IPNEWS-MONROVIA: Justice Minister Musa Dean has distanced himself from recent communication to the National Elections Commission ordering that body to stop the certification of Lofa County senator-elect Brownie J. Samukai. to the Liberian Senate that he do not have copy of the communication written to the National Election Commission.

Justice Minister Dean told the Liberian senate that he does not have a copy of such comminication to the NEC.

In a comminication dated February 14, 2021, Solicitor General Syrenius Cephus recently wrote the National Elections Commission instructing that body not to certificate Lofa County Senator-elect Brownie Samukai until he can pay back the Misappropriated AFL funds of $US 1.1million.

The communication by Cllr. Cephus folowee an earier ruling by the Supreme Court of Liberia, on February 8, 2021, with a guilty verdict after an earier judgement from the lower court holding former Defense Minister Brownie Samukai and two others guilty for ‘misused entrusted fund, misappropriation, theft of property, and criminal conspiracy’.

The convicted men wete ordered to refund or restitute the said amount within six months or go to jail for two years.

Addressing the Senate on Tuesday February 23, 2021, where Justice Minister had gone to give the status of the three missing Liberian who were allegly hired by St. Moses stated said that he has ‘no idea of a communication coming from Solicitor General Syrienus Cephus ordering the National Elections Commission (NEC) not to certificate Lofa Senator elect Brownie Samukai until he pays fifty percent of the AFL money’.

According to Justice Minister Dean, he only saw the communication on social media while traveling with President. George Weah on the county tour.

“I only read that letter on social media, I have not received any copy of the Solicitor General letter that was sent to NEC” The Justice Minister said to the Senate.

The Minister revelation came as a result of a question that was asked by Sen. Dillion if he was aware as the Attorney General of the Republic of Liberia about the communication from the solicitor General Cllr. Cephus.

At this point, the Liberian Senate took a decision to cite Cllr. Cephus to give reason behind the communication and what constitutes his legal authority to order NEC to hold the certification of Senator elect Brownie Samukai.

The solicitor General Cllr. Cephus is expected to appear before the full plenary of the Liberian senate on Thursday February 25, 2021at 12 noon.(courtesy of Women’s TV )

Even though the Supreme Court is yet to hand down final ruling in the case National Elections Commission (NEC) and Brownie Samukai vs the Candidate of the Ruling Coalition for Democratic Change in the case arising from the December 2020 Special Senatorial Election, which the Commission declared Mr. Samukai winner, Cllr. Cephus ordered the NEC not to certificate Mr. Samukai as winner of the election in Lofa County.

Mr. Samukai, a long-time security expert and former Defense Minister of the republic, had initially been declared winner of the county but the ruling party’s candidate ran to the NEC Hearing Officer arguing that there had been some issues with the election. Following the hearing, on February 5th , the elections body’s seven-member Board of Commissioners affirmed that indeed Mr. Samukai had won the election. Following the Commission’s ruling, however, the ruling party’s candidate and his legal team accepted the ruling but ran to the Supreme Court. The nation’s highest court is yet to hand down its ruling.

With that ruling from NEC’s BOC, Mr. Samukai was a joyous man in the driver’s seat as Senator-elect of Lofa county.

But his joy may now be short-lived based on some behind-the-scenes happenings and a recent letter sent to the NEC by the Ministry of Justice.

The former Defense Chief may now be in double trouble as the Justice Ministry has asked the Commission, ‘NOT TO’ Certificate him as Senator-elect, in keeping with a recent ruling from the Supreme Court, also involving Mr. Samukai.

The Court ruled on Monday, February 8, against the former Defense Minister and others. It affirmed a lower court’s verdict finding Mr. Samukai, who is Liberia’s longest serving Defense Minister, guilty of misuse of trusted fund, misappropriation, theft of property, criminal conspiracy, etc, of the Armed Forces of Liberia’s fund in the tune of over US$1.1 million.

The lower court had convicted the former Defense Minister, along with Joseph F. Johnson, former Deputy Minister for Administration and J. Nyumah Dorkor, former Comptroller, in March 2020.
However, following the Criminal Court ‘C’ Judge Yamie Gbeisay’s sentence of Mr. Samukai to two years of imprisonment, and his two deputies to one year and six months respectively or with a condition to restitute US$1.4 million over a one-year period, their legal team took an appeal to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court on that Monday upheld the lower court’s judgement against the three men with modification that the men were equality guilty of the crime so should bear the full punishment of restituting the money or going to jail for two years. The court also mandated the three men to pay at least US$700,000 of the money within six months of this ruling and that at the end of the six-month period, a payment plan be made for the balance of the money or risk going to jail in a “common prison.”

It is now based on the above case, which has nothing absolutely to do with Mr. Samukai’s win in Lofa, that the Ministry of Justice, through the Solicitor General, Cllr, Sayma Syrenius Cephus, has written Mrs. Davidetta Browne-Lassanah, Chairman, NEC, asking she and other Commissioners, not to certificate Mr. Samukai.

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.”