MONROVIA – President George Weah has waived the US$1.3 million restitution that was to be paid by former Minister of National Defense Brownie Samukai and his principal deputy and comptroller at the time, Joseph P. Johnson, and Mr. Nyumah Dorkor, respectively. They were found guilty of economic sabotage and misappropriating funds intended for servicing pensions for retired members of the Armed Forces of Liberia in 2021.
The waiver comes as part of the presidential tradition each year where the President pardons individuals convicted of various crimes. The pardoned ex-officials are among some 101 convicts that were granted executive clemency by the President.
On January 27, 2022, Samukai, with associates, was convicted and ordered imprisoned for embezzlement. The Supreme Court of Liberia handed down two-year prison sentences to Samukai along with deputies Joseph Johnson and James Nyuman Ndokor after they failed to return U.S.$1.1 million worth of stolen money from a government pension account. The funds were stolen from the Armed Forces of Liberia pension account during the mandate of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf when Samukai headed the defense ministry. The three men were ordered by the court to pay US$537,828.15, comprising 50 percent of the total amount within six months but failed to do so.
However, in February 2022, Pres. Weah granted an executive clemency to Samukai, suspending his two-year jail sentence but requested him to work with the Ministry of Justice to enter a stipulation for the full settlement of the AFL’s money.
The Presidential Pardon is backed by the 1986 Liberian Constitution under Article 59, which states inter-alia that the President may remit any public forfeitures and penalties, suspend any fines and sentences, grant reprieves and pardons, and restore civil rights after conviction for all public offenses, except impeachment.
The President has mandated the Attorney General Cllr. Frank Musah Dean Jr., Minister of Justice, to ensure the unhindered implementation of the Presidential Pardon, in keeping with judicial procedures.
The rest of the pardoned individuals were convicted of committing minor offenses by the courts of Liberia and were serving various prison terms, individuals with life-threatening ailments, old age, and individuals who served a substantial amount of time for which they were sentenced and demonstrated good behavior while serving their respective sentences.
It can be recalled that in early November, ahead of the runoff election, Samukai, a key member of the strategic advisory team of president-elect Joseph Boakai, was spotted attending a church service at President Weah’s Forky Klohn Jlaleh Family Fellowship Church.
Photos and videos of the service, which went viral on social media and were widely shared on various online platforms, showed the former Defense Minister seated on the podium alongside President Weah, First Lady Clar Weah, and Foreign Minister Dee-Maxwell Kemayah at the President’s Forky Klon Jlaleh Fellowship Church.”