Monrovia – Members of the House of Representatives backing the establishment of war and economic crimes court will gather at the site of the Du Port Road Massacre in Paynesville on Thursday, October 3 to officially adopt the resolution.
The resolution, which has been signed by 51 out of 73 representatives, has now set the stage for the passage of a draft bill. The Bill will then be sent to the Liberian Senate for concurrence and then sign by the President, printed into handbill to become a law.
Speaking to FrontPage Africa Wednesday evening ahead of the event slated for Thursday morning at one of the most infamous massacre sites in the country, Representative Thomas Goshua of Grand Bassa County said lawmakers will hold a brief ceremony to mark the launch of the resolution and then proceed to the Capitol were the document will be officially adopted.
The resolution, according to legislative procedural, is an easy passage of a draft Bill from the House since it avoids the protracted process of legislative politics. In other words, the resolution is a shortcut to the passage of a bill.
“We will be writing the cover letter so that it can be place on the agenda of plenary, as soon as the resolution is made we will then be doing the bill for the establishment of the war and economic crimes court,” Goshua said.
The lawmakers are expected to take a vacation and are expected to return by January, at which time the draft Bill will be submitted for passage.
“The Bill will have an easy passage; it will be the law to establish the special court,” said the Grand Bassa County lawmaker, who has championed the advocacy for the establishment of the courts since he was elected in 2017.
He squashed misconception that there might be several unknown political factors that would undermine their efforts.
“We are resolved and nothing is going to happen to undo what we have achieved,” he said, disclosing that there are also lawmakers of the Congress for Democratic Change that have signed the resolution.
Goshua also added that more than eight Senators are now supporting the Bill and once it gets to the Senate it will be endorsed and passed.
“We will rally the support of the senators; we already have eight senators who will really support the Bill, and once we return in January the Bill will go through,” he said.
Meanwhile, Hon. Goshua said lawmakers backing the establishment of the special courts have already started seeking support from the international community. Although he didn’t disclose the level of progress they’ve made so far.
“It won’t be much of a challenge because we’ve been speaking to our partners… we will go out to look for a support,” he assured.
He disclosed that the Committee on Claims and Petition of the House will be traveling to Rwanda to have a sense of Rwanda civil crisis’.