By Socrates Smythe Saywon
MONROVIA – The Vanguard Student Unification Party (SUP) has strongly condemned what it described as a “tyrannical decision” by University of Liberia President Dr. Layli Maparyan to forcibly retire nearly 200 employees of the state-run university based solely on an age limit, a move the student movement says undermines the institution’s progress and stability.
In a statement on Saturday, August 30, 2025, SUP accused Dr. Maparyan of discarding seasoned professors and staff members who continue to play critical roles in the university’s academic and administrative life. “These staff, including Dr. Mills Jones, Prof. Wilson Tarpeh, Prof. S. Morris Cooper, Ass. Prof. Clifford J. Young, and others, are vibrant, experienced, and brimming with the energy to educate Liberia’s future, yet they are being discarded like expendable tools despite their invaluable contributions to academia,” the party said.
SUP further argued that age is no measure of worth at a university, stressing that wisdom, institutional memory, and mentorship are central to academic progress. “Dr. Maparyan’s shortsighted purge is a direct assault on the University’s progress as well as its future,” SUP declared. “Forcing out 200 capable staff members risks creating a significant gap in the University’s teaching and administrative capacity.”
The student movement claimed that Dr. Maparyan failed to consult key stakeholders before implementing the mass retirement exercise, leaving both faculty and students blindsided by a decision that threatens educational quality in a country already facing shortages of qualified educators.
Beyond the forced retirements, SUP also leveled corruption allegations against Dr. Maparyan, citing what it described as irregularities in her salary and benefits. According to SUP, Dr. Maparyan receives a combined monthly salary of US$15,063.09, split between an official allocation and what the party termed an “illegal allowance.”
“Dr. Maparyan, as President of the University of Liberia, receives US$7,776.62 directly from the University’s official budget, while an additional US$7,286.47 is paid through a debit memo issued to Ecobank and drawn from the University’s account but not recorded in the official payroll system,” the statement alleged. “The Student Unification Party is concerned about this ‘off-the-record’ payment mechanism via debit memos which undermines public trust in the University’s financial management.”
SUP maintained that such financial practices, coupled with what it described as arbitrary and destructive decisions against long-serving staff, prove that Dr. Maparyan is unfit to continue as president. “Maparyan has taken more from the University as opposed to contributing,” the party asserted. “She has failed and must leave now.”
The University of Liberia administration has not yet responded to SUP’s latest claims and calls for Dr. Maparyan’s resignation.
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