In March of this year, the legal interest of Jefferson Tamba Koijee, Mayor of the City of Monrovia, wrote the office of Liberia’s Minister of Justice/Attorney General
Republic of Liberia, Cllr. Frank Musa Dean, Jr., with burning concerns about demeaning allegations made against him by several individuals.
In said communication, the Mayor’s legal team made the following requests: “1. Call on or ask the International Community to intervene to help the Government and people of Liberia for a thorough investigation of these allegations, threats, and attacks on our clients made by Mr. Henry Costa and Mr. Therry Genesis. 2. As we consider our next course of legal actions against these individuals to curtail repeat, we also called on the Government of Liberia and the International Community to join the government of Liberia to help investigate the death of the late Charlotte Musu and the armed robbery at the residence of Cllr: Gloria Musu Scott, Former Chief Justice of Liberia, and also the allegation made by Senator Prince Johnson, Nimba County Senator against Hon Jefferson Tamba Koijee.”
Unfortunately, none of these concerns have been addressed but he’s now being summoned to respond to inquiries regarding the same matter.
In the team’s communication, they recalled- “A few weeks ago, an armed robbery at the home of Cllr. Gloria Musu Scott, the former chief justice of Liberia, resulted in the murder of her daughter, Charlotte Musu. This terrible situation that had captured the attention of well-intentioned Liberians has been politicized by specific individuals in and outside our nation, who now utilize social media platforms to fabricate and propagate false information about our client. Cllr. Jerome Verdier, Sr. was given a social media platform by SPOON TV in which he accused our client, Hon. Jefferson Tamba Koijee, of plotting the assassination of Cllr. Gloria Musu Scott and the murder of her daughter, Charlotte Musu. This statement of Cllr. Verdier is a malicious lie characterized by whims, caprices, and personal hatred for Mayor Koijee.
To continue this propaganda based on what they termed as lies against the Major, his legal team added- “a popular social media commentator, Mr. Henry Costa, is another actor consistently spreading these lies and agitating members of the public, threatening the life of Hon. Jefferson and Koijee; the actions of these personalities, Cllr. Jerome Verdier, Mr. Henry Costa, and many other propaganda agents intended to create chaos in Liberia. These lies and propagandistic messages spread on social media by these individuals border on national security and thereby threaten the life of our Client, Hon. Jefferson Tamba Koijee. This national security issue and threat to the life of our Client, Hon. Koijee, must be handled to preserve our hard-won peace in Liberia and eliminate the threats to Hon. Jefferson Tamba Koijee.”
The communication continued- “Mr. Costa said on Facebook on 1 March 2023 that Jefferson Koijee is the most dangerous guy in Liberia. He further stated that if we, the opposition, do not discover a method to stop him, he will order the death of more innocent people and weaken us via fear and intimidation! He is the most significant danger to our country. Those were statements of Mr. Henry Costa on his Facebook platform. Please see attached copy of the posted information marked as L/1.”
They referenced- “In these very absurd blog articles, Mr. Costa implies many things: Our client is a murderer and continues to threaten the state based on lies perpetrated by Cllr. Jerome Verdier. The opposition should investigate measures to stop him, including unconventional methods such as assassination. He identifies our client as “the biggest danger to our country,” as if a reputable local or international agency had conducted a survey or research to support such a claim.”
Moreover, the Mayor’s legal team stated, “Former Assistant Minister Thierry Genesis added in another Facebook post, “If nobody kills Koijee now, he will continue murdering innocent people while the CDC Police cover up his crimes.” Please see attached copy of the posted statement to form another cogent part of this letter, marked as L/3.
A user identifying as Bill Carson said, “I want Jefferson Koijee to send the ECOWAS Ambassador six feet; then the international community will wake up,” in Costa’s podcast designed to mock the mayor. This remark indicates that Bill Carson desires the death of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Ambassador to Liberia. Please see also a posted comment of Bill Carson, marked as L/4.”
In their opinion, these characterizations of their client by these social media commenters and Cllr. Verdier are not motivated by only political considerations. “Yet, they contain malicious intentions that put our client in danger from the opposing community led by Costa and others. These remarks aim to spread hatred, vitriol, and assaults designed to undermine our peace.”
“Cllr. Jerome Verdier, Former Chairman of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission(TRC) of Liberia, accused our client of masterminding an armed robbery at the home of former Chief Justice Gloria Musu Scott in Brewerville, Montserrado County, which led to the death of her foster daughter, a statement that lacks truth and evidence. Senator Prince Johnson of Nimba, who has been frantically making efforts to part ways with President Weah, also made similar allegations that he was being threatened by Hon Koijee, including other broad claims based on falsehood and misrepresentation.”
According to them, “All these deliberate ploys are intended to render our client a backbencher in the CDC administration, even though he remains one of the system’s driving forces. These reckless activities are designed to cause our client to be wholly irrelevant and powerless in politics, facilitating threats to the life of Mayor Koijee and our national security. Blackmail, threats to one’s life, and statements that endanger the peace and sanity of Liberia are not to be taken lightly.”
With the different concerns, they made the following requests: 1. Call on or ask the International Community to intervene to help the Government and people of Liberia for a thorough investigation of these allegations, threats, and attacks on our clients made by Mr. Henry Costa and Mr. Therry Genesis. 2. As we consider our next course of legal actions against these individuals to curtail repeat, we also called on the Government of Liberia and the International Community to join the government of Liberia to help investigate the death of the late Charlotte Musu and the armed robbery at the residence of Cllr: Gloria Musu Scott, Former Chief Justice of Liberia, and also the allegation made by Senator Prince Johnson, Nimba County Senator against Hon Jefferson Tamba Koijee.”
