Liberia’s Council of Churches warns justice “must not become political revenge” as ex-ministers convicted in Saudi aid case and Chief Justice floats scrapping jury trials

MONROVIA – Liberia’s most influential Christian body has called on the government, the courts and the country’s political class to keep politics out of the courtroom, days after a jury convicted a former foreign minister and other ex-officials of stealing rice donated by Saudi Arabia for disaster victims.

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By Rodney D Sieh

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In a statement issued Tuesday titled “Justice Without Political Interference; Reconciliation Without Impunity,” the Liberia Council of Churches (LCC) said it “neither determines guilt nor dictates the outcome” of the case, but insisted that justice be “governed by evidence and law, free from political interference, intimidation, and public pressure.”

“No one should be prosecuted because of personal hatred or political opposition, or escape lawful accountability through political influence,” said the Council, which is led by Rev. Dr. Samuel Broomfield Reeves, Jr., who also serves as vice president of the Inter-Religious Council of Liberia.

A verdict that split the jury, and the country

The statement follows a mixed verdict delivered Friday, October 9, at Criminal Court “C” in Monrovia. According to the Asset Recovery and Property Retrieval Taskforce (AREPT), which prosecuted the case, the jury found eight of the 13 defendants guilty, including former Foreign Affairs Minister Dee-Maxwell Saah Kemayah and former Internal Affairs Minister Varney A. Sirleaf. Three were acquitted, and verdicts on two others were inconclusive.

Kemayah was reported guilty on all five counts: theft of property, economic sabotage, misapplication of entrusted property, abuse of office and criminal conspiracy. But the jury was far from united. Four of the 12 jurors reportedly voted to acquit him of theft, and four voted against conviction on both economic sabotage and conspiracy; only the abuse-of-office count was unanimous.

Former National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) chief Henry O. Williams was reported not guilty on all charges, a notable outcome given that his agency was responsible for storing and distributing the rice. Charges against Mary Broh, the former head of the General Services Agency and one-time acting mayor of Monrovia, were dropped by the Justice Ministry in August.

Jurors were reportedly seen wearing masks to hide their identities during the trial, an indication of the pressure surrounding a case involving some of the most recognizable figures from Liberia’s previous government.

Rice meant for the vulnerable

The case centers on a humanitarian gift. In 2023, Saudi Arabia donated 29,412 bags of rice, valued at about US$500,000, for disaster victims and vulnerable Liberians. The indictment alleged that 25,054 of those bags were unlawfully diverted or misapplied. Rice is Liberia’s staple food, and the alleged diversion of aid in one of West Africa’s poorest nations has made the case a lightning rod for public anger over corruption.

Kemayah, who helped secure the donation while serving as foreign minister, has consistently denied stealing, receiving or misappropriating the rice. His defense argued that the financial side of the donation was handled directly by Saudi humanitarian authorities and the supplier, not by him.

The prosecution grew out of President Joseph Boakai’s anti-corruption drive after he defeated incumbent George Weah in the 2023 election. Kemayah and Sirleaf both served in Weah’s cabinet, and supporters of the defendants have increasingly cast the trials as politically motivated.

‘Score-settling masquerading as justice’

That charge was sharpened on Monday when one of the convicted officials, former NDMA official and ordained Baptist minister Rev. Rosetta L. Gbassay Bowah, rejected her verdict on Facebook. She alleged that prosecutors had persistently pressed her to become a state witness, a claim her post offered no evidence for and which has not been independently verified. She warned that Liberia risks a cycle of vengeance, political persecution and “score-settling masquerading as justice.”

The government sees it differently. AREPT welcomed the verdicts as a significant milestone in the fight against corruption, and its chairman, Cllr. Edwin Kla Martin, said the taskforce was ready to defend the convictions if defendants appeal to the Supreme Court.

Chief Justice questions jury system

The Council’s call for judicial independence also lands amid a fresh controversy over how Liberia’s courts reach verdicts. Opening the Supreme Court’s October Term on Monday, Chief Justice Yamie Quiqui Gbeisay Sr. said jury manipulation was eroding justice in civil and criminal cases, declaring that “a corrupt jury is worse than no jury at all.” He cited suspected interference in proceedings at Criminal Court “C,” the same court that heard the rice case.

The Liberia National Bar Association condemned tampering but said its participation in any review should not be read as support for abolition, while Senator Darius Dillon argued that removing jury trials would require a national referendum.

Reconciliation ‘not a shield’

The LCC’s statement reaches beyond the courtroom to a sensitive national theme. Liberia is still grappling with the legacy of civil wars that killed an estimated 250,000 people between 1989 and 2003, and debates over accountability and forgiveness remain raw.

“Reconciliation must not become a shield for wrongdoing,” the Council said. “Forgiveness cannot erase the need for accountability, and accountability must never become an instrument of revenge.”

Recalling the country’s “painful history,” the churches warned that “justice pursued without fairness can deepen division, while peace pursued without accountability can preserve injustice.”

The Council urged public officials, political parties, the media and citizens not to prejudge the case or pressure the courts. “Public scrutiny is legitimate; political interference is not,” it said, and called on congregations to “reject hateful rhetoric” and encourage peaceful dialogue.

“Let the courts follow the evidence, the Government respect the law, and the Church speak the truth,” the statement concluded.