Nearly one week after the Supreme Court of Liberia ruled in favor of the tenure officials, to whose positions President Joseph Boakai earlier nominated some stalwarts of his party, the affected tenure officials at the Liberia Telecommunications Authority on April 29, 2024, filed a Bill of Information against the action of suspending them.
The LTA suspended officials are Edwina Crump Zackpah, Chairperson; Israel Akinsanya, James Gbarwea, Zatowon Titus, and Osborne Diggs, all commissioners.
The President on April 25, 2024, welcomed the Supreme Court’s ruling, but went ahead suspending those tenure officials whom the court ruled in favor of, apparently as an attempt to act procedurally.
Count six of the suspended LTA officials’ Bill of Information states, “Notwithstanding the decision and mandate of the Supreme Court of April 24 and 29,2024, respectively, revoking the nomination of Abdullah Kamara, Patrick Honnah, Clarence Kortu Massaquoi, Ben Fofana and Angela Bush Cassel co-respondents, the Executive Branch of the government through President Joseph Nyumah Boakai, and in glaring disregard for the rule of law and outright disrespect to the Supreme Court of Liberia, communicated a letter of suspension from office to the informant / commissioners of the LTA, suspending them with immediate effect, pending the outcome of the investigation.”
Count seven of the informants’ petition added that the suspension is a form of punishment and same is an act subsequent and not an act precedent; this means that under the law extant, suspension can legally be served after the suspended person has been accorded his rights to due process; that is said suspended person has been heard prior to the suspension.
They argued that the act of suspending the informants while the mandate of the Supreme Court is yet to be served and said suspension is without the pale of law; as such, removal of informants from office is in violation of the law and an affront to the Supreme Court.
Count eight of informants’ Bill of Information said that “Assuming and not admitting that unlawful suspension is not an abstraction in the execution of the court mandate or a refusal to carry out the court mandate or orders and a gross disregard and disrespect to the Supreme Court, it is the law extant in this jurisdiction that a letter of indefinite suspension which places impossible conditions for lifting of the suspension, is a constructive letter of dismissal and not a letter of suspension.”
Further, the informants said, in the instant case, the appointment of the same respondents as in the petition for prohibition as acting commissioners of the LTA is an impossible condition for the lifting of the suspension.
Informants further said to counts six through eight hereof, the Act creating the Liberia Telecommunications law of 2007 has no provision covering suspension of its tenure officials, rather it speaks particularly of removal from office.
Therefore, it is the expressed intent of the framers of the Act that in order to preserve their independence, commissioners of the LTA should serve until and unless proven violations as spoken of in section 10; that commissioners of LTA can be removed for cause; that the act of the President to suspend the informants without due process amounts to an abuse of administrative power and constitutes an act intended to undermine the Supreme Court, and the bill of information as requested of the court hold the respondents in contempt.
Informants submit further to count nine hereof, that the LTA’s Bye-Law of the Board of commissioners adopted on September 16, 2016, mentioned in Article 7-violations and sanctions, that all act(s) or omission(s) by a commissioner that violates any provision of these by laws, LTA code of conduct and or LTA conflict of interest policy and or the Act shall result in sanctions determined by the BOC through a resolution adopted and passed at a duly called Board meeting; all alleged violations of these by laws, LTA code of conduct and or LTA conflict of interests policy and any acts of corruption and dishonesty shall be first investigated by the BOC; and when warranted, shall be forwarded to the appropriate authorities to be accorded due process of law; and sanctions shall be based on the gravity of the violations and penalties shall be assessed by a resolution adopted by the BOC, consistent with applicable laws .
Informants further said that the suspension is in violation of the aforesaid Supreme Court’s decision which outlined the issue of tenure and specifically declares that the informants are covered by the protections it provides.
“The court specifically said, the President cannot arbitrarily remove informants without due process or negotiations respecting contractual rights. The current suspension (indefinite) coming right after the Supreme Court’s decision is a pretext for illegal removal and an affront to the Supreme Court of Liberia. Hence, this bill of information, is requesting your Honors and the Honorable Supreme Court to hold the Executive Branch of the government thru President Boakai in contempt.”
The informants then prayed the court to grant their petition, thereby ordering the enforcement of the mandate or judgment; that your Honors will declare the suspension unlawful, thereby revoking the suspension and the appointment of the acting Board of Commissioners of the LTA; remind the Executive Branch of government that their action is contemptuous and should thereby desist from repeating same; and order a stay on further action pending deposition of the bill of information; and as well grant informant all other relief that seem just, legal and equitable in premises.
Meanwhile, the suspended Chairperson of the Governance Commission, Garrison Yealue, also filed a bill of information to the Supreme Court.
Count five of Yealue’s bill of information said, the suspension issued to him before the start of an investigation is a gross violation of the informant’s right to due process as enshrined in Article 20(a) of the 1986 Constitution.
It also violates the judgment of the Supreme Court, hence, the informant filed this bill of information to inform the Supreme Court.
Wherefore and given the preceding, the informants prayed the Supreme Court to grant the bill of information; order immediate halt on the suspension of the informant and have him reinstated; order the respondents to appear and show cause why they should not be held in contempt for violating the judgment of the court.
