WHEN PRESIDENT JOSEPH Boakai ascended to power in early 2024, he stood before the nation and made a solemn vow to the women and girls of Liberia. He pledged an unwavering commitment to their protection and to the pursuit of justice for the most vulnerable. That promise now rings hollow as his administration presides over a grotesque spectacle: a powerful deputy minister, Bryant McGill, accused of the brutal rape of a 14-year-old child, remains a free man, shielded by the very system meant to prosecute him.
THIS IS NOT a matter of innocent until proven guilty; that is a principle for the courts to decide. This is a matter of the law being applied equally to all. The case against McGill is not a whisper in the dark. It is supported by a medical report confirming penetration, a survivor placed in a safe home, and the courageous testimony of a father, Christopher Davis, a security official within McGill’s own ministry. Under Liberian law, rape of a minor is a non-bailable first-degree felony. The standard, non-negotiable procedure is immediate arrest and pre-trial detention. For any ordinary citizen, a prison cell at South Beach would already be their address.
YET, FOR RRYANT McGill, the rules are different. The Liberia National Police, whose spokesperson can only offer the cowardly directive to “check our Facebook page,” has treated him with a deference that stinks of political protection. His recent “leave of absence” is a cynical, insufficient gesture—a calculated attempt to quell public anger without administering actual accountability. Suspension is an administrative action; arrest is a legal imperative. One does not replace the other.
THIS TWO-TOERED JUSTICE system—one for the connected “big people” and another for the masses—is a poison in our society. It is the very corruption and impunity President Boakai’s ARREST Agenda promised to dismantle. How can we speak of Rule of Law when a man accused of a heinous crime is allowed to walk free, potentially intimidating witnesses and enjoying the liberties he allegedly stripped from a child? Advocates like Ms. Vickjune Wutoh are right: if McGill is not arrested, then every rapist in South Beach should be released immediately, for the law has been exposed as a lie.
WE THEREFORE DEMAND
two immediate and non-negotiable actions:
First, the Liberia National Police must execute an immediate arrest warrant for Bryant McGill.** The evidence is more than sufficient to meet the threshold for arrest. Every hour he spends outside of a cell is an hour that makes a mockery of our penal code and a betrayal of every survivor of gender-based violence.
SECOND, PRESIDENT BOAKAI must immediately suspend Bryant McGill from his government post. A mere “leave of absence” is an insult to the nation and to the survivor. A public official accused of such a grave crime against a citizen cannot remain on the government’s payroll, representing the state in any capacity. His continued association with the Ministry of Youth and Sports is a stain on the entire administration.
PRESIDENT BOAKAI, YOU assured Liberian women of your protection. You promised a new era. This is the moment that defines that promise. Will you uphold the law without fear or favor, or will you allow a member of your own ruling party to be seen as above it? The world is watching. The women of Liberia are watching. A traumatized 14-year-old girl is waiting. Do not let your promise die in the silence of complicity. Suspend Bryant McGill now and ensure that he is legally arrested and detained as required by law.
