IPNews-Monrovia: It has been nearly a month since former Commissioner of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission-TRC, Cllr. Jerome Verdier, wrote the Black caucus of the United States Congress, for decisive action of former warlords, Monrovia City Mayor Jefferson T. Koijee is now threatening a law suit against the former Chairman of Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Cllr Jerome Verdier for allegedly linking him to the commission of heinous crimes in Liberia.
In a communication to the members of Democratic Black Caucus, United States Congress, and the U.S. State Department, a copy which is obtained by the Independent Probe, Cllr. Jerome Verdier labeled the action of Jefferson Koijee and other regime collaborators as reckless and abhorrent which warrant a comprehensive call for targeted sanctions.
“RECKLESS AND ABHORRANT A CALL FOR SANCTIONS, COMPREHENSIVE AND TARGETED, AGAINST THE REGIME OF PRESIDENT GEORGE M WEAH OF LIBERIA, HIS CLOSE ASSOCIATES AND KEY MEMEBERS OF HIS GOVERNMENT, INCLUDING OTHERS WITHOUT GOVERNMENT WITH INFLUENCE, DECISION- AND – POLICY –MAKING AUTHORITY. AN IJG REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN LIBERIA, PURSUANT TO THE GLOBAL MAGNITSKY HUMAN RIGHTS ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AS IMPLEMENTED BY EXECUTIVE ORDER 13818 OF THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT WASHINGTON DC OCTOBER 26, 2019”
Vardier in his case to the US Democratic Caucus cataloged series of actions and occurrences linking Jefferson Koijee and other members of the Weah’s regime to gross human rights violations.
Quoting the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act as implemented by Executive Order 13818 Case Dossier, Jerome Vardier outlined that Jefferson T. Koijee Mayor of Monrovia, Liberia, as first Perpetrator with the following:
Information Full Legal Name of Perpetrator: Jefferson T. Koijee Country: Liberia Title or Position: Mayor of Monrovia, Liberia (since January 2018); current member and officer of the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) Party (2005 to present) and defacto Chief of Security and Law Enforcer for President George Manneh Weah; former body guard of Chuckie Taylor, who was the Commander of the former notorious Liberia Anti terrorism Unit (ATU) (from 1997 to 2003) and also convicted of Torture in 2009 in the US and is currently serving a 97 year sentence. Chuckie is also the son of former Liberia President Charles Taylor a convicted war criminal serving a 50-year sentence in the United Kingdom. Date of Birth: 09/07/1985 Other Known Personal Identifiers: works and resides in Monrovia, Liberia. Jefferson T. Koijee is the current Mayor of the capital city of Liberia Monrovia.
The United States seeks to impose tangible and significant consequences on those who commit serious human rights abuse or engage in corruption, as well as to protect the financial system of the United States from abuse by these same persons. As a result, there will be clear and convincing evidence that the current government of Liberia, in particular Jefferson T. Koijee, Mayor of Monrovia who was appointed and works for Liberian President George M. Weah and is involved in human rights violations and corruption that undermine the values that form an essential form an essential foundation of stable, secure, and functioning societies; have devastating impacts on individuals; weaken democratic institutions; degrade the rule of law; perpetuate violent conflicts; facilitate the activities of dangerous persons; and undermine economic markets. The United States seeks to impose tangible and significant consequences on those who commit serious human rights abuse or engage in corruption, as well as to protect the financial system of the United States from abuse by these same persons.
The U.S. government must uphold its stated commitment to promoting human rights and fighting corruption (as noted in the preface to EO 13818), the most compelling arguments will also include why a particular designation will work to advance U.S. interests and international peace and security more broadly. By sanctioning Mayor Jefferson T. Koijee it will send a targeted message to the Liberian government that any acts of human rights abuses and corruption, will isolate an individual spoiler, curb illicit finance, limit future human rights abuses within the entire government. In addition to restricting any visa and/or travel to the United States, the US government should freeze/block Jefferson Koijee and place him on OFAC’s “Specially Designated Nationals”(SDN) list.
Verdier stated that taking action will deter similarly situated actors of the Liberian government or others affiliated with the Liberian government from engaging in human rights abuses and/or corruption. 2. National Interest Argument & Summary of Impact The Government of Liberia continues to engage in serious acts of human rights abuses and corruption.
Verdier communication furthermore stated that President Weah promised to help the poor and give corruption the boot. He is doing neither. Scandals have blighted his first 18 months in office and soaring inflation, which peaked at 29% in December, is hurting the poor in a country where more than half the population lives on less than $2 a day.
He stated that the president’s conduct has not helped. He has built about 50 houses in a compound in the capital. He says he used money he had earned during his days of football stardom. But citizens cannot be sure of this, since he has refused to publicly declare his assets. “It raises eyebrows,” says Anderson Miamen of Transparency International, a corruption watchdog. 5 Governing a country as poor and fractious as Liberia is an unenviable task. But Mr. Weah is simply not up to the job.
He is said to forget key facts, bungle media interviews and drift off in meetings. St Peter’s Lutheran Church in Monrovia, the capital, is filled with children and worshippers. But its windows, pockmarked by bullet holes, hint at a dark history: in 1990 government soldiers massacred 600 people here. Isaac Dowah, the pastor, points at two white stars marking the mass graves and frets: “We’re at a breaking point.”
Jerome Verdier further accused Koijee of being the architect of series of human rights violation in the Weah led government .Mayor Koijee said it is unfortunate for an individual he holds in high esteem to embark on a “smear campaign” aimed at tarnishing his hard earned reputation by associating him with “Liberia’s painful past”.
Koijee: “I worked with Jerome Verdier during my days in advocacy when he served as chairperson of the TRC. He knows me very well. He knows my history. He knows that I was one of those young persons who went to jail because of our advocacy for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. We worked with the Commission which Jerome Verdier chaired to protect the TRC report despite many attempts by perpetrators of the war to undermine this national instrument.
It’s sad that I have now become a major target for Cllr Verdier to the extent he will accuse me of being a participant of the civil war which I know nothing about”.The Mayor believes the attempt to have accused him of being one of the perpetrators of the 14-years bloody civil crisis in Liberia indicates that Verdier and his likes intend to undermine the TRC report .
“It pains me that people are bent on undermining the Truth and Reconciliation Commission report. The nation and partners collectively invested huge amount of dollars in this national instrument. We also put our all in the process to get the report to where it is and as such we will not sit idly and it gets destroyed.” Koijee told Journalists recently at a News Conference in Monrovia. According to him, in order to save Liberia, people must be held accountable for whatever they did. No one should walk with impunity for infringing on the rights of other or treating others wrongly.
The youthful Mayor noted that if a citizen claims to truly love Liberia as true nationalists and patriots, they will stand above their personal interests and summon a great sense of accountability by welcoming a full implementation of the TRC report instead of trying to bring the entire report to public disrepute. The establishment of the War and Economic Crimes Court, he noted is an instrument much-needed in Liberia’s flagship democracy.
Mayor Koijee however said he doesn’t think that what is being paraded by Verdier linking him to the commission of crimes is a representation of the former Board of Commissioners of the TRC and as such, he wants all the Commissioners including Massa Washington and John Steward to publicly save the TRC report by disassociating themselves from former Chairman Verdier’s accusations against him.
Mayor Koijee wants people like the likes of Jerome Verdier to stop playing politics with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report which is a key interest to every Liberian and the international community including him (Koijee).
“My history can be traced from student advocacy to national politics. I am not preventing you from accusing me falsely, all I can say to you is provide the evidences to substantiate your unjustified claims against me. Provide the facts and let the people of Liberia judge me by what you present”. He told journalists.
Mayor Koijee further said he believes that Mr. Verdier he knows very well is being manipulated by others to kill the TRC Report.He said once Verdier tries to accuse him and such accusation can’t be substantiated then he is defeating the entire report on grounds that others may believe that the report was been drafted on the basic of misinformation and inducement.
“ You can’t be attacking a Messenger of the Truth and Reconciliation Report . I am not a secret person to hide any “evil deals” assuming that I was involved . People who are linking us are those who felt that our advocacy for the War and Economics Crimes Court could be undermined by the position we hold in government. They are mistaken, we are who were are . I am the same Koijee who advocated for war crimes court yesterday and I am the same koijee who is advocating for war and economics crimes Court today ” he lamented .The Mayor of Monrovia said he has contacted lawyers both locally and internationally to prepare every legal document to pursuit a case against Mr. Verdier .Mayor Koijee recently renewed calls for the establishment of the War and Economic Crimes Court while on an official visit in Washington D.C .
Koijee said the establishment of the War and Economics Court will ensure the prosecution of those accused of perpetrating atrocity during the 14 years of bloody civil war, to ensure lasting peace and social healing. Koijee who is also the Youth League Chair of the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change pointed out that people who created mayhem in Liberia should be made to account for their actions through the Court of competent jurisdiction.
Koijee is of the strong conviction that the ultimate means to sustaining peace, genuine reconciliation and development in Liberia is through the establishment of the court.
“We must seek to end the scourge of impunity in Liberia by using the law and holding people accountable for their wrongdoings,” Mayor Koijee told Journalists in a live phone interview from Washington. He lauded Liberia’s President, George Weah for making moves that may lead to the establishment of an economic and war crimes court.
President Weah submitted recommendations to the Legislature and sought advice on addressing human rights violations, war and economic crimes committed during the 14-year-long Liberian civil wars which ended in 2003.Although the Liberian truth and reconciliation commission recommended the establishment of a special court in 2009, that call was never heeded to by the former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.
Thousands of people were killed, maimed and raped, and children were used as soldiers in the war. Yet over 100 rebel fighters are free and have never been tried in the country. Key actors in the war such as Charles Taylor and rebel leader Kunti K have been indicted or tried outside Liberia. Mayor Koijee further said Establishing the Extraordinary Court for Liberia is necessary for justice and for the people of Liberia to enhance the healing of the wounds created during such a dark past.
However, Verdier communication highlights actions are not alone, rather a stark pattern of criminal behavior of human rights violations and corruption which were documented below in the U.S. Department of State 2018 Liberia Human Rights Report the following incidents occurred: U.S. Department of State – Liberia 2018 Human Rights Report According to the U.S. Department of State Liberia 2018 Human Rights Report the human rights issues included the following: • Extrajudicial killings by police; • Arbitrary and prolonged detention by government officials; • Harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; • Undue restrictions on the press; criminal libel despite progress to enact legislation decriminalizing press offenses; • Official corruption; • Lack of accountability in cases of violence against women due to government inaction in some instances, including rape, domestic violence, and female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C); • Trafficking in persons; • Criminalization of consensual same-sex sexual conduct; • Violence targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) persons; • Child labor, including its worst forms. Impunity for individuals who committed atrocities during the civil wars, as well as for those responsible for current and continuing crimes, remained a serious problem; the government made intermittent but limited attempts to investigate and prosecute officials accused of current abuses, whether in the security forces or elsewhere in the government. Corruption at all levels of government continued to undermine public trust in state institutions. https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Liberia-2018.pdf According to the Economist in an article dated August 10, 2019 the economic crisis and corruption could lead to violence. Coupled with horrendous ongoing human rights violations the country is on the brink of disaster and there has been absolutely no accountability by the international community. In 2017 Liberians elected a former football star, George Weah, as president.
Verdier communication furthermore stated that “The government’s actions today will not keep us from doing our investigative work but will only strengthen us to do more,” Sieh told OCCRP. “President Weah’s failure to keep his supporters from raining threats on the media falls on his record and his presidency,” he said. “Should anything happen to me or any member of my staff, our blood will be on his hands.”
