MONROVIA – The Sarpo tribe, comprising 1.3 percent of Liberia’s 5.2 million population according to the recent National Population and Housing Census (NPHC), has filed a lawsuit against the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) in the civil law court, seeking a “Declaration Judgment.”
This legal action comes as a response to the alleged failure of the Central Bank to include cultural masks representing the Sarpo tribe on the LD$1000.00 banknote.
The Sarpo tribal group, the second-largest after the Kru tribe, spans over six sections in Sinoe County. Regrettably, the Central Bank omitted the cultural masks that symbolize the tribe on the LD$1000.00 banknote, contrary to the recognition granted to other Liberian tribes.
Members of the Sarpo tribe argue that the Central Bank has not acknowledged their cultural significance in the same manner as the other 16 recognized tribes whose cultural masks adorn the Liberian Dollar banknotes.
In response to the lawsuit, Civil Law Court’s Resident Judge, Kennedy Peabody, has summoned the Governor of the Central Bank of Liberia, Aloysius Tarlue, to appear before the court by Saturday, September 2nd, of this year.
The court’s writ mandates the sheriff for Montserrado County to summon the defendant(s) to appear before the Sixth Judicial Circuit, Civil Law Court for Montserrado County, during its June term in 2023. Failure to respond could result in a default judgment against the Central Bank.
Additionally, the defendant(s) are required to file a formal appearance and/or answer to the complaint in the court office by September 2nd, 2023.
The writ was officially received and signed by Doris M. Dweh, Executive Secretary to the Governor, on Wednesday, August 23.
The lawsuit, consisting of 12 counts, was filed by the petitioners through their legal representation, Gongloe and Associates Incorporated in Monrovia.
In their petition, the Sarpo tribe highlights that the Central Bank was aware of the tribe’s existence as one of the seventeen tribes in Liberia before printing the new LD$1000.00 banknote. They note that the Ministry of Education had updated its history and civic curriculum to include the Sarpo tribe among the recognized tribes.
Historically, the petitioners refer to maps dating back to 1937, 1849, and 1862, which identified the Sarpo as a tribe in Liberia. Additionally, Professor Willie Shultz’s book, “The New Geography of Liberia,” published in 1973 and approved for teaching in Liberian schools, mentions the Sarpo tribe as one of the groups that crossed the Sassandra River in Ivory Coast to settle in present-day Liberia.
The petitioners request that the court rule and declare that they, as citizens and a tribal group of Liberia, have the right to be recognized, just like the other sixteen tribes whose cultural masks are featured on the LD$1000.00 banknote.
The Sarpo tribe, found in over six sections in Sinoe County, accounts for 1.3 percent of Liberia’s current population, as indicated by the recent National Population and Housing Census (NPHC).
The tribal petition has gained support from signatories including Kpanyoun Philip Wakocco, Chairperson; Siah C. Chen, General Secretary; Joe S. Nyenpan, Chairman of Wedjah; Polaty Polson, Chairman of Juarzon; Philip S. Doe, Chairman of Seekon; Milton Jargbah, Chairman of Putu; Robert Kumorteh, Chairman of Numopoh; and Quiah S. Wylie, Chairman of Carbadae, all representing the Monrovia-based community.
Furthermore, Sarpo youth based in Monrovia and its environs, including Robert C. Toteh of Seekon; Linda Quiah of Numopoh; Emmanuel Tugbah of Juarzon; Prince Teiah of Wedjah; Emmerson Saydee of Carbadae; and Darius Lewis, have also expressed their support for the petition.
Notably, the Sarpo Appoliebo Development Organization (SADO) of Liberia, along with Diaspora National Chairman, George Garteh, and Tribal Governor, Theresa Wylie, have endorsed the petition.