Monrovia – The Commercial Court for Montserrado County on Wednesday, September 23, ordered the closure and sealing of the National Oil Company of Liberia (NOCAL) and the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning over a decade-old severance dispute that has reportedly grown to US$764,762.
By Willie N. Tokpah
The court’s action also placed NOCAL Vice President for Finance and Investment and Chief Financial Officer Emmanuel Azango at the center of the escalating legal and financial dispute, holding him in contempt and keeping him on the court’s bench for more than two hours, according to information provided to FrontPage Africa.
Chief Judge Eva Mappy Morgan ordered the Commercial Court sheriff to close the two institutions, seal their entrances and remove occupants. The order marks a significant escalation in efforts to enforce the judgment against NOCAL and the Government of Liberia.
The case stems from an Action of Debt filed by former NOCAL officials Vida A. Mensah and Cllr. Idella Cooper-Shannon against the corporation and its corporate officers.
Public reporting indicates that the dispute originated from severance claims of approximately US$85,000 each following NOCAL’s controversial 2015 restructuring. After years of litigation, interest and penalties reportedly increased the combined court award to US$764,762.
The latest enforcement action has brought NOCAL’s financial leadership and the Ministry of Finance directly into the dispute, raising questions about responsibility for settling the judgment and the handling of inherited liabilities within government institutions.
Azango Points to Finance Ministry
When contacted by FrontPage Africa about why the judgment remained unpaid and what responsibility he bore as NOCAL’s Vice President for Finance and Investment, Azango said the matter was before the Government of Liberia and that the Ministry of Finance was expected to handle payment.
He also emphasized that the debt was an old obligation, directing FrontPage Africa to the relevant court documents.
Azango further disclosed that he had been kept on the court’s bench for hours and that the court demanded payment of 25 percent of the obligation.
However, the September 23 closure order does not specify the monetary value of the 25-percent payment Azango referenced, nor does it establish whether any portion of the amount has been paid.
His explanation raises questions about the respective financial obligations of NOCAL and the Ministry of Finance, as well as what formal steps were taken to secure payment of the judgment before the matter escalated to contempt proceedings and a closure order.
Although Azango was not part of NOCAL’s management when the original severance dispute arose, his current position places him among the officials expected to explain how the corporation has addressed the outstanding judgment.
Court Orders Closure of NOCAL, Finance Ministry
The September 23 order, signed by Commercial Court Clerk Randolph B. Sneh and bearing the court’s official seal, directs Acting Sheriff Emmanuel Morris, or his deputy, to have NOCAL and the Ministry of Finance “closed with immediate effect.”
The sheriff is instructed to seal the institutions’ entrances, remove occupants and submit an official return to the court detailing how the order was served and executed.
The order signals that the matter has moved beyond the underlying dispute over severance payments to judicial enforcement against two major public institutions.
The available order, however, does not establish whether the sealing was fully executed or how long the closure would remain in effect.
From US$170,000 to US$764,762
The financial scale of the dispute has expanded considerably since the original claims emerged.
According to published reporting in May 2026, the Commercial Court awarded former NOCAL executives Mensah and Cooper-Shannon a combined US$764,762 after nearly a decade of litigation.
The claims reportedly began at approximately US$85,000 each, bringing the original combined principal to about US$170,000.
Years of litigation, interest and penalties reportedly pushed the award to more than four times the original combined claims.
The dispute traces back to 2015, when NOCAL was experiencing severe financial distress and undergoing restructuring.
A contemporaneous media summary published by Liberia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in August 2015 reported that Mensah, then NOCAL’s Vice President of Administration, had resigned as the company moved toward an interim management arrangement amid its financial crisis.
According to the May 2026 reporting, Mensah and Cooper-Shannon were among former executives who rejected reduced severance arrangements offered during the restructuring and subsequently pursued legal action.
The resulting judgment has now become a substantial liability, with enforcement efforts threatening the operations of the institutions involved.
Who Is Responsible for Payment?
Azango’s assertion that the Ministry of Finance should take responsibility for settling the debt raises a central question: If the obligation arose from NOCAL’s severance arrangements, what formal agreement or government directive assigns responsibility for payment to the Ministry of Finance?
Conversely, if the Government of Liberia has assumed responsibility for satisfying the judgment, what steps were taken to incorporate the liability into government financial planning and ensure timely payment?
The court’s order names both NOCAL and the Ministry of Finance, placing both institutions under enforcement pressure.
The available documents and Azango’s comments do not fully clarify the arrangement between the two entities or explain why the judgment remains unsettled.
NOCAL’s Troubled Financial History
The severance dispute emerged during one of the most difficult periods in NOCAL’s history.
By 2015, the state-owned oil company was grappling with financial difficulties and undergoing a restructuring process that involved changes to its leadership and workforce.
NOCAL’s historical financial affairs have also been scrutinized by the General Auditing Commission and in connection with executive bonuses and payments associated with the 2013 Block 13 transaction.
A 2018 FrontPage Africa report on the Special Presidential Committee investigating the Global Witness allegations identified Cooper-Shannon among former NOCAL board members connected to proposed restitution of payments. The report said the committee recommended restitution from officials in connection with bonuses and honoraria.
Those matters are separate from the present Action of Debt and should not be conflated with the severance judgment now being enforced by the Commercial Court.
The 25-Percent Payment Question
Azango’s statement that the court demanded 25 percent of the outstanding obligation introduces another unresolved issue.
The September 23 closure order supplied to FrontPage Africa does not specify the amount represented by the 25 percent or establish whether the payment was made.
It also remains unclear whether the percentage was calculated against the reported US$764,762 award, another outstanding balance, or a separate amount stipulated during the court proceedings.
Clarification from the court and the parties could help establish the exact payment demanded, the applicable deadline and the consequences of noncompliance.
A Decade-Old Liability, New Accountability Questions
The Commercial Court’s action has brought renewed attention to how Liberia’s public institutions manage inherited financial liabilities and comply with judicial judgments.
The present controversy is not simply about Azango, who was not part of NOCAL’s leadership when the original severance dispute arose. It also concerns how the corporation and the Government of Liberia handled a liability that persisted through years of litigation and changes in management.
As NOCAL’s current financial chief, Azango is now among the officials being called upon to explain the corporation’s response to the judgment and its efforts to secure payment.
The case also raises broader questions about whether court-awarded liabilities against public corporations are promptly incorporated into government financial planning and whether disagreements over payment responsibilities can delay compliance until enforcement measures threaten public operations.
For now, the Commercial Court has ordered NOCAL and the Ministry of Finance sealed, while Azango faces contempt proceedings over the unpaid obligation.
Whether the institutions will settle the judgment, reach an arrangement with the former executives or face further enforcement measures remains unresolved.
The immediate stakes extend beyond the US$764,762 award: the dispute now threatens the operations of two government institutions and places Liberia’s handling of long-standing public-sector liabilities under renewed scrutiny.
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