By Bill W. Cooper
The ongoing power struggle among members of the House of Representatives seems to be far from ending as the glaring absence of some of its members of some key state actors at President Joseph Boakai’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) has generated more confusion.
The Youh-bench’s failure to show up at the SONA demonstrated no obligation as the Judiciary is under no duty to be in attendance just as the President is not duty-bound to attend the high court’s opening.
Whether or not the Justices were at that event presided over by the majority Speaker Richard Koon, there would have still sparked widespread debate and inflame ongoing negotiations, if there were any.
The Chief Justice is participating in the Annual High-Level Meeting of Chief Justices and Presidents of Supreme and Constitutional Courts from Africa and the Middle East in Cairo, Egypt.
That meeting according to the Supreme Court release, is an important annual event that focuses on strengthening judicial cooperation between African and Middle Eastern nations.
But many still attributed the members of her bench decision as a public show of their intent not to legitimize the Koon’s speakership while others believe that due to the ideology of coordination among the branches, the Judiciary must be present at such event while at the Supreme Court’s opening, a seat is also reserved for the President but is not highlighted when he/she does not attend.
According to them, the absence of the Supreme Court has darkened the country’s political atmosphere, raising questions about the legitimacy of the government’s actions and the stability of the political environment.
Other analysts expressed that the SONA is once a year while the Supreme Court opens four times in a year; therefore, the President will always attend at at a given time or at-least one time before its final closure in the year unlike the SONA.
Though the appearances of the two branches at each other function have no legal ramifications instead their attendance is as a result of their privileged positions.
In spite of the brewing debate and heightening confusion, the latest unprecedented event by the Youh bench, sparks more questions about the integrity and sincerity of Liberia’s democratic institutions.
However, the legitimacy of Koon’s ascension to the speakership has since been called into question, with critics arguing that the process was marred by irregularities and lacked the necessary constitutional backing.
Again, the minority members of the House of Representatives under the banner “The Rule of Law Caucus” publicly announced their decision not to attend the SONA under a Koon gavel.
The group of lawmakers to who the state of the nation was to be addressed refused to receive it in the name of supporting Speaker Fonati Koffa or the ‘so-call’ rule of law.
They group further accused the Executive Branch of encroaching on legislative independence as a the main reason behind their decision which in this case could be termed as a ‘boycott’.
In a release issued a week before the President’s SONA, the group, chaired by Nimba County District 7 Representative Musa Hassan Bility, expressed outrage over the Executive’s recognition of Richard N. Koon as Speaker of the House of Representatives.
According to the caucus, this recognition comes despite the presence of a legitimate Speaker whose authority remains intact, and argued, “This is a blatant violation of democratic principles and legislative autonomy.”
The caucus further narrated, “So, attending the SONA under such circumstances would amount to tacit approval of this illegitimacy, a position we categorically reject.”
The Rule of Law Caucus further argued that the Executive’s actions undermine the dignity of the Legislature and disregard the judicial process, as the matter remains under review by the courts.
“As lawmakers, our constitutional duty is to uphold the sanctity of the Legislature as such, participating in an event organized by an Executive that flagrantly disregards legislative independence would compromise our integrity and perpetuate this illegality,” the statement added.
Also, the opposition Congress for Democratic Change (CDC), headed by former President George Weah, issued a statement with a call for their lawmakers from both the House of Representatives and Senate to boycott the SONA.
The party, through its Acting Chairman Jangar Kowo, said, “We are mandating Senator Nathaniel McGill to rally all CDC lawmakers to boycott the upcoming SONA.”
“When the CDC surrendered power in 2024, we didn’t do that as our weakness; that was done with the unflinching commitment of President Weah’s tenant of democracy. So, we want to remind President Boakai that you can’t contain the Liberian People,” he added.
At the same time, several lawmakers at the SONA yesterday, January 27, 2025, openly criticized what they described as a humiliating seating arrangement for lawmakers despite being the host of the program.
It was observed that while cabinet ministers were seated on the stage where the President was expected to stand, Representatives and senators were placed in the general audience which had always been in the Rotunda or the joint chambers.
One of the lawmakers was heard fuming, “We are not here to be treated as ordinary participants. This arrangement shows blatant disrespect for the Legislature and undermines the significance of our roles.”
Shamelessly, other lawmakers who should have ensured that their guests were comfortable since the official place for the presentation of this address was destroyed, called the seating plan an affront to the balance of power between branches of government, blaming the Boakai-led administration of poor planning and coordination, adding, “This could have been avoided. It’s an insult to the people we represent.”
They maintained that with the fallout from the power struggle between Richard Koon and Fonati Koffa, the nation stands at a crossroads, leaving the first branch of government still with two speaker.
