Monrovia – House Speaker J. Fonati Koffa has informed Chief Justice Sie-A-Nyene G. Yuoh that limited funding is a key factor affecting budget cuts within the three branches of government.
By Jaheim T. Tumu, [email protected]
In a communication, Speaker Koffa assured Chief Justice Yuoh of the legislature’s commitment to supporting the judiciary despite financial constraints. He emphasized the need for collaboration among the branches to navigate the fiscal challenges currently facing the country.
Speaker Koffa stated, “We were inundated with over one hundred million dollars of critical funding requests that the fiscal space would not allow. As I indicated in a previous conversation, I anticipate that we will conduct a recast of the FY2024 Budget, at which time we hope to close the funding gap for the Judiciary Branch’s needs.”
Speaker Koffa’s communication follows Chief Justice Yuoh’s expression of disappointment and disapproval over the treatment of the Judiciary branch by the Executive and Legislative branches regarding the 2024 budget appropriation. Chief Justice Yuoh warned that the Judiciary would be left with no alternative but to use its constitutional power to strike down any law that contradicts the Constitution or existing statutes, including the budget law.
On Friday, July 19, during the March Term Sitting, Chief Justice Yuoh noted that the Judiciary is constrained to take action to compel the two branches of government to comply with Article 2 of the Constitution of Liberia (1986) in addressing issues related to its budgetary allotment.
“We hope that this situation be addressed immediately by the President of Liberia, as head of government, and the leadership of the Legislature to avoid a constitutional crisis, as this branch will not accept such treatment of indifference and imposition from co-equals of government,” Chief Justice Yuoh warned.
She added, “We are cognizant of our power of judicial review and the constitutional power to strike down any law which runs contrary to the constitution or other existing statutes, such as the budget law.”
Upon the passage of the 2024 fiscal budget, the full bench of the Supreme Court brought the issue to President Boakai’s attention. A meeting among the three branches of government was convened on Sunday, June 23, 2024, to address the budgetary concerns of the Judiciary, but the Supreme Court’s demands have not yet been addressed.
Speaker Koffa acknowledged receipt of the statement on the state of the Judiciary from the Honorable Supreme Court of Liberia Sitting In Its March Term 2024, where the Chief Justice expressed “disappointment and disapproval” over the treatment by the Executive and Legislative branches regarding the budget appropriation.
According to Speaker Koffa, Article 34(d) of the Constitution of Liberia grants the power to make appropriations to the House of Representatives, to which the Senate may propose or concur. He noted that during the budget process under review, the appropriation schedule was constricted due to the inauguration of a new administration. The 55th Legislature granted courtesy to the Executive at that time and were promised, upon review, that the concerns of the Judiciary would be addressed within the available fiscal space.
“We pledged to remain attentive to this matter in subsequent budget years to fully align our appropriation with empowering the Judiciary Branch at full capacity,” he said.
Speaker Koffa added, “For the record, neither the Executive Branch nor the Legislative Branch received all their requested appropriations. In fact, the Budget for the 55th Legislature was reduced by nearly 10 million.”
The Speaker further acknowledged that the salaries of Justices and Judges, which were harmonized, must be restored. He assured the Supreme Court that at no point has the Legislative Branch ever countenanced disrespect to the Judiciary Branch.
He concluded, “Our development priorities, of which yours is a part, are hindered by a narrowly defined fiscal space, and we exercised our best judgment in making budgetary allocations, which we recognize are nearly not enough. We will invite your Honors to a more comprehensive conference at the time of the recast budget for FY2024.”
