The Full Bench of the Supreme Court of Liberia has ordered the arrest of the living body of the Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Samuel Tweah, in order that he may show cause why he should not be held in contempt for impeding the functions of the court and creating a Constitutional crisis for the Judiciary.
According to the writ of arrest, issued by the Supreme court on Monday, November 7, 2022, “By directive of the Full Bench of the honorable Supreme Court, you are hereby commanded to arrest the living body of Samuel Tweah, Minister, Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, Republic of Liberia, to show cause why he should not be held in contempt of court for impeding the functions of the courts and creating a Constitutional crisis for the Judiciary.”
The communication, under the signature of the Chief Clerk of the Supreme Court, Cllr. Sam Momolu, instructed the Marshall of the Supreme Court, Brig. General Amos Dickson, to ensure that the order of the court is fully executed.
According to some workers of the Judiciary, they have not taken pay for months, despite being affected by the Harmonization Policy; therefore, they have decided to engage the Chief Justice to express their dissatisfaction.
It can be recalled that in November 2021 several aggrieved Judges of the National Association of Trial Judges of Liberia filed a lawsuit petition against the Government of Liberia (GOL) for what they described as the “wrongful and illegal abolition and withholding of their allowances, salaries, and benefits”.
The new Chief Justice, Sie -A- Nyene Yuoh, during her sitting address delivered at the opening of the Supreme Court, emphasized, “I am cognizant of the Judicial Financial Autonomy Act (2006), and the need to ensure strict compliance with these laws, and the debate surrounding the harmonization of the salaries of justices/judges.”
