Monrovia – Five persons have accused the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) of beating and jailing them on the orders of Mayor Jefferson Koijee, who is also the leader of the party’s youth wing.
The alleged victims claim they were detained in a dark room in the building housing the headquarters of the ruling party in Congo Town.
The incident happened a couple of weeks after the Deputy Police Chief for Operations, Marve Sackor was manhandled by some members of the CDC.
The victims told FrontPage Africa that they were arrested, beaten and jailed by a unit within the party dubbed “Zebra Unit,” which they alleged takes orders from Monrovia City Mayor Koijee.
Solomon Boe, Sam Harris, Olive, and Emmanuel Kpagbor, in separate accounts, told this paper that they were all arrested on Monday, September 8, 2019 at about 1 AM and taken to the party headquarters and incarcerated for two days without food or water.
The four victims are employees of an entertainment center located a few blocks away from the compound of the CDC.
Solomon Boe, who sustained wounds on his finger and head after allegedly being flogged, said his belongings including his phone were all taken away.
He explained that he and his workmates were leaving work when they were confronted by people they claimed were partisans of the CDC.
Solomon explained: “We walked near the road not far from our working place waiting for our other friend that we all planned to go and enjoy ourselves somewhere when we saw Olive running and two guys behind her attempting to take her bag when they noticed our group, they left from behind her. After few minutes we saw another two guys holding cutlass and stick with nails all on it, though the guys that ran behind Olive ran back in the same direction the other two guys came from, I cannot tell whether or not were the same two that were after Olive.”
He furthered explained that,” When the two guys with the weapon in their hands approached where we were standing, they engaged us and asked us what were we doing around the road at that hour of the night, we too asked them what were they doing out with cutlass and sticks with nails all around it at the same hour of the night and one of them said they were told by their boss Jefferson Koijee to man trees being planted along the streets by the Monrovia City Corporation (MCC).
“While in the bitter argument, one of them left the scene and ran into the party headquarters and before we could make up of our mind we saw a white pick full of huge men calling themselves Zebra Unit and they collected us and took us to the party headquarters, that’s how our beating started.”
Solomon said Mayor Koijee was present at the party headquarters when they were arrested.
He noted that it was on the mayor instruction that promoted their incarceration.
“What got me angrier was when the Mayor told them that they should lock us up and not release us until he says so; the guys took us at the back of the building where there are two old bathrooms with pupu (toilet) all inside, there where they put us,” he explained.
“When they took us there and we saw the mayor I was happy a bit, thinking he was going to tell his boys to release us but he instead told them to hold us.”
Meanwhile, Mayor Koijee told FrontPage Africa that he has no idea of what transpired at the party headquarters.
The victims, some of whom, are said to be CDCians insist that they saw Mayor Koijee at the party headquarters the night of the incident.
Another victim, Sam Harris, said his clothes were taken off him and he was thrown in the cell.
“Myself I am a CDCians we all used to be in that compound day and night but they all acted like they never knew me from anywhere, even the pekin who was manning the cell door is someone I know and he knows me well,” Harris said, while denouncing his membership from the CDC.
“Let be clear, with the heartless action these guys took against us on the instruction of Jeffereson Koijee, I am no longer a CDCian, let CDC stay on their lane and I will stay on my lane, even my mother or father or any of my relatives join CDC will not be supported by me.”
For victim Olive, she claims her phone was stolen while she was allegedly beaten by another female identified as “CDC female Giant.”
Victim Emmanuel Kpagbor also alleged that his US$20 and LD$1,500 were allegedly taken from him and his clothes were taken off him as well.
There have been a series of allegations of brutality leveled against the ruling party.
In October 2014, the former Deputy National Secretary of the CDC Gbeh Salinto Montgomery accused Koijee and CDC current Chairman Mulbah Morlu of stripping him naked and flogging him.
Montgomery, at the time, alleged that Korjee and Morlu harmed him because of his support for the party’s former chairman, Mr. George Solo.