Liberian football referees are being observed on different platforms expressing disenchantment in the Liberia Football Association’s decision to expel Class-A referee, Josephus Torjilar, from his career, with fingers pointed to the Referees Manager, Ebenezer Stanley Konah, for masterminding the decision.
Torjilar was banned by the Liberia Football Association on April 30, 2024, from all LFA-sponsored events.
According to the LFA release, Torjilar’s dismissal is in line with the findings of the Referee Committee’s report from the 2023–2024 National County Sports Meet match between Nimba and Grand Gedeh.
Since the controversial decision was taken by the football governing body, match officials and some former members of the referee association have expressed disappointing opinions on the matter, calling for reconsideration of the expulsion of their colleague.
One of the key campaigners calling for the lifting of Torjilar’s expulsion is retired Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) Badge referee and Vice president of the Liberia Football Referees Association, George S. Rogers.
Recently appearing on different local sports programs, Rogers described the football house’s decision as unjust to the professional career of Torjilar and a threat to those participating match officiation in the country.
According to him, the decision to come down hard on the official was hasty, without due process and lack of sufficient evidence.
He then frowned at the Referees’ manager, Konah, for his reported failure to address issues concerning match officials as a director, especially coming down to the decision of expelling a member.
Rogers called for the immediate resignation of the manager, on grounds that he lacks the ability and integrity to direct match officials.
He noted that there have been series of other violations of some match officials, that required investigation, but the referees’ reports have not called for determination, stating that Stanley Konah will not conduct other investigations to come up with full findings, because he is the instructor for those committing the wrongs under the association.
He added that the referees’ manager is the one that assigns referees to a particular game, with a mandate to favor particular teams, and failure on the part of the assigned referee to follow Stanley Konah’s instruction would mean there may be no more assignments for you.
A Liberian referee currently based in Canada, Hassan Kanneh, also phoned into a sports forum asserting that the decision was very poor to have it linked to a referee report, which did not show reasons to directly expel him.
Kanneh explained that the grounds on which the Liberia Football Association and the Ministry of Youth and Sports got through with a purported report to expel Torjilar still have no legitimacy in the profession of match officiating.
He added his voice to others, cautioning the Liberia football Association and the referees’ committee to rescind its decision and clear the stain placed on Torjilar’s career.
The referees’ manager, after being accused of assigning referees with a particular instruction, did not deny or confirm the allegation, but said he will respond at an appropriate time.
