IPNEWS-Monrovia: The Government wishes to announce that it is in receipt of a communication from the family of the late Princess Cooper, who was found dead in March, requesting the body of the deceased for burial without the agreed second autopsy, a press release issued Thursday by the Ministry of Information Cultural & Tourism Affairs says.
“This is contrary to an initial agreement involving the family, their lawyer, and some civil society organizations for a second autopsy to be conducted by a pathologist the family will select,” the release noted.
The government affirms that it remains very committed to conducting the autopsy that was requested by Princess’ family to allay all the allegations and claims regarding the cause of her death, in order to bring proper closure to this matter.
Her family, in keeping with the government’s commitment to facilitate and fund the conduct of a second autopsy by their designated pathologist, recommended in April a practitioner from the Philippines named Doctor Ritualo
According to the Information Ministry, the office of the Attorney General immediately made contact with Dr. Ritualo. Email exchanges began in which the Attorney General requested Doctor Ritualo to send his CV and License that qualifies him as a medical doctor and pathologist for onward presentation to the Liberia Medical and Dental Association in keeping with the law and professional medical standards in Liberia.
“However, ever since the doctor was asked to submit a copy of his license to operate as a pathologist, a requirement of the Liberia Medical and Dental Council, he has not been heard from. Many attempts by the Minister of Justice to get Doctor Ritualo to comply with his request have yielded no result,” the Ministry disclosed.
The late Princess Cooper
“The Cooper family was duly informed of this lack of communication, through their representative Dr. Abel Momo, their Lawyer Cllr. Tiawan Gongloe and the President of the Liberia Council of Churches Bishop Kortu Brown.
The government wants to make it categorically clear that it remains open to bringing in any other pathologist of the family’s will.
It is concerning therefore that regardless of the many overtures made by the Government through the Attorney General to lend support to the bereaved family in their quest to bring closure to the circumstances surrounding the death of Princess Cooper, some have opted to politicize the matter.”
Nonetheless, the Government through the Minister of Justice, Cllr. Frank Musa Dean as a further demonstration of goodwill, says it will convene a discussion with the family, their lawyer, the inter-religious Council, and any other civil society organization interested in providing assistance in this matter to find an amicable solution to the impasse.
It can be recalled this week, the Family of the late Princess Cooper who died mysteriously, demanded the release of their daughter’s body for a befitting burial.
The family at a press conference stated that their demand is to bring to closure grieves sustained by the bereaved family.
In a formal communication to the Ministry of Justice, a copy of which is in the possession of IPNEWS, the bereaved family states that their action is in furtherance having a peace of mind.
It may be recalled the lifeless body of the late Princess Cooper was found in the vicinity of the FAWAZ Building Material Store Compound, ELWA junction on March 24, 2022.
According to the family, since the death of their marketable, industrious and productive daughter, sister Princess Cooper, there has been frantic efforts to achieving justice ranging from aiding investigators, staging peaceful march for justice and the contacting of independent forensic pathologists out of our borders, yet nothing seems to be coming good to address the grief of the family.
