Monrovia — Liberians have blamed the Justice Ministry for the not guilty verdict that was passed by Criminal Court A involving individuals who were allegedly implicated in the $100 million worth of drugs.
FrontPage Africa went out to talk to Liberians, and this is what they had to say:
Kanye Harris, street vendor
"The loss of the case shows the weakness on the part of the Justice Ministry.
If you are going through such a case, your evidence should be strong. According to the court spokesperson, the Minister of Justice, Frank Musa Dean, never went to court during the trial.
The President is also weak. He needs to change some of the people in the Ministry of Justice. There is a certain cartel in the government that wants to make the government look bad. The jurors were not bribed. The Justice Ministry is just dormant."
Joseph Jeremiah Testimony Barclay, Political Activist
Drugs have continually destroyed our youth, so the government is supposed to be ready enough to go to court. And if they were not ready, that shows that you lost the case.
Also, the judicial system casts a dark cloud over cases in Liberia. If you look at the case, I'm not saying that the jurors were bribed, but in Liberia, anything can happen.
I'm calling on the government to summon all of the jurors and interrogate them. Over the years, our borders have not been protected. The government needs to pay attention when it comes to illegal drugs in our country.
The jurors who sat on that case, we thought they were going to do the necessary, so they need to be summoned."
Charles Roberts, Unity Party Member
"I feel so disappointed in the judiciary system and the government of Liberia.
We are in a serious drug crisis. Our youths are taking drugs, and we don't know where the drugs are coming from.
Now, for the court to tell us that the people who were accused were falsely accused and they won the case against the government and they are nowhere to be found, it beats my imagination.
You can have the best evidence, but the way you present it can make you lose the case. So, I would say that the government compromised the case and brought forth weak evidence.
The government compromised the case; that is why we have been saying that the government is the one bringing drugs into this country."
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Romeo Fahnbulleh, Montserrado County District #14 Resident
"The government arrested the people and released them. How can $100 million worth of drugs come into the country, and no one takes responsibility? The government is aware of what went on. See what is happening in the country.
Drugs are everywhere in our country. We are hearing that the Justice Minister said that the guys who were freed should be arrested by anyone who sees them. The Justice Ministry should be the one to arrest them. They should make the arrest.
The Justice Minister sounds comical, and that is why we are saying that the government is aware of this drug issue."
Moibah V. Kaidii, an academician
"We have to look at such a case. If the government had won the case, it would have boosted their morale in fighting illegal drugs in Liberia.
The government should be held responsible for such a loss. They were supposed to put all their mechanisms in place to win the case.
Their evidence was not strong enough to win the case. Daily our children are getting into drug activities so by the government losing this case, we as parents are in big trouble. I don't think there was corruption during the process. The government did not do the right thing and it is a bowl on the part of the government." Prince B. Zayzay, Buzi Quarter Resident "We voted for President Weah but he is not doing anything for us the young people so I will blame him for the loss of this drug case. The drug has been in Liberia but was minimal but under President Weah, it is on the increase."
