-The Liberian academic and activist says the selection of Cllr. Massaquoi to head the Office of the War and Economic Crimes Court was carried out under dubious circumstances.
Liberia's 177th National Orator, Dr. Robtel Neajai Pailey, has urged President Joseph Nyuma Boakai not to allow politicking to derail his achievements and time in office.
She also used the oration at Liberia's 177th Independence Day celebration on July 26, 2024, to encourage President Boakai to withdraw his nomination for the head of the Office of the War and Economic Crimes of Liberia.
"President Boakai, I urge you to withdraw this nomination and not allow politicking to derail one of the most important appointments of your time in office," she said in Monrovia.
The Liberian academic and activist observed that the selection process of the executive director to head the office of the War and Economic Crimes Court was carried out under dubious circumstances.
She suggested that it had no civil society vetting or endorsement, warning that it was unacceptable.
"So far, we have started on very shaky ground. First, although Executive Order No. 131 establishing the Office of a War and Economic Crimes Court was celebrated as long overdue, it still has a short lifespan of 12 months. Time is of the essence, but we are moving at a snail's pace," she cautioned.
Twenty years in the making, the Orator said Liberia's recent progress in establishing an office for war and economic crimes courts is a welcoming convergence of both nation-building and state-building.
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She noted that the arc of a re-imagined Liberia bends towards justice.
In a bid to achieve 'positive peace,' Dr. Pailey said Liberia cannot afford to bungle this process.
"We must be this court's chief sponsor and architect, including providing the lion's share of financing for it. We must institute a transparent and merit-based process of selecting who shapes the court's mandate," she stressed.
She urged the government to staff the office with upstanding Liberian human rights defenders, many of whom have been advocating in the trenches for decades.
She continued that Liberia must hold accountable those who bear the greatest responsibility for economic and war crimes without fear or favor, including foreign financiers and external state actors.
There has been a huge public outcry against the appointment of Cllr Jonathan Massaquoi, the executive director of the Office of War and Economic Crimes Court.
Among other critics, the Coalition for Justice in Liberia (CJL) has heavily opposed the appointment of Cllr. Massaquoi.
The group alleged that Cllr. Massaquoi's appointment undermines the credibility and integrity of the office of the War and Economic Crimes Court.
