Monrovia – The opposition Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) has called on its members and allied opposition parties to assemble in mass at the Monrovia City Court on Monday in solidarity with former Speaker J. Fonati Koffa and three other lawmakers who are currently detained at the Monrovia Central Prison.
By Gerald C. Koinyeneh, [email protected]
Speaking on Saturday at the CDC headquarters in Congo Town, the party’s Secretary-General, Janga Kowo, condemned the Unity Party-led government, accusing it of political persecution and labeling the detained lawmakers as “political prisoners.”
“The Unity Party government has crossed a dangerous red line by unlawfully incarcerating opposition lawmakers who voluntarily presented themselves at the police headquarters for questioning,” Kowo said.
The four lawmakers—former Speaker J. Fonati Koffa, Representatives Dixon Wlawlee Seboe, Abu Bana Kamara, and Jacob Debee—were arrested and charged in connection with the recent fire incident at the Capitol Building. After being held overnight at the Liberia National Police headquarters, they were arraigned before Judge Ben Barco at the Monrovia City Court on Saturday and subsequently remanded at the Monrovia Central Prison.
Following their incarceration, Kowo led a group of CDC partisans to the Monrovia Central Prison in protest but was himself arrested for allegedly obstructing justice. Video footage circulating on social media shows Kowo being forcibly detained by police officers, handcuffed, and placed in the back of a police pickup. He was briefly held at the prison before being released.
“Last night, our political leaders issued a strong statement condemning the arrest of Speaker Koffa and the three lawmakers,” Kowo told partisans. “Today, when we went to the Monrovia Central Prison in solidarity, the police manhandled me. I am wounded in several places as I speak to you now.”
Kowo alleged that the charges and detention of the lawmakers are part of a broader political conspiracy orchestrated by the ruling Unity Party.
“Even after coercing the Speaker to resign, after illegally holding onto the speakership for eight months, and after vandalizing the Speaker’s office, the Unity Party government of President Boakai is now inviting chaos into the country,” he said.
He emphasized that the CDC’s silence since its electoral defeat in 2023 should not be mistaken for weakness.
“We conceded the election peacefully with a margin of just 17,000 votes. That tells you the CDC is a party of the rule of law. No amount of propaganda can paint us negatively. But the government has now crossed a dangerous red line.”
Kowo warned President Joseph Boakai and his administration that Liberia’s peace and stability are not sustained by the weapons carried by police or the army, but by the civility of its people.
“We have reached a point where the people must take their destiny into their own hands. On Monday, we are calling on all CDCians and members of the opposition community to join us as we march to the Monrovia City Court in solidarity with Speaker Koffa, Dixon Seboe, Abu Kamara, and Jacob Debee,” he said.
He concluded with a direct message to the government: “The safety of Speaker Koffa and the three lawmakers is now your responsibility. We demand their immediate and unconditional release.”
