Liberia News: Attempt To Remove Speaker Koffa Uncovered

Liberia-An online platform says it has uncovered another plan by several ‘rebel’ Lawmakers including some Senators to stage another attempted pilot to remove current Speaker of the House Cllr. J. Fonati Koffa while on official visit to Rome, Italy at the invitation of President Joseph N. Boakai.

Those ‘rebel’ lawmakers allegedly opting to remove Speaker Fonati Koffa according to the Independent Probe online newspaper, includes Representative Ivan K. Jones, of Margibi, District No 2, Rep. Clarence G. Gahr, Margibi County, District No 5, Rep. Foday Fahnbulleh, Bong County, District No. 7, Rep. Dorwohn T. Galeekia, Nimba County, District No. 6, among others.

According to some breakaway ‘rebel’ lawmakers, who confided in IPNEWS, an overnight meeting to execute the plan failed after members of the House could not reach quorum of 37 Representative out of a total of 73 in keeping with the House’s standing rules.

The rebel lawmakers who are said to be less than 20, are allegedly being supported by the Executive, even though the Executive has not officially responded to an inquiry by the local daily.

According to the report, the breakaway ‘rebel’ are contenting Speaker Koffa’s recent stance to expose the alteration of the budget which has been the normal trend among key and influential Lawmakers over the last decade.

The Legislative cartel comprising the notable names, are in conspiracy with some members of the Liberian Senate who are opting Speaker Koffa’s removal due to blockade put in place by the current team on the Ways, Means and Finance Committee of the House of Representative which is preventing them for dubious acquisition of wealth through budget alteration.

Another breakaway rebel lawmaker disclosed that the Legislative Cartel had planned to remove Speaker Fonati Koffa at the resumption of the regular session on today Tuesday, October 15, 2024, but was thwarted due to the lack of quorum.

“They call us last night that Speaker Koffa needs to be remove because he opens up the process of the budget formulation by the involvement of a revenue subcommittee and expenditure subcommittee, including a budget resource expert which now paved way for all 30 persons to review the national budget before passage.”

“Another thing they call us for is that Speaker Koffa insistence that the House of Representatives be audited before the end of October 2024 may expose a lot of them, so they decided to let go Speaker Koffa before it gets too late,” One of the breakaway ‘rebels’ lawmakers narrated to the online newspaper.

Another source disclosed that Speaker Koffa’s presence will undermine the acquisition of resources for many lawmaker who are eyeing 2029. “I tell you this, the Executive did not like US$4.5 million reserved for yellow machines in the national budget which was removed by the House Ways, Means and Finance committee. The independence of the House is at stake, including a critical demand to ensure the expulsion of Representative Yekeh Kolubah from the House of Representative because his constant abuse of President Joseph Boakai were other issues discussed,” another breakaway ‘rebel’ lawmaker concludes.

It can be recalled, that in the first quarter of 2024, another planned removal failed after some member of the house allegedly with the aid of Deputy Speaker Thomos Fallah, seeking to remove Speaker Fonati Koffa was thwarted. The failed removal came barely two months after a heavily contested scene during the election of the Speaker of the House of Representative.