–UL President Maparyan Vows, Despite Pressure to Resign
By Jerromie S. Walters
MONROVIA – The President of the University of Liberia (UL), Dr. Layli Maparyan, has declared her intention to remain at the helm of the institution, dismissing calls for her resignation and reaffirming her commitment to her transformative mandate. Speaking during a telephone appearance on the “UL President Hour” on Lux Radio on Monday, September 1, 2025, Dr. Maparyan directly addressed the pressure from the campus-based Student Unification Party (SUP), making it clear that stepping down is not an option.
“I have not resigned, and I have no intention to resign,” President Maparyan stated emphatically. “I am focused on implementing my mandate, which is ‘Making the UL what it ought to be.’” Amidst concerns over faculty grievances and general campus unrest, the President assured students and stakeholders that the academic calendar remains unchanged. She confirmed that the university is firmly on course for classes to resume on September 8, 2025.
To address faculty concerns, Dr. Maparyan announced a series of planned engagements for the remainder of the week. “We will use the rest of this week to engage the faculty in an attempt to find common ground on their concerns,” she said, acknowledging that a significant portion of the issues are financially motivated. “I understand that most of these issues are budget-driven, and we are actively working towards solutions.”
The President provided context for the financial challenges, noting that she assumed leadership after the 2025 national budget—which funds the university—had already been crafted and passed. To ensure future budgets better serve the institution’s needs, she has initiated a bottom-up budgetary process. “For the coming budget year, I have asked all departments and units to submit their own budget proposals,” Dr. Maparyan explained. “This is to ensure the upcoming budget truly reflects the UL dream and the specific needs of our academic community.”
In a move to address long-standing employee welfare issues, the President also revealed that she will be holding her first official meeting with the National Social Security and Welfare Corporation (NASSCORP). The meeting aims to secure a “fair appreciation of the social security scheme” for UL staff. Throughout her address, Dr. Maparyan struck a balance between collaboration and unwavering principle.
While she affirmed the right to peaceful protest, she called for unity in moving the institution forward.
“People have the right to protest; however, I want everyone on board in moving the institution forward,” she stated. She further pledged that she would not “bend the wheels” in upholding integrity and professionalism at Africa’s oldest modern university.
Calls for her resignation:
At a recent news conference, the student militant group levied a litany of grave accusations against President Maparyan, after just seven months in office, which they have branded a period of unmitigated failure and “disgraceful stewardship.” The SUP’s indictment, signed by Secretary-General Odecious Mulbah and Chairman Sylvester Wheeler, presents a six-point case for what they call her “catastrophe” of a tenure.
The party condemns the persistent “dilapidated classrooms, offices, and bathrooms,” a complete lack of internet connectivity, and the absence of operational buses for an entire semester, leaving students stranded and underscoring a failure to manage basic needs. SUP slammed the administration’s controversial decision to redesignate the limited-course vacation school as the official “second semester,” calling it an “affront” that made education inaccessible to the majority of the university’s 25,000 students.
The party cited a chaotic and neglected registration process that has left students in limbo, “anxious about receiving their grades” and jeopardizing their right to a timely education. In the most explosive allegation, SUP accused Maparyan of aligning with “corrupt forces” to unjustly dismiss staff without transparency. They point to the dismissal of eight employees and the eight-month suspension of Mr. Aaron Sengbe, which they claim violates the recommendation of her own investigative committee.
The dismissal of VP for Fiscal Affairs Isaac Gannet was labeled arbitrary, with Maparyan allegedly stating, “I’m the president and have the right to dismiss any vice president without question.” Despite five international trips, SUP claims Maparyan has “not raised a single cent” for UL, while she draws a combined monthly salary of $15,000 ($7,300 non-taxable from UL and $7,700 taxable from the government). This stands in stark contrast, they note, to faculty who have gone unpaid for seven months.
The party alleges rampant corruption, presenting what they call evidence that Maparyan’s appointee, Lester Tenny, received a $14,000 retroactive payment just two weeks into his tenure, a move they label “favoritism” that “highlights her corrupt intent.” The statement concludes with a final, unequivocal ultimatum: based on these “failures to restore decent infrastructure, normalize the academic calendar, resolve Add/Drop issues, reinstate unjustly dismissed staff, and cease corrupt practices,” Dr. Maparyan must resign immediately to save the university from “future catastrophe.”
Upon taking over in January of this year, Dr. Layli Maparyan whose also the Sixteen President of the University of Liberia intimated that one of unavoidable things that is required to get the University of Liberia to regain its status amongst universities of the nation, Africa and the world is regularizing faculty pay by getting a comprehensive payroll that is void of corruption.
