Rep. Taa Wongbe US$300K Blackmail against Speaker Koffa Backfires; Backtracks Amidst Mounting Condemnations

IPNEWS: The famous biblical story of Judas Iscariot found in the Gospels, in which Judas sold Jesus of Nazareth for 30 pieces of silver, continues to resonate in the Liberian political scene.

The man Taa Wongbe, Representative for District No. 9, Nimba County, and current chair of the House’s Standing Committee on Foreign Relations, until Friday, July 12, 2024, was one of the inner cycle confidants of House Speaker Jonathan Fonati Koffa.

Representative Wongbe, who is serving in the House of Representatives for the first time, was a key figure behind the success of Speaker Koffa’s ascendency to the Speaker post. He served as the Chairman of the Strategic Committee that lobbied with other lawmakers in the House to elect Rep. Koffa.

Wongbe is credited for orchestrating a seamless collaboration, leveraging his somehow business acumen to win the support of both seasoned and newly elected lawmakers.

According to Wongbe, his support for an ‘opposition’ House Speaker was not merely a political stance but a commitment to the principles of separation of power, checks and balances, and accountability.

Nevertheless all of the above, rumors have emerged recently of a ploy to oust the Speaker from his throne. Strangely, Rep. Wongbe’s name surfaced as being one of the main plotters to dethrone him. However, the Speaker has downplayed the rumors of his removal; he termed it as “untrue.”

Now to the dismay of many, especially Speaker Koffa, Rep. Wongbe, launched an unprovoked attacked against the man.

Wongbe accused the Speaker of conniving with the Executive; that he lacks of transparency, among other allegations.

Speaker Koffa swiftly responded by addressing Wongbe’s accusations point by point, stating that his colleague in the House had misunderstood or intentionally misrepresented his remarks made during a working dinner with the President. Koffa clarified that he had urged the President to stop pushing bills through a partisan outfit known as the “Rescue Bloc” and emphasized that Executive Bills should be sent to the House Leadership, which controls the agenda. He stressed that at no time did he commit to passing all bills without scrutiny or regard for the people’s interests and the rule of law.

Koffa further explained that his exchanges with the Executive Branch stamped from a complaint filed by the House’s Committee on Executive, and he questioned how he could be accused of colluding with the Executive while leading efforts to address the “yellow machine” issue, which prompted a presidential response.

Regarding transparency and audits at the Legislature, Koffa highlighted that he is the only Speaker in Liberia’s history to sign up for audits of the House. He noted that the Auditor General advised setting up a system before conducting audits and that he had no control over the pace of the General Auditing Commission’s (GAC) work. He assured that steps were being taken to ensure audits are done and advised Wongbe to familiarize himself with the issues.

Koffa also addressed the issue of members’ benefits, acknowledging that it has always been a concern at the Legislature. He mentioned that he had entertained countless members from previous legislatures on this issue and even threatened to shut down the House over it. He informed that the Committee on Ways, Means, and Finance had developed a schedule and briefed the Plenary, assuring that remaining benefits would be paid soon.

In response to allegations of connivance with the Executive, Koffa challenged Wongbe to present any bill or instrument passed that was not in Liberia’s interest. He asserted that his management of the Plenary is non-partisan and emphasized his commitment to coordinating with the Executive and Judiciary to ensure measures and legislation beneficial to Liberia are enacted.

The Speaker also criticized Wongbe for his recent actions, questioning whether Wongbe was conniving or collaborating when he traveled with the President to South Korea and genuflected before him in Abuja. Koffa called on Wongbe to raise the benefits issue during such interactions if he was genuinely concerned.

On the topic of budget alterations, Koffa recounted how he first raised the issue with the Ministry of Finance when discrepancies in the House’s budget were discovered. He informed that the Legislative Budget Office (LBO) was instructed to analyze the entire budget document, which led to the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning removing the document from their website.

Concluding his response, Koffa stated that his training as a lawyer and his legislative experience would not allow him to act on incomplete information. He dismissed Wongbe’s claims as baseless and reckless, attributing them to the nature of “Facebook politics.” He encouraged Wongbe to attend leadership meetings to better understand the workings of the Legislature and wished him luck in his pursuit of the Alternative National Congress (ANC) Chairmanship.

“I won’t be responding further,” Koffa concluded.

As Taa Wongbe’s confrontation with Speaker Koffa ensue, that the outburst of Nimba District No. 9 Representative was basically frustration after a lengthy period of follow up on a request to House Speaker for a mouthwatering US$300,000 was turned down.

Further information gathered states that House Speaker Koffa told Representative Wongbe, that he could not afford such a huge sum especially barely six months in office.

According to sources, this prompted a move of Rep. Wongbe from the inner cycle of Speaker Koffa to join other coupe plotters for the removal of the House speaker.

IPNEWS could not independently verified the accusation, as mobile phone numbers of Rep. Wongbe available to this newspaper IPNEWS remained perpetually off up to press time.

In the wake of the revelation, Rep. Wongbe, has retracted his earlier attacks against Speaker Koffa, who is first among “equals”.

In a social media post, Rep. Wongbe stated, “It is said that those who know better should do better and I have come to realize that doing better or doing the right thing is hard. You will get insulted and go through many challenges, but if you allow the same failed system to work on you, your mandate for transformation will not be achieved. Today, I have heard the calls of many to disengage and I will drop arm and await the Speaker’s response to my grave concerns. As a leader, I must listen. I have listened and I submit. I have also reached out privately to the Speaker. I reminded that when I supported him, it was on these principles.”

According to the Nimba County lawmaker, his support for an ‘opposition’ House Speaker is not merely a political stance but a commitment to the principles of separation of power, checks and balances, and accountability and will work with him to achieve this. “I also reminded him that loyalty is not stupidity and doesn’t mean one must be a sycophant,” Wongbe added.

“To those of you who believe in me and felt disappointed in my actions for publicly holding the Speaker accountable, I am sorry. I am growing and maturing as a leader and learning how to balance my passion for change and doing what’s right, while still pushing for transformation. It’s a difficult balance that I must learn. I still remain committed to positive transformation in this country we love so dearly, and I know the system will revolt, for WE ARE THE SYSTEM…”

Meanwhile, IPNEWS is yet to get any response to our inquiry about a request to House Speaker Koffa by Rep. Wongbe for an alleged US$300,000. Investigation continues.