-Mandates NEC to Have Jurisdiction

IPNews – Monrovia: Sixteen days after four of the five justice’s of the Supreme Court of Liberia found Lofa County Senator-elect guilty of the crimes of Theft of Property and Criminal Conspiracy, but dropped Misused of Public Funds because it was private monies, the Court has this time around confirmed and affirmed the ruling of the National Elections Commission (NEC) over the pronouncement of Brownie J. Samukai as the Senator-elect Lofa County.

This Supreme Court’s Court’s Wednesday ruling is a different case from the one it had previously found Mr. Samukai and others guilty in.

The Court on February 8, 2021, upheld the lower court’s conviction against Senator-elect Samukai along with two of his deputies and sentenced them to two years in prison each for misapplication of over US$1 million intended for the Armed Forces of Liberia.

However, the court ruled that the prison terms could be suspended if the convicts restitute 50 percent of the fund within six months and make full payment within a year.

The ruling of the nation’s highest court against Mr. Samukai, the newly elected Senator of Lofa County was a huge blow to his re-emerging political career and the opposition Collaborating Political Parties (CPP) on whose tickets he got elected.

Mr. Samukai, the former Minister of Defense had hoped to have been exonerated by the High Court following his conviction by the lower court in 2020.

But reading the four to one opinion of the High Court, Associate Justice Yousif D. Kabah said the court did not find substantive evidence that Mr. Samukai and his co-appellants were authorized by the former President. But assuming they were given authorization, they should have declined because the action was against the law.

The Supreme Court also claimed that there was unrefuted evidence gathered from the records of the case that the soldiers of the AFL compulsorily contributed to the fund lodged in the AFL Pension Account established at Ecobank Liberia Limited, and as such the said account is not a public account intended for the operational use of the Ministry of National Defense.

The high court upheld the lower court’s decision with a slight modification that they all should be awarded a two-year prison sentence each since they committed the crimes together.

In the Supreme Court’s Wednesday ruling, the Justices agreed with the NEC Board of Commissioners’ decision declaring him (Samukai) as Senator-elect.

Speaking on behalf of the high court, Associate Justice Sie-A-Nyeneh G. Yuoh said there was no evidence to substantiate Samukai from stopping him from taking his seat.

It can be recalled the legal team of the ruling party’s candidate had taken an appeal before the Supreme Court following NEC BOC upholding the ruling from its Hearing Officer.

It can be recalled that on February 14, 2021, the Solicitor General, Cllr. Saymah Syrenius Cephus wrote instructing the Chairperson of the NEC, Mrs. Davidetta Browne-Lassanah, not to certificate Mr. Samukai, who is now Liberia’s longest serving Defense Minister.

In a Valentine’s Day (Sunday, February 14,) letter, under the signature of Cllr. Cephus, the Justice Ministry called on NEC not to certificate Mr. Samukai on grounds that he and the other two men, “were convicted for the crimes of theft of property and misuse of public funds in the tune of US$1.147,656.35.”

Cllr. Cephus added: “Further, you will recall that prior to the 8 December 2020 election, Mr. Samukai was found guilty by the lower court along with his co-conspirators for the same crimes. But took an appeal to the Honorable Supreme Court of Liberia, which automatically stayed the enforcement of the convicted judgement.”

“Therefore, the recent judgement by the Honorable Supreme Court of Liberia is not a novelty, and did not depart from the holding of the lower court’s judgement; instead, it confirmed the lower court’s judgement, which means Mr. Samukai together with his co-conspirators has been a convicted felon from the date the lower court rendered its judgement in 2020.”

“Accordingly, since the guilty judgement is the law controlling, and constitutes a finality of the matter, and by law is not appealable in this jurisdiction, it is considered my opinion that it will be inarguable allay any and all concerns that may arise, and you will therefore proceed not to certificate him.”

But few days ago, Cllr. Cephus’ boss, Justice Minister Frank Musah Dean distanced himself and the Ministry from the Solicitor General’s letter