Liberia: Rep. Banks Slams Speaker

21 January 2026
The New Dawn (Monrovia)
By Stephen G. Fellajuah

-As Lawmakers sweat through disrupted session

A sudden power outage brought proceedings at the House of Representatives to a standstill, plunging lawmakers into darkness and suffocating heat and igniting heated exchanges over leadership responsibility and preparedness.

The disruption occurred during the third session of the 55th Legislature on January 20, 2026, with approximately 37 lawmakers present in the chamber. The blackout shut down lights, microphones, and electronic systems, slowing deliberations and visibly frustrating members as legislative business ground to a halt.

Several representatives openly criticized House leadership, branding the situation as negligence and poor management. Leading the criticism was Representative J. Clarence T. Banks of Grand Bassa County Electoral District #2, who accused the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of failing to provide basic working conditions for lawmakers.

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"All the money in this country, no mehn. The Speaker and the Deputy Speaker are playing," Rep. Banks said angrily as he fanned himself in the heat.

Many lawmakers described the incident as a national embarrassment, noting that elected officials were forced to sit in an overheated, darkened chamber while critical national matters were delayed. Others warned that such disruptions erode the credibility and effectiveness of the Legislature.

The outage is the latest in a series of similar incidents. In October 2025, a power failure reportedly stalled a House session for nearly 30 minutes, forcing some lawmakers to rely on phone flashlights to continue deliberations. The recurring blackouts have intensified concerns about persistent electricity reliability problems at the Capitol Building.

Preliminary information suggests the outages are technical, linked to interruptions in power supply from the Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC), rather than any deliberate action by House authorities. Liberia's electricity grid remains prone to intermittent supply and load-shedding due to infrastructure and generation constraints, leaving even critical government institutions vulnerable.

While the latest disruption appears technical, lawmakers say it underscores a broader national challenge, unreliable electricity that hampers not only homes and businesses, but the effective functioning of government itself.

The repeated outages have renewed calls within the House for dependable backup power systems and stronger contingency planning to prevent future interruptions of legislative work.

Read the original article on New Dawn.

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