THURSDAY’S EXPOSURE of Dr. Peter Matthew George — a man who rose to the presidency of the Liberia Medical and Dental Association on the back of fake academic credentials — is not merely an individual scandal.
IT IS A national embarrassment.
AND MORE troublingly, it reveals systemic failures that threaten public trust, especially when such deception touches the corridors of political power.
THAT DR. GEORGE was able to climb so far within Liberia’s medical hierarchy without detection is disturbing enough. But the fact that he served as Chief Medical Officer at the Esther and Jereline Koung Medical Center, a private hospital founded by Vice President Jeremiah Kpan Koung, adds a dimension of political proximity that cannot be ignored.
THE HOSPITAL, known for its partnerships with international medical teams and celebrated for its contributions to healthcare in Nimba County, now finds itself under an uncomfortable spotlight.
WHILE THERE IS no public evidence that Vice President Koung was aware of the deception, the hospital’s association with the country’s second-highest office makes its lapses more consequential.
HOW DID SOMEONE with entirely fabricated qualifications — backed by a forged degree from a university that has not even begun offering medical courses—slip through the cracks?
HOW THOROUGH was the hiring process at a hospital that regularly hosts surgical missions and serves a major population?
LIBERIANS deserve answers.
THE MERE PRESENCE of a fake doctor in a high-level medical role raises serious risks to patient safety, and even the perception of political protection or institutional negligence can inflict lasting damage on public confidence in healthcare.
THIS CASE ALSO casts doubt on the country’s regulatory bodies. If it took international collaboration to uncover this fraud, how many others might still be practicing without scrutiny? The Liberia Medical and Dental Council must continue its credential audits with urgency — and transparency.
MOREOVER, THE political class must not treat this as an isolated misstep. Public institutions and private ventures tied to national leaders carry added responsibility.
IF HOSPITALS connected to power cannot enforce basic verification of staff, what example does that set for rural clinics, public hospitals, and international partners?
LIBERIA’S HEALTH system is already strained. It cannot afford to gamble its credibility on negligence, nor allow political proximity to cloud the expectation of competence and accountability.
LET THIS SCANDAL be a wake-up call. The people of Liberia do not just deserve hospitals — they deserve safe hospitals, run by licensed professionals, and free of political shadow. The health of a nation, quite literally, depends on it.
