AFRICA/LIBERIA - Fire in the Parliament after weeks of tension

Monrovia (Agenzia Fides) - Yesterday, December 18, a fire broke out in the Parliament building in Monrovia. The flames, whose origin is currently unclear, were only extinguished with difficulty by the firefighters. The Parliament is burning while the country is shaken by protests against the attempt by the presidential majority to depose the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
The mysterious incident occurred after clashes between the police and demonstrators of the opposition alliance "Coalition for Democratic Change" (CDC) led by former President George Weah, who were protesting against the attempt by the presidential majority to oust the current Speaker of Parliament, Jonathan Fonati Koffa (a member of the CDC). During the clashes, Weah's former assistant Sekou Kalasco Damaro was arrested, among others. The drive to remove the Speaker of the House of Representatives began on October 17, when 47 MPs signed a resolution to remove Koffa, who was accused of corruption. This led to a brawl with Koffa supporters. Tensions were then fueled by news circulating on social media that Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Fallah and Deputy Speaker of Parliament Jeremiah Kpan Koung had bribed MPs to remove Koffa, while those directly involved denied this claim. The legally required two-thirds majority to remove the Speaker of the House of Representatives was not achieved, which resulted in the delay in the passage of the national budget.
This then led to rallies in the streets of the capital, where CDC protesters called on President Joseph Nyumah Boakai and Vice President Koung to stop interfering in the work of the legislature and to abandon the unconstitutional attempt to remove Koffa. Yesterday's fire is already the second fire in the Parliament building within a week. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 19/12/2024)

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