poor agenda.’

Tyler holds a BSc in Economics and Finance from Rhode Island College RI and an MBA Finance

Dominican University as well as an MSc Accounting from University of Dallas Executive Certificate

Mergers and Acquisitions and a certificate from the London Business School in London, England.

He has previously worked as a Manager, Mobile Financial Services at Lonestar/MTN, Chief Financial Officer/Deputy Managing Director, Liberia Telecommunications Corporations and Finance Manager/Financial Analyst III, American Water Works in Arlington, VA USA. Additionally, Tyler worked as an Assistant Vice President/Senior Profitability System Analyst in Sandy Spring Bank, Olney, MD USA, Senior Financial Analyst in Bell Helicopter Textron, Hurst, TX

DOWNSIDE: Although Tyler risked supporting the UP in the last elections, some within the party might see him as part of the old system and may be advocating for a new face, an outsider.

ODDS: 50-40

MINISTRY OF POSTS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS
DEPARTING MINISTER, Cllr. Worlea-Saywah

THE LOWDOWN: The Ministry is tasked with administering postal and telecommunications services throughout Liberia and provides administrative guidelines for postal and telecommunication facilities that operate in the country. The Ministry is mandated by law to ensure the unhindered movement of mail and formulate appropriate policies which will access affordable information communications technology (IT) across the length and breadth of Liberia, ascertains and states in the annual report to the Legislature the revenues derived from and the cost of carrying and handling the several classes of mail matter and performing special services; and issues appropriate stamps in such denominations, form and design, and at such times as he deems necessary for use in payment of postage or fees for special services. MoPT also maintains and improves the postal service system of the Republic of Liberia.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
CLLR. COOPER KRUAH
UPSIDE: Dubbed a traitor by the departing government, Cllr. Kruah put it all on the line for the Unity Party and Joseph Boakai, losing his job in the process. Kruah was dismissed for attending the opposition Unity Party political rally during the heat of the presidential elections.

The CDC, including its standard bearer, the incumbent Weah, slammed Kruah, who is the chair of the Movement for Democratic Reconstruction (MDR) from which the Unity Party’s Boakai chose his running mate for the October elections. Members of the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change were even more disenchanted because the MDR had withdrawn political support from the Coalition and has rather joined forces with the Unity Party to unseat the Weah-led government at the polls in October.

After the Unity Party unveiled its vice standard bearer at a well-attended rally, Representative Acarous Gray of the ruling party took to Facebook calling for the resignation of the Post and Telecommunications Minister or his dismissal by the President. Representative Gray wrote: “The traitor Cooper Kruah, Minister of Post and Telecommunications, must resign and resign now. You are a dangerous sellout, and good to have lunch with you on Monday. No room for political polytheists and quislings.”

Not long after, the Executive Mansion announced the appointment of Cllr. Worlea-Saywah Dunah as Minister of Post and Telecommunications in response to the many calls from partisans.

Prior to the President’s announcement, the MDR backed the decision of the Party’s chair, claiming that as National Chair of the MDR, Cllr. Kruah, Sr. led the party’s delegation and officially escorted their standard bearer, who was to be presented to the UP Supporters as the vice running mate to Ambassador Boakai.

The MDR stated: “This was simply a fulfillment of Cllr. Kruah’s responsibilities to the Political Party in which he serves as chair. When our chair was appointed by President, His Excellency George Manneh Weah, in 2018 as Minister of Posts & Telecommunications, it was with the fullest knowledge that Cllr. Kruah was a full-fledged member of the Movement for Democracy & Reconstruction (MDR) and that he was recommended by Senator Prince Y. Johnson, who supported the CDC in 2017.”

DOWNSIDE: Kruah has come under fire in recent months after The DayLight exposed him in an investigation which found that he was a shareholder in a logging and mining company while he served as Minister of Posts and Telecommunications.

The probe found that Universal Forestry Corporation (UFC) received nearly a dozen mining licenses and one logging contract while Cooper was minister. According to the probe, Kruah tried to cover up his conflict of interest by pretending to turn over his shares with an apparently fake company document showing Kruah as shareholder, UFC was involved in an illegal subcontract, illicit logging, and smuggling of logs. Amid evidence of Kruah’s and UFC’s offenses, both the Forestry Development Authority and the Ministry of Mines and Energy did not punish Kruah or UFC.

After the publication, Kruah lied that UFC amended its article of incorporation in 2019. “This amendment of the article of incorporation is the best evidence for the public,” Kruah said in a statement at the time. However, records of the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA) showed that UFC did not amend its article of incorporation in 2019. Companies pay a fee at the LRA to amend their legal documents. UFC did not make any such payment, official records show.

Moreover, UFC’s so-called article of incorporation, obtained by The DayLight, physically appears to be fake. The document misspells Kruah son`s name: “Prince M. Kuah” instead of Prince M. Kruah. It also came more than one and a half years since Kruah became a government official. Conflict of interest aside, the evidence points to UFC’s violations of forestry and mining laws while Cooper Kruah was a minister.

ODDS: 50-40

MINISTRY OF PUBLIC WORKS
DEPARTING MINISTER Ruth Coker Collins
THE LOWDOWN: The Ministry is responsible for drafting and designing constructions, planning and constructing public infrastructures, supervising construction contracts implementation, maintaining roads, bridges and public buildings, enforces constriction standards for non-governmental buildings; Administer the law about the issuance of licenses to electricians, plumbers and any other persons who are required by law to obtain permits from this Ministry to carry on their occupations, among others

THE NAMES OUT THERE
ROLAND GIDDINGS
UPSIDE: Giddings is a former Deputy Minister for Administration at Ministry of Public Works & Rural Development and currently teaches at United Methodist University. He was a strong advocate and supporter of the incoming president on social media.

Giddings joined the Government of Liberia in 2007 and worked with the Liberia Reconstruction and Development Committee (LRDC) Secretariat as Program Assistant significantly supported the development and launch of the Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) in 2008.

From the second quarter of 2009 to 2010, Giddings worked as Program Specialist under the Liberia Emergency Capacity Building Support Program (LESCB) to manage the secretariat of the Economic Management Team of the Government of Liberia. Provided expertise in managing, driving, and coordinating activities of EMT including specific functions of the technical team. Affiliated with the Barclay Inc. as Research Associate for an economic study on Liberia and China engagement sponsored by the Rockefeller Foundation through the Africa Center for Economic Transformation (ACET) based in Accra, Ghana.

He was recruited under the World Bank Infrastructure Development Program since 2010 as Senior Program Officer in the President’s Delivery Unit (PDU). In that role, he was responsible to coordinate and deliver strategic programs (priority projects) defined by the President in accordance with the Development Agenda. On November 26, 2014 appointed as Deputy Minister for Administration at the Ministry of Public Works & Rural Development where he was responsible to perform and coordinate all Administrative activities to include: Financial management and control, monitoring, evaluation and systemic reporting to ensure accountability and transparency of projects financing, procurement of all budget activities, supervision of assets management, management of human resources activities to include: recruitment, placement and retrenchment and personnel development.

Giddings also worked as a Senior Program Officer/Consultant for the Government of Liberia & World Bank Infrastructure Development Project (Consultancy) from August 2010 to Dec 2014 4 years.

VICTOR SMITH
UPSIDE: Smith is a former Deputy Minister for Technical Services. He has a Master of Science degree in civil engineering and is the CEO of Alliance Consulting Engineers. He is also a former President of the Engineering Society of Liberia.

DOWNSIDE: Although he was a staunch supporter of the JNB campaign, Smith’s ownership of an engineering company could pose problems for him being considered here with potential risk of conflict of interest. During the Sirleaf presidency, he was briefly suspended after a report of the Investigation Committee headed by Cllr. Seward Cooper, Legal Advisor to the President, and confirmed by former Public Works Minister, Mr. Samuel Kofi Woods, who determined that the documents provided to the President, which led to the suspension, did not include important documents that gave evidence that the Award Letter written to a Korean company was fully nullified in December 2012.

Smith also came under fire in 2016, when as acting minister, reportedly encouraged Tony Lawal to establish another company called Praise Glory Lawal Construction Company in addition to the Pealat Construction Company. A General Auditing Commission findings later recommended that Smith, who was Deputy Public Works Minister for Technical services, provide substantive justification for issuing “letter to Proceed” to PEALAT Construction Company in violation of section 65, subsection one of the PPCA for the extra work at a cost of US$5,114,954.54 on the Bopolu-Belle Yallah Road.

In response to the GAC report Smith said, in as much as this may sound true on paper, it represents an ideal case where the Ministry of MPW has all the necessary well trained highway, geotechnical, structural, environment engineers and trained inspectors along with all the necessary tool to conduct the study and envelop a full project documents for implementation.

Three fiscal years, 2009/2010-2011/2012 was reviewed by the GAC. A copy was given the President and those concerned. The finding of the report was in the interest of the MPW administration.

Subsequently and upon receipt of the report, the President officially mandated the GAC to perform another audit of the MPW, this time procurement and financial audit in the same month the first report was completed.

ODDS: 50-30

MINISTRY OF LABOR
DEPARTING MINISTER, Cllr. Charles Gibson

THE LOWDOWN: The Ministry regulates and promotes industrial relations between employees and employers, provides employment services, enhance private sector productivity. The Ministry provides for the classification, registration of tradespeople and artisans, and promotes the rights of employees and management. It also creates a conducive working environment within the industrial sectors.

Over the past few years, the controversial Decent Work Bill has triggered a lot of debate. Despite its passage by both the Senate and House of Representatives, chapter five of the bill, which speaks of minimum wage, became very controversial, delaying its passage for years.

According to the United States Department of Labor, Liberia has made moderate advancement in efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labor. In 2022, the government signed a new hazardous work list, which identified specific occupations and tasks prohibited for children, including sugarcane cleaning, and harvesting, rubber tapping, palm cutting, bush clearing, and harvesting cocoa.

The government also almost doubled the number of labor inspections it conducted, from 556 in 2021 to 1,044 in 2022. Finally, the government designed Standard Operating Procedures to guide the operations of Liberia’s child labor monitoring systems at the district level. However, children in Liberia are subjected to the worst forms of child labor, including in forced domestic work. Children also perform dangerous tasks in the production of rubber and the mining of gold and diamonds. Liberia has yet to accede to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child’s Optional Protocol on Armed Conflict or the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution, and Child Pornography. Moreover, social programs are not sufficient to address the scope of the problem in the country.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
NETO ZARZAR LIGHE, SR.
UPSIDE: Lighe is an Investment, Corporate & Employment Lawyer with the Justice Advocates & Partners, Inc. He is a former Deputy Minister of Labor for Manpower Planning & Human Resource Development. In that role, Lighe acknowledged that the government was faced with mounting challenges in failing to adequately resolve labor disputes due to the previous labor law, which was repealed and subsequently replaced with the Decent Work Act. The old labor prevents the Labor Ministry and institutions from being forceful on employers, thus in effect, given more rights and privileges to employers than employees.

DOWNSIDE: Lighe, a die-hard member of the Unity Party blemished his credential when he lost his job in the final year of President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s presidency.

Lighe was dismissed for his alleged continued, “gross disrespect and participation in wicked attack and false accusations levied against presidency.” He had been in the position since 2014. Lighe, a staunch member the ruling Unity Party is also a senior member of Vice President Joseph Boakai’s campaign team.

Just minutes after his dismissal was confirmed, Mr. Lighe posted on his Facebook wall: “Seven years ago, through a presidential appointment, I entered mainstream government as an Assistant Minister at the Ministry of Internal Affairs. 2 years later, I was promoted to the position of Deputy Minister and then Minister of Labor. There’s no singular honor than serving your country and I’m proud of the opportunity extended me to serve my country. Today, 7 years after, my service in government has ended. I want to use this occasion, on behalf of my family, extend my profound thanks and appreciation to Madam Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf for the opportunity extended me. To all my colleagues in government and employees at the Ministry of Labor, thanks for your cooperation and service during my stay. It is now time to move on.”

ODDS: 50-30

MINISTRY OF GENDER, CHILDREN AND SOCIAL PROTECTION
DEPARTING MINISTER, Piso Saydee Tarr
THE LOWDOWN: The Mandate of the Ministry is promoting the development, empowerment and protection of women, girls, and children, as well as the welfare and integration of persons with disabilities, the vulnerable, extremely poor, excluded and disadvantaged. Especially, the Ministry will initiate, develop, and implement and coordinate policies and programs aimed at women girls and children, as well as those physically challenged, marginalized, disadvantaged, and excluded, to ensure that their rights are protected and integrated, and beneficial. The Ministry advises the government on matters that impact the development and welfare of women and children. The Ministry is mandated to advise Government on all matters affecting the development and welfare of women and children as well as any other matters referred to it by the Government.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
MACDELLA COOPER
UPSIDE: The Political Leader of The Movement for One Liberia (MOL) political party threw her support to the Boakai presidential campaign early on and never look back, earning the moniker, “Rescue Aunty.” Cooper is a graduate from Barringer High School in Newark, New Jersey, and subsequently earned a full academic scholarship to The College of New Jersey, where she earned a degree in Electronic Communications.

In October 2016, Cooper announced her candidacy for President of Liberia in the 2017 elections on the MoL ticket. She was also a candidate for the Montserrado County Senatorial elections held on July 2, 2020.

In 2022, MacDella Cooper announced her intention to run for President in the 2023 Liberian Presidential election but ended her quest on May 26, 2023, to publicly endorsed former Vice President Joseph Boakai’s bid for the Presidency, citing a desire to consolidate efforts to bring unity to Liberians. The announcement was made from the Movement for One Liberia’s headquarters in Monrovia, where Cooper still serves as the party’s political leader.

She has worked as an international businessperson for several years before establishing the MacDella Cooper Foundation, the MacDella Cooper Academy, and the Movement for One Liberia political party.

The foundation, a 501c3 international charitable organization aims to educate, train, and motivate Africa’s most vulnerable children, disadvantaged youth, and marginalized women, helping them to become productive contributors to their nations’ economic, social, and political development.

The foundation provided the fundamental building block for raising money to support national development projects in Liberia. Cooper used her philanthropic platform to advocate for the necessary funds to promote human rights, as well as the protection of women and children. The foundation also provides access to education, healthcare, affordable housing, and employment.

Cooper began her professional career in fashion marketing and public relations and later branched out into corporate planning, consulting for global organizations like Citi Group, Duca Sartoria and Starwood, among others. Cooper has held several leadership, advisory and board positions in the United States, Liberia, and other countries, including representation with humanitarian organizations.

DOWNSIDE: Cooper remains haunted by her somewhat toxic relationship with outgoing President George Weah with whom she has a child. In 2014, Cooper, had her sights set on becoming first lady to Weah. “He’s going to be the next President of Liberia. You have a future First Lady here,” she told the New York Post in October 2014. Cooper is also rumored to have her sights set on the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company as Managing Director.

ODDS: 50-30

MEAPEH GONO GLAY
UPSIDE: Meapeh was one of the strongest female figures in the JNB Campaign as the global chair of the JNB Tact Team and Campaign Panelist on the Spoon Network. Meapeh who has an educational background in Business Administration and Public Sector Management, first entered Public Service when appointed and commissioned by former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf as Assistant Minister for Administration at the Ministry of Labor in 2012.

She has worked extensively with women organizations, and political groupings. She was currently appointed to lead the Transitional Team Cluster for Public Sector, Good Governance, and Public Policy Reform. Many have said she is best fit to lead the women and children’s agenda of the Boakai led government, and its most likely to head the Ministry of Gender. Many believe that her strong background in social and political advocacy will enable her to succeed greatly in this sector. However, other sources have also hinted that she could be going to vote-rich Nimba County as the next Superintendent, thus helping to balance the ethnic and gender disparities in the current Nimba County Leadership.

DOWNSIDE: Shaking off the fallout of her turbulent relationship with former president Weah, with whom she has a child has been daunting for the former Assistant minister at Labor. But it appears that the UP has opened its alms to her with Meapeh likely to land safely at Gender in some capacity or a more political role as Superintendent.

ODDS: 50-30

VARBAH GAYFLOR
UPSIDE: Gayflor, who has had two stints as head of Gender has worked as Resident Representative of the President of the ECOWAS Commission, The Gambia for the past seven years.

She began her career as an activist while still in school, especially at university where she worked with political parties in a bid to mobilize social justice issues. In 1985 Gayflor entered politics, working in the Ministry of Planning. It was there she decided to set up a place for women to work, to make decisions, to discuss alternatives. My eyes began to open to the necessities of the people, especially women.

She has worked as a consultant for UN Women, Minister of Labor, Commerce and Gender during the regime of President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and during the National Transitional Government of Liberia period.

As Gender minister, Gayflor facilitated and supervised the formulation of national policies and the development of programs to ensure a government-wide mainstreaming of gender, with particular emphasis on the advancement of women and development of children. As part of her mandate, she was instrumental in fostering alliances among women’s groups through meetings, programs, and skills-building workshops. She also worked through the Results-Focused Transition Framework Implementation and Monitoring Committee to oversee the inclusion of women within the transitional process in Liberia. Madam Gayflor also lobbied the government to support police and security assistance. As chief of section of the women and Children’s Affairs Coordination Unit of the Liberia Ministry of Planning and Economic Affairs, Gayflor helped develop gender-based poverty alleviation and governance programs, coordinated the activities of women’s NGO’s and facilitated the mainstreaming of women and children’s issues. She also served as domestic assistant counterpart to the chief technical advisor on the Government of Liberia to projects organized by the United Nations Development Programme for Women (UNIFEM). In this capacity, she participated in the UNDP and UNIFEM sponsored Socio-Economic Gender Analysis and Strategic Planning Workshop. Ms. Gayflor holds a master’s degree in women, gender, and development.

DOWNSIDE: Gayflor is one of the key figures driving the JNB transition on gender and women’s issues although some within the party are quietly complaining that the former Gender minister has past her prime and it’s time to bring in new voices. More importantly, Gayflor is still haunted by an audit of her time at the MoGD released in 2011 by the General Auditing Commission which “exposed gross mismanagement and corruption, with many projects designed or funded for rural women either non-existent or uncompleted. In the aftermath of that audit, several women influential in and out of the government demanded that Minister Gayflor resign because the Liberian Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) investigation “found her guilty of theft, exploitation and abuse of power.” There are also concerns that the incoming President may have reservations about bringing too many of his Lofa relatives to the Cabinet.

ODDS: 50-40

MINISTRY OF INFORMATION, CULTURE, & TOURISM
DEPARTING MINISTER, Ledgerhood Rennie
THE LOWDOWN: The ministry is responsible for developing and disseminating information about the government both at home and abroad as well as promoting culture and tourism via media and institutions such as the National Museum, the custodian of Historical Artifacts, as well as cultural villages and historic Providence Island. However, over the past few years, very little has been done to improve the tourism sector which has become non-existent with very little government support.

Over the past few years, the ministry has been limited to running government propaganda.

Part of the ministry’s mandate is to maintain close contacts with all Ministries and agencies of government, and all national and private institutions and organizations for the purpose of gaining information and keeping the public informed of federal programs, projects and developments; counter unfavorable propaganda by disseminating a wide range of informative material that presents an accurate picture of Liberia’s national image.

Lack of funding has been blamed for the ministry’s failure to organize promote a tourist industry with key local attractions like the Kpatawee Waterfalls and the Lake Piso haven being failing to fulfill their potential due to the lack of incentives from government.

Whoever ascends here will be required to change the norms of continuing the propaganda element of the ministry and forcing government to do more about the country’s failing tourism sector which is barely trying to keep its head above water.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
CHARLES SNETTER
UPSIDE: Mr. Snetter, a public relations consultant, and former head of the Liberia Broadcasting System is an old hand in the game. The founder and operator of Radio Monrovia, 92.1 FM in the heart of Monrovia, Liberia, Mr. Snetter served as Director General of the Liberian Broadcasting Corporation and Chair of the Liberian Broadcasting System (LBS) “EXPO 83.” For years, Radio Monrovia delivered educational, informative, and entertaining programs aimed at maintaining peace and freedom of speech in the country. Mr. Snetter studied at the Maryland College of Arts and Designs, in Silver Spring, Maryland. He is currently serving the role of Presidential Press Secretary to the incoming President and handles most of the media-related activities of the president-elect…

DOWNSIDE: During Mr. Snetter’s time as head of the LBS, aggrieved workers under the banner “Concerned Workers” came to his defense, describing as bias and complete misrepresentation of facts findings by the Board of Directors led by former Information Minister, Johnny McClain into alleged financial and administrative malpractices by the LBS Director General.

The workers said the Board had misled the President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and the public about the actual situation obtaining at the state-owned broadcast institution.

Snetter also faced backlash over the suspension of reporter Othello Guzean for violating the editorial policy of the station. However, Guzean.

Both CEMESP and IFEX were informed by the reporter that he was suspended because he conducted and aired an interview of Montserrado County District Seven parliamentarian Thomas Fallah.

In the interview, representative Fallah, an opposition parliamentarian from the Congress for Democratic Change party, accused President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of manipulating some members of the House of Representatives to remove Edwin Snowe as Speaker of the National Legislature of Liberia. The then LBS director general, according to Guzean, described the airing of such an interview as unacceptable and in contravention of the station’s editorial policy.

ODDS:
JONATHAN PAYLAYLEH
UPSIDE: A former correspondent for the BBC, Paylayleh endured a rough six years under the outgoing ruling Coalition for Democratic Change. During one of President Weah’s meeting with media executives, Payeleleh, suffered public rebuke from President Weah and was later publicly accused by the Minister of Information of being an NPFL Spokesman, developments and characterization aimed at smearing the integrity of the journalists and subject them to public and incalculable consequences from would-be party zealots and operatives.

Paylayleh, who unsuccessfully contested the District No. 8 seat in Nimba County endorsed the candidacy of the incoming President and is currently one of the key figures on the media and communications team of the former vice president.

DOWNSIDE: Despite his lengthy journalism career, Paylayleh is not considered to be a die-hard Unity Party member. With so much infighting for jobs within the incoming President’s circle, his survival will rely mostly on the incoming president rewarding him for his support.

ODDS: 50-30

JEROLINMEK PIAH
UPSIDE: A journalist with longstanding experience in Public Sector Governance, Politics, Public Relations and Communication, Piah was one of the strong voices of the Unity Party during the October 2023 presidential and general elections.

As press secretary to former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Mr. Piah was responsible for managing government communications. He is also a former Assistant Minister for Planning & Administration, Ministry of Gender & Development, Liberia, Deputy Minister for Public Affairs – Ministry of Information, Liberia, Former Acting Minister for Information.

Piah has strong working knowledge experience in Child Protection and former head of the National Child Rights Observatory Group (NACROG), Liberia. He is also a former instructor of Biology and General Science in the Catholic School System in Liberia and more recently, at the Harvard Kennedy School, MA International Relation, 2011; BSc Agronomy, 2005.

DOWNSIDE: Mr. Piah came under fire in 2016 when the international journalist watchdog group, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemned the Sirleaf administration’s harassment of the media and journalists after a presidential spokesperson threatened the representative of a journalists’ association for calling for the reopening of two radio stations ahead of the 2017 presidential election.

At the time, Press Union of Liberia vice-president Jallah E. Grayfield asked the police to investigate the threats he received from presidential press secretary Jerolinmek Piah after taking part in debate with information minister Isaac Jackson on Radio Prime 105.5 FM on 6 September.

During the programme, Grayfield criticized the government’s recent closure of the two privately-owned radio stations as “undemocratic” and called for them to be reopened.

As he was leaving Radio Prime, Grayfield received several SMS messages from Piah accusing him of being a “disgrace” to his organization and warning that “you will feel what you have started.”

Grayfield said he asked the police to investigate because he was concerned by what he regarded as a new government attack on the media.

RSF took Piah to task: “It is unacceptable that those who represent and defend the media are unable to freely express their opinion and are the target of threats,” RSF said. “We call on the Liberian president’s office to put a stop to this kind of behavior, which discredits the entire administration.”

ODDS: 50-40

MINISTRY OF YOUTH & SPORTS
DEPARTING MINISTER, D. Zeogar Wilson
THE LOWDOWN: The function of the Ministry includes the direction of the affairs of youths of the nation, to enable them to discharge their responsibilities as useful citizens of the Republic and promote, control, and direct all programs and activities relating to Sports most effectively.

The ministry is also tasked with developing the social and national consciousness of Liberian youths, male and female, and educate them to be ready morally and physically to answer the call of their country; Initiate and develop plans and provide means and facilities to enable the youths of Liberia to perform public service to fulfill current needs.

Today, a lot of the young people in Liberia are unemployed and out of the labor force. As a result, not much-targeted efforts have yielded the desired result, resulting in limited budgetary allotment for youth development continues to be a key impediment to youth employment in Liberia.

Whoever assumes command here will be expected to work with, and coordinate youth activities in all Liberian youth organizations in the interest of national consciousness. They will also be responsible for establishing, maintaining, and supervising the activities of the Liberian National Youth Organization.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
CLLR. JEROR COLE BANGALU
UPSIDE: Like the incoming President, Bangalu hails from Kolahun, Lofa County. He graduated from the Swedish Mission High School in Voinjama in 1988 and matriculated to the University of Liberia in 1989 where he remained until his graduation in 1997.

He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and Public Administration from the University of Liberia. In 1999, he enrolled at the Louis Arthur Grimes School of Law where obtained his law degree.

He was admitted as Attorney at Law in 2009 and Counsellor at Law and Member of the Supreme Court Bar in 2022. In 2015, Cllr. Bangalu earned a Master of Arts (MA) degree in Conflict Transformation from the Kofi Anan Institute of Conflict Transformation, University of Liberia. He has obtained Several Diplomas and Certificates in Labour and Sports Administration including from the International Training Center of the ILO, Turin Italy and Confederation of African Football, Dar Es Salem in Club Licensing.

He is a Licensed football match commissioner and Coach.

In Politics, Mr. Bangalu served as the first elected National Chair of the Congress for Democratic Change and immediate past National Vice Chair for Inter Party Affairs, Unity Party. He is currently the Acting Head of the Legal Committee of the Unity Party.

In 1999, Mr. Bangalu served as project Analyst, National Investment Commission. Between 2000-2002, Excise Tax Coordinator, Bureau of Customs and Excise, RL. From 2003-2005, Managing Director, National Housing Authority. From 2006-2007 as Assistant Minister for Regional Labour Affairs, Ministry of Labour and 2008-2011, Assistant Minister for Trade Union Affairs, Ministry of Labour. From 2012-2013, Deputy Minister for Administration, Ministry of Labour. From 2014-2017, Cllr. Bangalu served as Deputy Director General for Administration, General Services Agency, RL. Cllr. Bangalu is currently the Managing partner of Justice Watch and Legal Services Inc. Cllr. Bangalu is the current President of the Lofa County Bar Association. He is also the Chair of the First Instant Board and Awards Committee of the Liberia Football Association. He is a devout Christian and a father to two.

DOWNSIDE: Cole raised eyebrows in 206 when he posted an encrypted Facebook post regarding his political future and breakaway from the Unity Party, posting simply, “Quitting in two weeks.”

ODDS: 50-50

NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY
DEPARTING DIRECTOR, Henric Pearson

THE LOWDOWN: The National Security Agency derives its authority from the National Security and Intelligence Act of 2011, which, among other things, mandates the agency to collect intelligence and information relating to capabilities, intentions and activities of foreign powers, organizations, and persons.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
SAM GAYE
UPSIDE: The former Director of the Executive Protection Service is a product of the DEA/FBI Academy and a retired Supervisory Special Agent with the U.S. Dept of Justice/Drug Enforcement Administration. He is currently a key advisor on the JNB transition team.

In 2016, he was nominated by the President and confirmed by the Liberian Senate. In that role, he directed the administration of the Executive Protection Service (EPS) of over 500 sworn officers. As Director, he was responsible for the protection of the President, family members, Vice President, senior officials, and foreign dignitaries. Officer in charge of security planning and execution during the gathering in Liberia of 17 West African Heads of State, including the Prime Minister of Israel.

He previously served as the Senior Security Consultant for the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA) where he was responsible for designing a comprehensive security plan for the newly established revenue institution. He reported directly to the Commissioner General. Supervised and directed criminal and non-criminal investigations pursuant to violations of the Liberian Revenue Code. Seek indictments and worked closely with the Office of the Chief Counsel.

He also served for a while as a Senior Security Specialist for Vale Iron Ore Company, where he conducted risk assessments, protection of personnel and assets, conducted fraud/internal investigations, security incident response and crisis management for Vale’s operations in Liberia and Guinea. He also provided in loco security assistance for incidents involving Vale employees, to include contractors and expatriates. Routinely assessed the security situation in the country and advised senior management and the team of geologists. Prepared and.

Gaye obtained a master’s degree Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Administration from Saint Joseph’s University and bachelor’s degree in criminal justice & Police Science from Temple University. He also has a Diploma in Basic Police Training also from Temple.

DOWNSIDE: Not much of a downside for Gaye, just a pity, the departing government did not utilize the knowledge and skills of perhaps the most experienced security and drug expert in Liberia’s history. The high point of his career was the major role he played in the tracking and arrest of Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout as well as another Russian, Konstantin Yaroshenko who was arrested in Monrovia in May 2010 and convicted of a drug smuggling plot.

BROWNIE JEFFERY SAMUKAI Jr.
UPSIDE: The former minister of National Defense during the reign of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has a lengthy experience in the security sector. In the 1980s, he worked within the ministry. Between 1986-87, he worked within the G-4 Branch of the Armed Forces of Liberia.

In 1991, Samukai was appointed as Deputy Minister of Defense for Operations. In that role he was responsible for reestablishing civilian control over the Liberian army and established an urban response team to counter urban terrorism. He served in this position until 1994.

Between 1993 and 94, Samukai served as commander of the ‘Black Berets,’ a paramilitary police force in Monrovia during the Amos Sawyer-led Interim Government of National Unity (IGNU). According to the International Crisis Group, the Black Berets also fought alongside ECOMOG at times, notably during Charles Taylor’s 1992 assault on Monrovia (‘Operation Octopus’). ‘They and the AFL were accused of killing some 600 civilians in the June 1993 Camp Carter massacre, which, testimony at the Liberian Truth and Reconciliation Commission has indicated, was perpetuated by Taylor’s NPFL fighters, who may have orchestrated it to put blame on the AFL.

He served as Director of the Liberian National Police from 1994 to 1995 and Deputy Minister of State for Administration from 1995 to 1997. In 1998 he served on the AFL Restructuring Commission, where he was listed as a retired Colonel of the AFL in private business.

From 1999 to 2004-05, Samukai served as a security officer with the United Nations, initially with UNTAET in East Timor, and then from 2000 with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the UN Department of Safety and Security in Tanzania. Responsible for refugee resettlement in Tanzania.

DOWNSIDE: On 27 January 2022, Samukai, with associates, was convicted and ordered imprisoned for embezzlement. The Supreme Court of Liberia has handed down two-year prison sentences to former defense chief Brownie Samukai along with deputies Joseph Johnson and James Nyuman Ndokor after they failed to return U.S.$1,1 million worth of stolen money from a government pension account. The funds were stolen from the Armed Forces of Liberia pension account during the mandate of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf when Samukai headed the defense ministry. The three men were ordered by the court to pay U.S. [$537,828.15] within six months but failed to do so.

Samukai appeared to have hurt his chances of getting a job in the Boakai administration when he was seen visiting the Forkay Klon Jlaleh Church of departing President George Weah. The former Defense Minister later clarified that his attendance at the church service was not an endorsement of President George Weah’s reelection ahead of the November 14, 2023, presidential runoff election as apparently believed by others. “I want to make it clear that my attendance at the Forkay Klon Church was not a political or religious endorsement,” Samukai said in an interview. “I was simply responding to an invitation from a friend who is a member of the church,” he said. He added that, as a Christian, he believes in the freedom of worship, and he respects the beliefs of others.

On December 22, 2023, President Weah pardoned Samukai and waived the US$1.3 million restitution that was to be paid by former Minister of National Defense Brownie Samukai and his principal deputy and comptroller at the time, Joseph P. Johnson, and Mr. Nyumah Dorkor, respectively. They were found guilty of economic sabotage and misappropriating funds intended for servicing pensions for retired members of the Armed Forces of Liberia in 2021.

ODDS: 50-30

FOMBAH SIRLEAF
UPSIDE: The former head of the National Security Agency is one of Liberia’s finest security experts. He has been recognized by U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency for outstanding contributions in field of Drug Law Enforcement and awarded by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies for participation in “Countering Narcotics and Illicit Commons.”

Multiple sources tell FrontPageAfrica that Sirleaf is highly regarded by the incoming President who has him penciled for some role in the security sector with Defense among the likely destination.

Sirleaf, the son of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is also credited for creating partnership with 30+ movements to implement innovative intelligence sharing network within the African Union and was a key driver in establishing a Joint intelligence Task Force and Analysis Center for the Liberian Government.

He also established a national security coordination committee that included weekly briefings and information sharing and has been recognized as Subject Matter Expert in Strategic Planning and Management of intelligence organizations.

Additionally, Sirleaf managed eight direct reports from various national security institutions and delivered cabinet level security briefings.

Sirleaf is an accomplished professional and intuitive leader with progressive experience developing innovative national security strategies. Proven track record of engaging clients, guiding intelligence best practices, and security initiatives in support of leading organizations. Thrives in high-volume environments with the ability to optimize ever-changing security needs, improve intelligence collection, and continuously drive results. He is also adept at cultivating partnerships and building lasting relationships across diverse government sectors, including senior-level communications. Ability to achieve long-lasting gains, steer strategic vision, as well as align and execute policy objectives. Complemented by a master’s degree in organizational development from the University of Pennsylvania.

In his role as head of the National Security Agency (2006 to 2018), Sirleaf was the principal advisor to the former President of the Republic of Liberia for intelligence matters related to National and Regional Security. He also oversaw collection, analysis, and dissemination of critical intelligence briefs. Protected intelligence sources, methods of operations and other classified information. Forged productive relationships with intelligence and security agencies of foreign governments on matters involving mutual national security interests.

As a senior policy advisor and consultant at the Liberia National Police (2003 to 2006), Sirleaf advised Director of Police on democratic policing best practices and supported framework development and oversight surrounding the interface between the LNP and CIVPOL. He also provided guidance on the development of a results-focused framework by the various departmental line functions of the LNP such as re-organization, recruitment, and retraining processes. Spearheaded the development of a system-wide monitoring and evaluation mechanism to measure performance, productivity, efficiency, and effective operational interface between the LNP and CIVPOL.

DOWNSIDE: Fomba served in the role for twelve. Even if the incoming President were to bring him back in the fold, it may most likely be somewhere else. During his time at the NSA, Sirleaf was in the middle of a political scandal in 2014 after the arrest of a group of South Korean businesspeople and seizure of US$247,500 from them by the NSA. The Minister of Justice and Attorney General at time of the incident resigned and accused the President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of interference in an investigation of the Liberian NSA. A special committee appointed to investigate the incident concluded that the Korean businesspeople were not engaged in illegal activity. The investigation further found that the seizure was a criminal conspiracy by NSA operatives and co-conspirators outside of the agency who had lured the Korean businesspeople to Liberia, and recommended prosecution of all perpetrators. Sirleaf also found himself entangled in the controversial Sable Mining bribery scandal unearthed by Global Witness and rejuvenated by the Special Presidential Task Force.

ODDS: 50-30

EXECUTIVE PROTECTION SERVICES
DEPARTING DIRECTOR, Trokon Roberts

The Revised National Security Act of 2011 created the Executive Protection Service, absorbing the mandate of the Special Security Service which is to provide maximum security protection to the President, Vice President and their immediate families, designated officials of government, dignitaries and visiting guests of the Presidency.

SAM GAYE
UPSIDE: The former Director of the Executive Protection Service is a product of the DEA/FBI Academy and a retired Supervisory Special Agent with the U.S. Dept of Justice/Drug Enforcement Administration. Gaye is currently a key advisor to the JNB transition team.

In 2016, he was nominated by the President and confirmed by the Liberian Senate. In that role, he directed the administration of the Executive Protection Service (EPS) of over 500 sworn officers. As Director, he was responsible for the protection of the President, family members, Vice President, senior officials, and foreign dignitaries. Officer in charge of security planning and execution during the gathering in Liberia of 17 West African Heads of State, including the Prime Minister of Israel.

He previously served as the Senior Security Consultant for the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA) where he was responsible for designing a comprehensive security plan for the newly established revenue institution. He reported directly to the Commissioner General. Supervised and directed criminal and non-criminal investigations pursuant to violations of the Liberian Revenue Code. Seek indictments and worked closely with the Office of the Chief Counsel.

He also served for a while as a Senior Security Specialist for Vale Iron Ore Company, where he conducted risk assessments, protection of personnel and assets, conducted fraud/internal investigations, security incident response and crisis management for Vale’s operations in Liberia and Guinea. He also provided in loco security assistance for incidents involving Vale employees, to include contractors and expatriates. Routinely assessed the security situation in country and advised senior management and the team of geologists. Prepared and.

Gaye obtained a master’s degree Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Administration from Saint Joseph’s University and bachelor’s degree in criminal justice & Police Science from Temple University. He also has a Diploma in Basic Police Training also from Temple.

DOWNSIDE: Not much of a downside for Gaye, just a pity, the departing government did not utilize the knowledge and skills of perhaps the most experienced security and drug expert in Liberia’s history. The high point of his career was the major role he played in the tracking and arrest of Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout as well as another Russian, Konstantin Yaroshenko who was arrested in Monrovia in May 2010 and convicted of a drug smuggling plot.

BROWNIE JEFFERY SAMUKAI Jr.
UPSIDE: The former minister of National Defense during the reign of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has a lengthy experience in the security sector. In the 1980s, he worked within the ministry. Between 1986-87, he worked within the G-4 Branch of the Armed Forces of Liberia.

In 1991, Samukai was appointed as Deputy Minister of Defense for Operations. In that role he was responsible for reestablishing civilian control over the Liberian army and established an urban response team to counter urban terrorism. He served in this position until 1994.

Between 1993 and 94, Samukai served as commander of the ‘Black Berets,’ a paramilitary police force in Monrovia during the Amos Sawyer-led Interim Government of National Unity (IGNU). According to the International Crisis Group, the Black Berets also fought alongside ECOMOG at times, notably during Charles Taylor’s 1992 assault on Monrovia (‘Operation Octopus’). ‘They and the AFL were accused of killing some 600 civilians in the June 1993 Camp Carter massacre, which, testimony at the Liberian Truth and Reconciliation Commission has indicated, was perpetuated by Taylor’s NPFL fighters, who may have orchestrated it to put blame on the AFL.

He served as Director of the Liberian National Police from 1994 to 1995 and Deputy Minister of State for Administration from 1995 to 1997. In 1998 he served on the AFL Restructuring Commission, where he was listed as a retired Colonel of the AFL in private business.

From 1999 to 2004-05, Samukai served as a security officer with the United Nations, initially with UNTAET in East Timor, and then from 2000 with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the UN Department of Safety and Security in Tanzania. Responsible for refugee resettlement in Tanzania.

DOWNSIDE: On 27 January 2022, Samukai, with associates, was convicted and ordered imprisoned for embezzlement. The Supreme Court of Liberia has handed down two-year prison sentences to former defense chief Brownie Samukai along with deputies Joseph Johnson and James Nyuman Ndokor after they failed to return U.S.$1,1 million worth of stolen money from a government pension account. The funds were stolen from the Armed Forces of Liberia pension account during the mandate of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf when Samukai headed the defense ministry. The three men were ordered by the court to pay U.S. [$537,828.15] within six months but failed to do so.

Samukai appeared to have hurt his chances of getting a job in the Boakai administration when he was seen visiting the Forkay Klon Jlaleh Church of departing President George Weah. The former Defense Minister later clarified that his attendance at the church service was not an endorsement of President George Weah’s reelection ahead of the November 14, 2023, presidential runoff election as apparently believed by others. “I want to make it clear that my attendance at the Forkay Klon Church was not a political or religious endorsement,” Samukai said in an interview. “I was simply responding to an invitation from a friend who is a member of the church,” he said. He added that, as a Christian, he believes in the freedom of worship, and he respects the beliefs of others.

On December 22, 2023, President Weah pardoned Samukai and waived the US$1.3 million restitution that was to be paid by former Minister of National Defense Brownie Samukai and his principal deputy and comptroller at the time, Joseph P. Johnson, and Mr. Nyumah Dorkor, respectively. They were found guilty of economic sabotage and misappropriating funds intended for servicing pensions for retired members of the Armed Forces of Liberia in 2021.

ODDS: 50-30

FOMBAH SIRLEAF
UPSIDE: The former head of the National Security Agency is one of Liberia’s finest security experts. He has been recognized by U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency for outstanding contributions in field of Drug Law Enforcement and awarded by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies for participation in “Countering Narcotics and Illicit Commons.”

Multiple sources tell FrontPageAfrica that Sirleaf is highly regarded by the incoming President who has him penciled for some role in the security sector with Defense among the likely destination.

Sirleaf, the son of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is also credited for creating partnership with 30+ movements to implement innovative intelligence sharing network within the African Union and was a key driver in establishing a Joint intelligence Task Force and Analysis Center for the Liberian Government.

He also established a national security coordination committee that included weekly briefings and information sharing and has been recognized as Subject Matter Expert in Strategic Planning and Management of intelligence organizations.

Additionally, Sirleaf managed eight direct reports from various national security institutions and delivered cabinet level security briefings.

Sirleaf is an accomplished professional and intuitive leader with progressive experience developing innovative national security strategies. Proven track record of engaging clients, guiding intelligence best practices, and security initiatives in support of leading organizations. Thrives in high-volume environments with the ability to optimize ever-changing security needs, improve intelligence collection, and continuously drive results. He is also adept at cultivating partnerships and building lasting relationships across diverse government sectors, including senior-level communications. Ability to achieve long-lasting gains, steer strategic vision, as well as align and execute policy objectives. Complemented by a master’s degree in organizational development from the University of Pennsylvania.

In his role as head of the National Security Agency (2006 to 2018), Sirleaf was the principal advisor to the former President of the Republic of Liberia for intelligence matters related to National and Regional Security. He also oversaw collection, analysis, and dissemination of critical intelligence briefs. Protected intelligence sources, methods of operations and other classified information. Forged productive relationships with intelligence and security agencies of foreign governments on matters involving mutual national security interests.

As a senior policy advisor and consultant at the Liberia National Police (2003 to 2006), Sirleaf advised Director of Police on democratic policing best practices and supported framework development and oversight surrounding the interface between the LNP and CIVPOL. He also provided guidance on the development of a results-focused framework by the various departmental line functions of the LNP such as re-organization, recruitment, and retraining processes. Spearheaded the development of a system-wide monitoring and evaluation mechanism to measure performance, productivity, efficiency, and effective operational interface between the LNP and CIVPOL.

DOWNSIDE: Fomba served in the role for twelve. Even if the incoming President were to bring him back in the fold, it may most likely be somewhere else. During his time at the NSA, Sirleaf was in the middle of a political scandal in 2014 after the arrest of a group of South Korean businesspeople and seizure of US$247,500 from them by the NSA. The Minister of Justice and Attorney General at time of the incident resigned and accused the President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of interference in an investigation of the Liberian NSA. A special committee appointed to investigate the incident concluded that the Korean businesspeople were not engaged in illegal activity. The investigation further found that the seizure was a criminal conspiracy by NSA operatives and co-conspirators outside of the agency who had lured the Korean businesspeople to Liberia, and recommended prosecution of all perpetrators. Sirleaf also found himself entangled in the controversial Sable Mining bribery scandal unearthed by Global Witness and rejuvenated by the Special Presidential Task Force.

LIBERIA NATIONAL POLICE
DEPARTING DIRECTOR, Patrick Sudue

THE LOWDOWN

The LNP is responsible for maintaining public order and safety, protect people and property, identify, and recover lost and stolen property, prevent, detect, and fight crime, identify, and arrest criminals and enforce the law and testify in court. However, distrust in the police remains high.

An Afrobarometer survey recently found that most Liberians think most police officers are corrupt. Among citizens who encountered the police during the previous year, a majority say it was difficult to obtain assistance, and more than three-fourths say they had to pay a bribe. Many also complain of unprofessional conduct, saying the police often use excessive force, stop drivers without good reason, engage in criminal activities, and fail to respect citizens’ rights.

A growing number of Liberians report experiencing insecurity in their neighborhoods and homes, and most say the government is doing a poor job of reducing crime.

This is why the incoming administration would be keen to bring in disciplined Inspector General who can help restore trust amongst the officer of the force. Interestingly, the two frontrunners here have served the force as head and deputy.

THE NAMES OUT THERE
GREGORY COLEMAN
UPSIDE: Coleman is an esteemed security executive and public policy manager, known for his expertise in risk mitigation and analytics. With extensive experience in community relations, he excels in orchestrating security enforcement activities and developing outreach plans, all while devising sensitive strategies and tactics.

Coleman’s reputation extends to the international stage, where he has managed robust government compliance for multi-national companies, instilling confidence in investors through the deployment of smart security strategies.

During the 2014-2015 Ebola epidemic in Liberia, Coleman’s policies, and procedures as Commissioner for Operations of the LNP proved effective, resulting in minimal impact on the LNP compared to other security sector agencies. In 2016, he was appointed Inspector General of the Liberia National Police and Chair of the West African Police Chiefs Committee (WAPCO).

Under Coleman’s leadership, the LNP enjoyed stability in police-community relations, earning high praise from the Liberian political leadership and international partners. This professionalism translated into increased support for the LNP and the Liberian people.

In 2018, Coleman transitioned from hard security to soft security, taking on the role of Director-General of the National Bureau of Concessions. In this position, he worked closely with Foreign Direct Investors holding concessions in Liberia, providing technical assistance to ministries, agencies, and commissions responsible for granting concessions.

Coleman’s dedication to community concerns led him to establish Sustainable Initiatives International (SIl) after resigning from the government. SIl is a nonprofit sustainability organization that collaborates with communities affected by investments, investors, companies, and the government. Their goal is to build synergies and create a safe and sustainable environment by addressing issues such as natural resource governance, food security, transparency, accountability, access to justice, and overall safety. Through smart and secure initiatives, including advocacy, economic empowerment, early warning systems, preventative diplomacy, education, and gender mainstreaming, SIl actively works towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals at the local community level.

DOWNSIDE: Ever calm under pressure. Coleman stood his ground and won when the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) cleared him of allegations of double emolument, payroll paddling and illegal disbursement of public monies during his time at the former Director General of the National Bureau of Concessions (NBC).

Mr. Coleman was invited to appear before LACC investigators on August 13, 2019, to answer multiple corruption charges, ranging from alleged payroll padding through the inclusion of employees of other ministries and agencies on the payroll of NBC.

The August 13, 2019 invitation by the LACC to Mr. Coleman pointed out that he and his deputy were being invited to provide reasons as to why they allegedly deducted the salaries of several employees as a result of administrative actions without remitting the deducted amount to the government as per the Public Financial Management Law of 2010 and the Civil Service Standing Order of Liberia.

ODDS: 50-50

ABRAHAM KROMAH
UPSIDE: Although he has been a prominent figure in the police in the past, Abe instills fear in the officers and is known for keep the streets safe and maintaining order. With complaints mounting over unruly bike riders causing chaos in traffic, Abe may just be what the doctor ordered to help restore sanity to the police force – and the former Deputy Inspector General of Police (102) for Operations, is not shying away from what he wants.

Abe declared recently that he will settle for nothing less than the position of Chief of Police if given the opportunity to serve the Unity Party-led government again. Kromah, who currently operates a private security firm here, was very robust against terroristic acts, motorists, commercial bikes, tricyclists, and crimes generally when he served as Deputy Police Director for Operations under former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

Abe believes he has all the experience required to serve in any administrative position in the Liberian National Police, but he would be delighted to take up the role of Inspector General, this time around. “I didn’t go to school, acquire knowledge only to serve as 102”, Kromah said when journalists asked him in what capacity he would prefer to serve the LNP amid public speculations that he is seeking to replace current IG, Col. Patrick Sudue when the Unity Party administration takes office.

Abe adds: “I’ve been deputy for almost five Police directors in this country; “I was deputy for Chris Massaquoi, Brownie Samukai, even Gregory Coleman, and if it is the position I’m offered by the new government, I will gracefully go for it to serve my country diligently.”

DOWNSIDE: While Abe brings a lot of energy to the force and his style of operation, it can sometimes rub off the wrong way to his own detriment. He was previously dismissed as Deputy Police Director for Operations.

Source: FrontPageAfrica

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