Sen. Chea stated that not submitting the budget to Speaker Koffa, and further disregarding the Speaker’s constitutional authority by writing to the Chief Clerk, has drawn the Presidency directly into the conflict.
Monrovia – The chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, Claims and Petition has linked the presidency to the ongoing crisis at the Capitol Building to remove the Speaker of the House of Representatives Jonathan Fonati Koffa.
By Obediah Johnson, [email protected]
Forty-three members of the House of Representatives have been holding a seperate session at the Capitol, vowing not to sit under the gavel of embattled Speaker Fonati Koffa for multiple reasons, ranging from alleged acts of corruption and poor leadership.
The situation has prompted the Executive branch, headed by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, to delay in submitting the National Budget for Fiscal Year 2025 to the National Legislature, through the House of Representatives.
President Boakai, through executives of the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, last week announced that the draft budget would not be submitted to the House of Representatives due to the ongoing leadership struggle. He vowed to consult his legal advisors to decide on the matter.
But in a statement issued in Monrovia over the weekend, Senator Chea observed that the communication from the Acting Minister of State addressed to the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives instead of the Speaker, on the postponement of submission of the national budget for FY 2025, is a replication of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf era’s constitutional breaches in previous instances of Speakers removal.
He added that not submitting the budget to Speaker Koffa, and further disregarding the Speaker’s constitutional authority by writing to the Chief Clerk, has drawn the Presidency directly into the conflict.
“So, what is in Chamber Justice Gbeisay’s ruling on Speaker Koffa’s petition for a writ of prohibition that the President is relying on or is not clear about? Let me say at the outset that the Speaker was in error for filing the writ, because the Supreme Court could not do what he asked or prayed for; that is, to prohibit the so-called majority bloc from ‘conducting sessions’ in the Joint Chamber instead of the main Chamber, because this is a political, and not a legal, issue and falls squarely within the political question doctrine.”
He maintained that what the Justice did by refusing to grant the writ of prohibition is telling the parties that the matter is not appropriate for judicial review as it is more suitable for resolution by that political branch of the government (the Legislature).
Senator Chea emphasized that the doctrine is rooted in the separation of powers, as it aims to respect the distinct roles of each branch and avoid judicial overreach.
According to him, the dispute between the Speaker and those seeking to oust him, is political, rather than legal now.
He added that the Justice’s refusal to grant the writ was simply to tell the parties that “this is a political matter; don’t get the court involved; go and settle it by yourselves”.
He maintained that the Justice ruled against the embattled Speaker because he (Koffa) did not present a legal or justiciable issue to the Supreme Court to decide.
“As for example, that he had been removed as Speaker illegally; or that the ‘majority bloc’ had occupied the main Chamber and prevented him from presiding, or for other legal reasons. Let me make it clear also that the refusal to grant the writ is not a win for the ‘majority bloc’ either. So, there is nothing to celebrate here.”
According to him, Speaker Koffa is still the legitimate Speaker until removed by the “two-thirds majority” as mandated by the Constitution.
He noted that the only thing the Speaker cannot do legally is to hold sessions, as he does not have the constitutional quorum to do so.
Similarly, he added that the ‘majority bloc’ cannot hold sessions without the Speaker, because he has the authority to convene and preside over sessions.
“The Deputy Speaker is without any authority to preside if not authorized by the Speaker, except the Speaker is incapacitated by illness, death, or if he is absent from the country or absent from a session. Here is what the Constitution says about this in Article 49: “The House of Representatives shall elect once every six years a Speaker who shall be the presiding officer of that body, a Deputy Speaker, and such other officers shall ensure the proper functioning of the House. The Speaker, the Deputy Speaker and other officers so elected may be removed from office for cause by resolution of a two-thirds majority of the members of the House.”
He said it is also important to note that the Constitution neither recognizes a ‘majority bloc’ nor a ‘minority bloc’ of the House of Representatives.
Senator Chea indicated that the Executive and the Judicial Branches and the Senate must not do business with them (majority bloc), but with the Speaker.
He stressed that President Boakai should submit the budget to the Speaker as required by law, to be acted upon when the Speaker has a quorum to hold sessions.
