By Bill W. Cooper
Some employees of the Forestry Development Authority (FDA) have staged a peaceful protest, demanding the immediate dismissal of the Authority’s Managing Director, Rudolph Merab, for allegedly illegally dismissing and transferring their colleagues.
The protest, which took place yesterday, outside the FDA headquarters in Paynesville, saw employees holding placards with slogans such as “Justice for our colleagues”; “FDA is not a dumpsite”, and “Merab must go”, among others.
It can be recalled that in February of 2024, President Joseph Boakai appointed Rudolph Merab, believed to a wartime business partner of ex-President Charles Taylor, whose company participated in Liberia’s biggest post-war logging scandal as Managing Director of the FDA.
But since his appointment, there have been series of calls from the public questioning the Liberian leader’s decision, bringing into the question the integrity of Merab to head the FDA, a sector at a critical juncture, which has failed to meet expectations over the past six to ten years.
The protesters, besieging the compound of the FDA, accused Merab of raining insults on them at will without any regret or remorse for his employees, including what they described as an “arbitrary” dismissal and illegal transfers of their colleagues over the last two months.”
They claim that Merab has been arbitrarily dismissing and transferring their colleagues without following due process, alleging that these actions are politically motivated and are aimed at silencing dissent within the FDA.
According to the protesters, several employees have been unfairly targeted and removed from their positions, leading to a sense of fear and uncertainty among the workforce, having spent two months at the authority.
“We cannot sit idly by while our colleagues are being unjustly dismissed and transferred. So, we demand that Merab be removed from his position immediately and that our colleagues be reinstated,” one protester narrated.
The employees also accused Merab of mismanagement and corruption within the Liberian forestry sector as far back as 1998, claiming that he has been using his position to enrich himself and his cronies at the expense of the country.
They asserted, “So, it will be prudent that President Boakai dismiss this man and replace him with someone that has integrity for the common good of our forestry sector, but any attempt to keep Mr. Merab on the job would undermine Mr. Boakai’s commitment to fighting corruption.”
Meanwhile, the employees have called for a full investigation into Merab’s alleged actions and for him to be held accountable for any wrongdoing, emphasizing, “Because we have tried to raise our concerns through the proper channels, but no redress.”
“So, we have no choice but to take to the streets and demand justice for our colleagues, and we will continue this demonstration until our demands are met and seen that the FDA is run in a fair and transparent manner,” they added.
However, all efforts exerted by this paper to get the side of Merab proved futile, as his phone rang endlessly without answer till news time, as the outcome of the protest remains uncertain.
