IN TIMES OF CONSTITUTIONAL crisis, the measure of a leader is not found in how well they speak, but in how firmly they stand for the rule of law.
ON THURSDAY, APRIL 24, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai had a chance to rise to that moment. He did not.
THE SUPREME COURT of Liberia, in its ruling on April 23, made a clear and unambiguous judgment: Richard Koon’s assumption of the speakership and his subsequent legislative actions were unlawful, ultra vires, beyond the bounds of the Constitution.
IN MOST FUNCTIONING democracies, such a verdict from the highest court would end debate.
IT WOULD SERVE as the final word. But not in Liberia today.
INSTEAD, PRESIDENT BOAKAI, in a national address that should have charted a path toward legal clarity and democratic stability, chose to ignore the Court’s ruling.
HE STATED HIS administration would continue to work with “the quorum that will ensure the full functioning of our government.”
IN THE LIBERIAN political context, this is widely understood to mean continued engagement with Koon’s faction, the same group the Court has deemed illegitimate.
THIS IS NOT a mere oversight. It is a deliberate departure from constitutional responsibility.
AND IT SHOULD alarm not only Liberians, but the international community, which has invested decades of support, billions of dollars, and enormous goodwill into helping Liberia build a peaceful, lawful, and democratic society after years of conflict.
WHAT Does It say to the people of Liberia when the president can brush aside a ruling from the highest court in the land?
WHAT DOES IT say to civil servants, students, market women, and young people who are told every day to respect the law while their leaders do not?
AND WHAT DOES it signal to the international community whose continued partnership is predicated on Liberia’s adherence to democratic norms?
THE PRESIDENT’S SPEECH was filled with familiar words, calls for unity, condemnations of violence, and reassurances of government stability.
BUT UNITY BUILT on defiance of the law is false unity.
STABILITY THAT IGNORES judicial authority is fragile.
AND GOVERNANCE THAT chooses faction over Constitution is not governance, it is rule by political maneuver.
THIS MOMENT DEMAND more. Liberia cannot afford to return to a culture where laws are optional and institutions bend to personal power.
THE TOURCHING OF the Capitol Building was a symbol of chaos, but what makes this moment more dangerous is not fire; it’s silence.
A SILENCE FROM the very top of government in response to the Court’s clear mandate. A silence that allows illegal actors to operate with legitimacy.
A SILENCE THAT could ignite something far worse than political discord: a crisis of confidence in democracy itself.
LET US BE clear. This editorial is not a partisan statement. It is a national alarm.
IF A PRESIDENT can selectively apply the rulings of the Supreme Court, then no institution is safe.
IF THIS MOMENT is allowed to pass without correction, the precedent will echo far beyond this administration.
PRESIDENT BOAKAI Is a seasoned statesman, a man who has witnessed Liberia’s darkest hours and helped guide its democratic rebirth.
THAT LEGACY NOW stands on the edge of a precipice.
HE CAN CHOOSE to affirm the supremacy of the law, restore integrity to the House of Representatives, and lead with the kind of constitutional discipline that the Liberian people and our international partners expect. OR HE CAN continue down a path that weakens the very foundations he once helped build.
THE WORLD IS watching.
LIBERIA’S HARD-EARNED PEACE is not guaranteed.
IT IS SAFEGUARDED daily by respect for laws, institutions, and accountability.
AT THIS CRITICAL juncture, we urge President Boakai: Do not bury the rule of law in the name of political convenience.
UPHOLD IT FOR the sake of Liberia’s future and for the credibility of its democracy in the eyes of the world.
