After failing to reach a quorum, members of the Speaker Fonati Koffa faction adjourned Tuesday’s session in the House of Representatives’ main chamber. Minority members attended the session with both Speaker and Deputy Speaker Thomas Fallah.
Representative Musa Hassan Bility of Nimba County presented a motion during the meeting to require lawmakers who were not present to attend the next session on Thursday. The motion was approved by a unanimous vote of the body.
Nonetheless, the group advocating for Speaker Koffa’s departure also convened another session in the National Legislature’s combined chambers without the Speaker and Deputy Speaker present.
In response to Deputy Speaker Thomas Fallah’s refusal to attend their separate sitting today, the body also filed a motion to call him to the joint chambers on Thursday.
It is unclear what would happen on the Capitol Building during their next meeting on Thursday, October 24, 2024, given the bloc summons and compelling motions.
About 47 House of Representatives members submitted a six-count petition last week demanding that incumbent Speaker Jonathan Fornati Koffa be removed for what they described as his poor leadership style.
Bribery allegation at Liberian legislature
In the wake of the speaker’s removal, Gbarpolu County Representative Luther Collins was spotted carrying a substantial sum of money—$14,800.00—that he claimed he had received from one of his colleagues in order to do so.
Samuel Kogar, the spokesperson for the aggrieved Lawmakers, refutes Rep. Collins’ assertion, pointing out that the plan to oust Speaker Koffa is not motivated by money.
The legislature has previously been accused of bribery; in 2006, Edwin Melvin Snow, the former speaker, was ousted after Representatives were offered $5,000 USD in inducements from an unidentified source. Similar to this, another former speaker, Alex Tyler, was ousted in 2016 after lawmakers were bribed $10,000 to do so.
These funds’ sources have not been revealed.
