–Former Defense Minister Brownie Samukai Frowns

IPNEWS: Quite recently, to be precise in August 2022, former Minister of National Defense, Brownie J. Samukai officially opened up to the media for the first time since he and his former deputy and comptroller were partially pardoned by President George Weah, suspending his jail sentence and asking him to work along with the Ministry of Justice to come out with a restitution plan for misapplying US$1.2 million pension funds that belong to personnel of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL).

When he appeared on SPOON TALK on Saturday night, August 13, 2022, Minister Samukai firstly expressed disappointment in the Liberian judicial system because according to him, he personally experienced its unfairness and lack of integrity on the part of some actors during their trial.

In February 2022, President George Weah issued a proclamation granting clemency, ordering the Ministry of Justice to pardon 500 inmates where applicable, through a statement read by Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Nathaniel McGill.

In the proclamation, President Weah said those expected to be pardoned are those who committed misdemeanors and other lesser offences. But rapists and armed robbers were not included.

The President also ordered the suspension of the two-year prison sentence imposed on Mr. Brownie J. Samukai.

“The President of Liberia, pursuant to Article 59 of the 1986 Constitution which vests in him the power and authority to grant reprieves, suspend fines, sentences and pardon anyone convicted and sentenced for a crime has, with immediate effect, ordered the suspension of the two (2) year prison sentence imposed on Mr. Brownie J. Samukai, following his conviction by the Supreme Court of Liberia; with the proviso that he (Brownie J. Samukai) will work with the Ministry of Justice to enter a stipulation for the full settlement of the Armed Forces of Liberia money.”

It can be recalled the Supreme Court of Liberia ordered the incarceration of Lofa County Senator-elect Brownie J. Samukai and co-defendants for two years for their failure to comply with the mandate of the court – that’s to pay 50 percent of the judgment sum of US$537,828,15 (five hundred seventy three thousand eight hundred twenty eight dollars fifteen cents) within the period of six months.

The court said Samukai and co-defendants would serve for two years imprisonment and pay the full judgement amount of US$1,147,656.35, less than the amounts already paid by them. The Supreme Court said: “Upon their failure to pay, they shall remain in prison until the full balance is liquidated at the amount of $25 per month.

The Supreme Court in its ruling said that the law provides that “where criminal defendants are jointly adjudged guilty of a crime, they are together considered collectively responsible for any fine or penalty until the Judgement is fully satisfied”.

“That Judge A. Blamo Dixon inappropriately executed the Mandate of the Supreme Court when he relied on the ruling of Judge Yarmie Gbeisay (which had been modified by this court) and apportioned the judgement amount of US$147,656,35 among the three respondents and ordered that each respondents, including the co-respondent Brownie J. Samukai, pays his share of the judgement amount of 50 percent which he calculated to be US$191,276,05, the judge is clearly in error and hence the bill of Information will lie.”

“Given the clear language of the February 8, 2021 of the Supreme Court regarding the joint liability of restituting the judgement amount, the payment by Samukai in the amount of US$191, 276,05, can’t be considered as compliance with the Mandate of the Supreme Court,” the court said.

Meanwhile, residents of Lofa County at the time had denounced the move as the “single greatest witch hunt of a politician” under the presidency of George Weah.

Calling the Judiciary ‘Black Cow’ Due of Lack of Integrity & Corruption

Asked then to give a synopsis of the case that saw him convicted before being pardoned with a suspended sentence by the president with a stipulation plan to pay back the money in question, Mr. Samukai quoting Chief Justice Francis Korkpor and Associate Justice Yussif Kaba disclosed that the judicial system is corrupt with some actors lacking integrity.

“I am disappointed in the Liberian justice system because I have experienced its unfairness at first hand. I respect the court’s decision regarding my trial and I will comply with the ruling. But the Chief Justice (Francis Korkpor) and Justice Kaba has publicly talked about how corrupt the judicial system is. They called the judicial system the ‘black cow’ of the judiciary branch of government. I am not going to pass judgment on what people are trying to do,” the former Defense Minister averred.

Commenting further on his trial, Minister Samukai gave an analogy of a case brought against a renowned journalist in the Philippines, Maria Ressa, who when she won the Nobel Peace Prize and was being interviewed said she had trust in the Philippines judicial system. She therefore decided to challenge the action of the government. But she was disappointed that those who she thought had the integrity to withstand any adversity legally, those people disappointed her. A court had ruled that journalist Maria Ressa should be allowed to visit Norway to accept her Nobel Peace Prize. The Rappler CEO, who was embroiled in several legal cases, was subject to travel restrictions. Ressa, who was under travel restrictions because of the legal cases she faced in the Philippines, was jointly awarded the prize in an effort to “safeguard freedom of expression.” “Maria Ressa’s case in the Philippines is a mirror of my case in Liberia.”

The former Defense Minister further noted, “I reflect once again on Maria Ressa of the Philippines. The government in Philippines had accused Maria and manufactured a case against her due to her reportage regarding ‘freedom of speech, justice, good governance and rule of law’. I respect the decisions of our courts in Liberia, but I don’t respect Judge Yarmie Gbeisay’s ruling. I have no idea while the Judge was lying and trying to induce fake evidence against us. What injury did we bring to train the AFL to go to Mali on a peacekeeping mission? President Sirleaf ordered us to prepare the AFL to go to Mali. But we were convicted for the misuse of private funds but instead we were charged for misuse of public funds. I would hope that no other person will suffer the fate that we suffered. I accepted the integrity blindly and we suffered it today, but there is a future.”

Mr. Samukai challenged Liberians and anyone interested in his case to go to the courts take the documents look at them and they will see nowhere in any part of the documents that Brownie Samukai and his colleagues ate a dime. According to him, the LACC itself confirmed in its testimonies during the trial that they never used any money for our personal purpose as was evidenced in their investigation. “That the evidence presented by Judge Yarmie Gbeisay was false. He indicated in exhibit 12 that three checks were issued by Samukai and his colleagues. His clerk was so embarrassed to see how a sitting judge wanted to induce fake evidence against Samukai and his colleagues. Even when ECOBANK was called they never said Samukai issued any check. Maria Ressa case in the Philippines is a mirror of my case in Liberia. But however, we are committed to pay the US$500 monthly following the President’s pardon,” Mr. Samukai lamented on Spoon Talk back in August 2022.

“The seriousness of the law is the compliance of the law. We, including Joseph Johnson and Nyemah Dorkor appreciate the generosity of the President’s pardon,” the former Defense Minister stated.

Was the Case Politically Motivated?

Responding to question from Spoon Talk panelists whether his case was politically motivated, Minister Samukai had this to say: “It was reported I was offered a deal to settle the AFL pension saga out of court. But let state here publicly that there was no deal offered me before we went to trial. They asked me to pay US$200,000 for a money I did not eat. They asked me if I could make payment stipulation on the US$1 million plus and I told them that I did not eat any money so I could not pay. So looking back, I think that is the right answer that I gave and in the end I chose to go to trial.”

On how he felt when the senatorial seat he overwhelmingly won in Lofa County was denied him due to the legal ramifications, the former Defense Minister said what Liberians need to do is delineate the electoral system from the political system. “Where there is a majority decision it means the people’s decision have to stand. The system goes way back. We need to put a litmus test on individuals appointed in the judicial system. Judges and individuals who also interpret the law and our constitution have to be called to book when they circumvent the law and decisions they make. There are people in the country with integrity but some of them get swallowed by the wave. Some of the judges and lawyers have criticized the judicial system. But the key to our democracy is the integrity of the judicial system.”

Giving what he called his honest opinion about his trial, Minister Samukai put it this way: “I don’t put the burden on the political system but rather on people who are placed in the judiciary and are expected to ensure that integrity comes to bear. The burden of integrity is not on this political system. If those who are charged with the responsibility to interpret the law, are the ones the burden of integrity is placed on they must exemplify that. I put the burden on the judicial system, which they themselves say is a ‘Black Cow’ and is corrupt. Our country does not need to go through this. Let us bear the weight this time around and let it be the last. Their political beliefs and the different things that they share must not be a hindrance to ensure free and transparent justice. But, I trust the legal system to always take its course. The key to Liberia’s democracy is integrity of the judiciary.”

President Sirleaf’s Instruction and President Weah’s Commitment for Government to Pay Back the AFL Funds

Commenting on reports that the Ministry of National Defense was instructed by former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to use the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) pension funds to prepare the Liberian contingent for the peacekeeping mission in Mali, Minister Samukai disclosed on Spoon Talk that: “A written communication from the Office of the President authorizing us for the use of the funds was presented to the courts, but they placed it in the dust bin for reasons unknown to us. I advise since it is a public record, let the media go and get the court records of the case they will find out the truth and then they call me for further discussion.”

Mr. Samukai disclosed the discussion between the outgoing president Sirleaf and president-elect Weah happened in between January 13-18, 2018. He also said they also met with some generals of the AFL along with President Sirleaf and incoming President Weah. “We had a discussion. But the Ministry of Justice in the new government decided to pick up a case and we had to end up in court. Having said that the most important thing is, we must rely on the rule of law. The rule of law is the bedrock of democracy and its longevity. The beauty of the US democracy is the rule of law. Every major cases heard at the US Supreme Court is discussed publicly, but in Liberia is it a taboo. What surprises me is that our lawyers come to the US and learned these things but go back home and do something else. They charge you and you are told not to speak about the case because you will be held in contempt. That is absurd. It is an unfortunate system in Liberia but we can improve the system because we have well trained lawyers. The integrity Americans bring in interpreting their law and the constitution gives them the respect that the US Supreme court has.”

According to Mr. Samukai, President Sirleaf took a foreign policy decision for Liberia to participate in the peacekeeping mission in Mali, after Liberia benefitted from ECOWAS, UN and others during the civil war. “I could not take a personal decision to disobey the order of the Commander-in-Chief as Defense Minister. When the lawyers made the efforts for the current President to come and testify whether the former President gave an order for the use of the money, the prosecution, defense and judge did a side-by and the issue was laid aside. The judge saw reason not to subpoena the former president and the current president. This is where I am told by legal scholars, judges, prosecutors and defense counsels consult experts to advice. They bring friends of the court. Can you imagine they charged us with conspiracy when a commander-in-chief issued an order giving instructions to the Minister of Defense, to the Chief of Staff, Deputy Chief of Staff, the Commanding General? You call that conspiracy? We call that Chain of Command in the military and at the Ministry of National Defense.”

Liberia’s Security Sector ahead of 2023 Elections

According to Mr. Samukai, Liberia has to look at security at a broader context. He said there is a lot of work the country has to do in this regard. The reform process for the security sector is a continued process and the government must continue with that. The lustration process in some of the security sectors have to be relooked at. “You have to set standards for personnel enrolling at the police and other security agencies. Going forward to the elections, is a continuation of the process. There is an opportunity that can be used to lift up the quality that we have in the security sector, and as well as invest more in the personnel if we want productivity and quality. And if we were following the trend how increment were going, there should be more growth. The salary skill of the security sector should be going up and not going down. However, there is a room for improvement and quality of work for our security personnel.”

Samukai’s Appearance on Ok FM 99.5 on Tuesday, October 25, 2022

Fast forward to Tuesday, October 25, 2022, former Defense Minister Brownie Samukai reiterated his stance against the Liberian judiciary, highlighting the alleged corrupt practices as he experienced during his case.

He said just what Judge Yarmie Gbeisay did during his trial by flaunting justice is the very thing he did during his confirmation hearing at the Senate as he faced senators following his nomination as Associate Justice-designate to the bench of the Supreme Court.

According to former Defense Minister Samukai, Judge Gbeisay while appearing before the Senate deliberately lied that he and his co-defendants did not produce defense against the charges brought against them.

Mr. Samukai said it was sad day for Liberia for an alleged ‘corrupt judge’ to be nominated as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. “I am going to meet foreign diplomats and tell them the true character of the nominated Associate Justice Yarmie Gbeisay – he is corrupt, lacks integrity and lacks the character to sit on the bench of the Supreme Court of Liberia as Associate Justice,” former Defense Minister told OK FM on Tuesday.

He lamented that elements of the law trained to interpret the law in Liberia are themselves flunking the law for reasons best only known to them.

Background on Some Corrupt Issues in the Judiciary

Chief Justice Francis Korkpor in his statement made during the March term of the opening of the Supreme Court in 2020, threatened to suspend or dismiss judges and lawyers if found guilty after conducting a hearing of complaints filed against them.

According to Chief Justice Korkpor, cases traveled to the Supreme Court established that the conduct of judges and lawyers were so outrageous through investigation.

Chief Justice narrated then, the October 2020 term of court, the Judicial Inquiry Commission (JIC) and the Grievance and Ethics Committee (GEC) heard and decided 32 cases in which complaints of ethical and professional misconducts were filed against judges and lawyers and were constrained to take decisions and suspend Debt Court Judge, Fourteenth Judicial Circuit, and Rivercess County’s Judge Peter G. Massey for one calendar year with salaries, benefits, and other emoluments withheld.

With this revelation from the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Liberia, then the former Minister National Defense, Brownie J. Samukai may have hit the nail on the head when he quoted the very judicial hierarchy that the judicial system is a ‘Black Cow’ that continue to hinder the progress, growth and fair dispensation of justice through the courts.