MONROVIA – The University of Liberia (UL) Board of Trustees on Friday, September 12, 2025, reaffirmed its 2024 decision to suspend all student political activities on campus, citing recent violent incidents at both Capitol Hill and Fendall campuses. The decision has drawn sharp criticism from pro-democracy advocates and former student leaders who view the move as an infringement on students’ rights.
In a statement posted on his official Facebook page on Saturday, September 13, 2025, Eddie D. Jarwolo, Executive Director of NAYMOTE-Liberia, condemned the decision as “undemocratic” and urged university authorities to seek dialogue instead of repression. “Fix the problem, not threaten the students,” Jarwolo wrote. He argued that students have raised legitimate issues, including demands for reversing the vacation school policy, addressing add-and-drop registration problems, improving campus facilities, investigating illegal dismissals, ensuring transparency, empowering campus police, reviewing employment practices, and reconstituting the Board of Trustees. According to him, silencing students instead of addressing these grievances undermines their constitutional rights.
“As a former student leader, I support SUP. The Board of Trustees should be held accountable for failing to address the concerns of students and improve conditions on campus,” Jarwolo added.
Echoing these sentiments, exiled Liberian activist and former Student Unification Party (SUP) leader Martin Kollie also lashed out at the Board. Writing from abroad, Kollie said, “Dear Mr. Board Chairman Senator Numene Bartekwa, you have no authority to ban student politics. Y’all have failed to improve and financially support the U.L. The students have every right to speak out and protest. Can your children sit in that dirt to learn?”
The UL Board, chaired by Senator Bartekwa, justified its decision by citing repeated disruptions to academic activities and violent confrontations between students and security forces on September 1 and September 11, 2025. The Board instructed the administration to immediately suspend students involved in the clashes pending investigation and directed the creation of a Standing Disciplinary Committee to enforce regulations in line with the Student Handbook.
The Board also issued directives for the immediate start of classes and renovation of critical facilities, beginning with bathrooms, which it described as essential for ensuring a safe learning environment. In its statement, the Board emphasized that it “will not tolerate any form of violence or disruption that jeopardizes the academic and administrative activities of the University.”
Meanwhile, the Student Unification Party strongly rejected the Board’s action, accusing the government under President Joseph Boakai of deploying police to brutalize peaceful demonstrators. In its response on Facebook, SUP described the Board as “illegitimate” and said the suspension of student political activities was meant to intimidate students into silence. The group vowed not to bow to pressure.
Like this:
Like Loading…
