MONROVIA – As public debate surrounding Liberia’s reported US$19 million drug seizure continues to intensify, a new controversy has emerged over photographs circulating on social media that allegedly connect Vice President Jeremiah Koung to Anthony “Tony” Denuka, a former employee of the Roberts International Airport (RIA) who has also come under public scrutiny because of his past acquaintance with former RIA employee Oscar Brown.
By Selma Lomax, selma.lomax@frontpageafricaonline.com
The controversy gained momentum after images showing Denuka and Vice President Koung at different public and private engagements resurfaced online. Critics argued that the photographs suggested a close relationship between the two, particularly after another image showing Denuka with Brown, who reportedly left Liberia after changing his flight itinerary from China when authorities sought to question individuals linked to the reported US$19 million drug seizure at the airport.
However, both Vice President Koung and Denuka have rejected suggestions that the photographs establish any personal alliance or connection to the ongoing drug investigation.
FrontPage Africa has gathered that the photographs currently trending on social media were reportedly taken between 2024 and 2026, a period during which Denuka was seeking employment within government. According to information gathered, Denuka made deliberate efforts to meet people close to the Vice President in hopes of obtaining a recommendation after submitting applications to several government ministries and agencies.
FrontPage Africa has also gathered that Denuka later applied for the position of Deputy Secretary General for Administration at the Roberts Flight Information Region in Margibi County as part of his efforts to secure public sector employment.
Sources familiar with Denuka further maintained that contrary to widespread public speculation, he and Vice President Koung were never political allies or close associates. According to the sources, their interactions were limited to public occasions and political events attended by many supporters, with no evidence suggesting a personal relationship beyond those encounters.
Seeking to address the speculation, Denuka Sunday appeared on Spoon Talk, where he attempted to clarify several issues that had become subjects of public discussion.
He first corrected what he described as a significant factual error surrounding one of the widely circulated photographs. According to Denuka, the individual appearing with him in the aircraft photograph was not Michael Brown, as had been suggested in some discussions, but Oscar Brown, whom he knew during his years working at the Roberts International Airport.
Denuka explained that he joined the airport workforce in 2011 before resigning in 2019 after becoming frustrated with his professional circumstances. Following his departure, he ventured into private business, operating a money-changing enterprise alongside a boutique business, insisting that he has had no employment relationship with the airport since leaving.
Reflecting on his acquaintances from those years, Denuka acknowledged knowing both Michael Brown and Oscar Brown through the airport environment. However, he maintained that those relationships never developed into close personal friendships and had long since faded following his resignation.
He stressed that he could not even remember the last time he communicated with either individual and denied allegations suggesting that he maintained contact with them after the ongoing investigation began.
Denuka also used the interview to explain how his support for Vice President Koung developed. According to him, his admiration was based purely on the Vice President’s leadership style and public speeches, leading him to support the Unity Party. He emphasized that the photographs circulating online were taken during ordinary public engagements, including the Vice President’s birthday celebration and another visit to his office.
He disclosed that he personally designed one of the photographs and even used it as his Facebook and WhatsApp profile picture because of his admiration for the Vice President’s leadership.
Throughout the interview, Denuka repeatedly rejected suggestions that the photographs represented evidence of any personal relationship capable of linking the Vice President to allegations surrounding the reported drug case.
He equally dismissed claims that the Vice President influenced his employment at the National Lottery Authority, insisting that he obtained the position through the institution’s regular recruitment process after successfully applying, sitting interviews and qualifying on merit.
Denuka further emphasized that no security institution has questioned him because, according to him, investigators have found no basis to connect him to the ongoing investigation.
“I have absolutely no involvement in the reported US$19 million drug case, and there is nothing connecting me to Vice President Jeremiah Koung beyond my personal support for his leadership. The photographs that have been circulating were taken during public engagements, including his birthday celebration and a visit to his office, because I admired him as a leader. I never introduced Michael Brown to the Vice President, I have never discussed any drug-related matter with the Vice President, and I was not employed through his influence,” he added.
Continuing, he added: “My phone records, employment history and every aspect of my activities can be examined by investigators because I have nothing to hide. I believe the focus should remain on a professional investigation so that anyone found responsible is held accountable, rather than making assumptions based on photographs or political speculation.”
Denuka also appealed for the public to allow investigators to carry out their responsibilities without interference, arguing that guilt or innocence should ultimately be determined through evidence rather than assumptions generated by social media discussions.
Meanwhile, Vice President Jeremiah Koung responded through a statement Monday rejecting allegations that his appearance in photographs with Denuka suggested any form of personal association.
The Vice President argued that photographs are an unavoidable part of public life for elected officials and should never be interpreted as proof of knowledge regarding another individual’s private affairs.
In revisiting his earlier comments made after the November 24, 2025 arrest of Clifford Payne, an official of the Group of 77, over allegations arising from a suspected drug case, Vice President Koung reaffirmed that his position has never changed.
He again declared that no relationship, whether involving relatives, political associates, employees or even members of his immediate family, should shield anyone from criminal accountability if competent authorities establish wrongdoing.
The Vice President presented that position as evidence that his response to the latest controversy follows a principle he has consistently articulated rather than one developed specifically in response to current public criticism.
Vice President Jeremiah Koung: “I want to make it categorically clear that I have no personal relationship or association with Anthony beyond the reality that, as a public official, I take photographs with countless Liberians during public and private events. A photograph should never be interpreted as evidence that I know an individual’s personal affairs or activities.”
He added, ”My position has remained consistent from the beginning that if anyone, including my family members, relatives, friends, political associates, employees or any other person, is found by the competent authorities to have engaged in drug-related activities, they should face the full weight of the law. I reject any attempt to suggest that a photograph creates a personal connection or implies knowledge of alleged criminal conduct where none exists.”
The Vice President emphasized that public office inevitably places national leaders in contact with thousands of citizens, making it both unrealistic and unfair to interpret every photograph as evidence of a personal relationship.
“As Vice President, I interact with Liberians from every county, every political persuasion and every social background. People regularly request photographs at official ceremonies, community gatherings and private events. Those moments should never be transformed into evidence of friendship, political alliance or knowledge of an individual’s personal conduct. Public service requires openness to citizens, and that openness should not be distorted into allegations that have no factual basis,” he said.
Vice President Koung also renewed his appeal for confidence in Liberia’s justice institutions, insisting that professional investigations, rather than public speculation, should determine responsibility in the reported narcotics case.
“The fight against illicit drugs is far too important to be reduced to assumptions based on photographs or social media commentary. I remain fully supportive of every lawful investigation being conducted by our security institutions, and I believe that whoever is found responsible, regardless of status or relationship, must answer before the law. Our country deserves facts, accountability and due process, not conclusions driven by speculation,” he said.
