Last Thursday’s session, the Liberian Senate became shambolic over the establishment of War and Economic Crimes Court in Liberia.
Prince Y. Johnson, the longest serving Senator of Nimba County who is also a former rebel leader of the Independent National Patriotic Front of Liberia (INPFL) got furious over the discussion of such court intended to prosecute and those who participated in the civil wars in the country.
He was accused of murdering former President Samuel Kanyon Doe during the 1990 civil conflict that led to the deaths of 250,000 people in Liberia but Sen. Johnson said he was provoked when his colleague Sen. Abraham Dillon raised the issue about War Crime Court when it is not on the agenda for discussion.
According to Sen. Johnson, Sen. Dillon often does it to mock at him noting, “Deal with the issue on the agenda but this guy who has his own record of being a gay every time he sees me, he will talk about war crimes court.”
“When they were killing the people of Nimba what you wanted us to do? So, I say, if he wants destruction, it will happen. We fought in defense of our people. If they want to bring War Crime Court, bring the damn War Crime Court. They always think war crime court is about Prince Y. Johnson,” the Nimba County senator expressed.
“There are legal processes to bring War and Economic Crime Court and I know there is no war crime court coming here because there are processes leading to the establishment of such court,” Sen. Johnson told legislative reporters after he walked out of the session on Thursday.
The spar between the two senators ignited when Sen. Dillon stressed the need for the establishment of a War and Economic Crimes Court so as to bring to book those who perhaps mismanaged public funds as well.
Dillon made specific referenced to the issue of LD25m tax payers money that is reportedly being siphoned mentioning that, had there been an Economic Crimes Court in place, those accused of pillaging said funds would have been made to account as well as others who caused mayhem and all sorts of human rights abuses doing the 14 years of civil upheaval in the country.
“The War and Economic Crimes Courts establishment would be a remedy to put in measures for people who mismanage public funds. If we sincerely want to bring to check public funds, we need to establish this War and Economic Crimes Courts,” Sen. Dillon recommended to his colleagues.
Apparently, Sen. Dillon’s recommendation got the Nimba County Senator infuriated to the extent that he disrupted session with some underserved comments against his colleague, Senator Dillon.
Sen. Johnson further said he should not be overlooked because he is preacher, adding, “I am a preacher-man but the Bible says, Jesus turned tables upside down and I will turn tables upside down if Dillon mentions war crimes court whenever he sees me again.”
It can be recalled that one of the ex-rebel generals, now Grand Gedeh County Representative, George Boley, also denied killing ‘fly’ during the civil war even though he was the head of the one of the deadliest rebel force in Liberia.
Gen. Boley who is the founder of the Liberia Peace Council (LPC) that was also described as the deadliest group based in Sinoe County described the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), an instrument established to probe warlords and facilitators as a bogus tribunal that was reportedly manipulated to shield certain individuals who immensely contributed to the war in Liberia.