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The president of Liberia, Joseph Nyumah Boakai has raised contention over the former Foreign Affairs Minister, Amb. Dee-Maxwell Saah Kemayah’s appointment as ECOWAS Ambassador to neighboring Sierra Leone, seeking ECOWAS attention to nominate a person of his choice.
Boakai’s Press Secretary, Madam Kula Bonah Fofana confirmed how the Boakai administration and ECOWAS have been at the back and forth of the conversation with President Joseph Nyumah Boakai pushing to revoke Amb. Kemayah’s appointment as ECOWAS Resident Representative to Sierra Leone but ECOWAS has rejected the objection of Boakai to Kemayah’s appointment as the action of President Boakai could undermine ECOWAS’s independent function.
“The government has some concerns with the Kemayah appointment, and that was communicated to the ECOWAS and the team has just received through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs the response from ECOWAS. And since that response had been given, then again, once the response, the minister and the president, the minister will brief the president and they will take action, so where we are at this point is that this is the actual conversation that ECOWAS did communicate with the minister and the minister has briefed the president but the decision as to the next step has not been reached , and once it is reached, it will be communicated to the public,” Kula stated on Spoon Communication Network.
She also confirmed that President Boakai had a side conversation with the Sierra Leon President Julius Maada Bio at the South Korea-Africa Summit in Soul pushing for the government of Sierra Leone to reject Kemayah’s appointment.
When quizzed about whether President Boakai wants Kemayah to serve as Resident Representative of ECOWAS in Sierra Leone or not, Kula responded that “Diplomatically, the president will do whatever he wants to do and he will recommend people whom he wants to recommend, to regional bodies that will support his administration, vision and agenda.”
Meanwhile, President Boakai’s Press Secretary disclosed that there are active Diplomatic conversations ongoing which they are spending more time on and will decide at the appropriate time.
She however refused to state the concerns President Boakai has against Amb. Kemayah’s Appointment with all the effort applied by the panelists on the Spoon Talk.
Boakai’s Press Secretary disclosed that President Boakai has made an extra nomination to ECOWAS through his Foreign Minister to replace Amb. Kemayah.
In the midst of several challenges the country is faced with under President Boakai’s regime, including the fulfillment of his campaign promises such as road accessibility, jobs creation, and fighting corruption among others, Boakai is focusing on fighting his citizen, Amb. Kemayah for a job that is not under his jurisdiction, which is a classical witch hunt against Amb. Kemayah.
Even though it is the prerogative of the president of the ECOWAS Commission to appoint an ECOWAS Resident Representative to Sierra Leone or any other ECOWAS member state of his choice based on the competencies and balanced representation, President Boakai and his ministers of Foreign Affairs and State for Presidential Affairs, Sara Beysolow Nyanti and Sylvester Grigsby are insisting on subjecting the regional body to appoint their choice “Amb. Marjon Kamara” in an effort to get rid of Amb. Kemayah due to his close association with former president George Manneh Weah an action which is a classical political witch hunt.
The interference of President Boakai in the ECOWAS system may undermine the progress of ECOWAS activities in Liberia and also taint the country’s image.
It can be recalled that the media recently broke the news about the Unity Party (UP)-led government under President Joseph Nyumah Boakai on accusations of orchestrating a calculated scheme to obstruct the appointment of former Liberian Foreign Affairs Minister Ambassador Dee Maxwell Kemayah as the (ECOWAS) Resident Representative to Sierra Leone.
Ambassador Kemayah, a close confidante of ex-President George Manneh Weah, was slated for the position by ECOWAS Commission President Dr. Omar Touray. However, sources within Liberia’s Executive Mansion and Ministry of Foreign Affairs reveal a concerted effort by key officials, Ministers Sylvester Grigsby and Sara Beysolow Nyanti with the approval of President Boakai, to block Kemayah’s appointment. They urged President Boakai to formally object to the appointment and proposed Ambassador Marjon Kamara as an alternative, citing her prior service under ex-President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.
Our sources at the Executive Mansion and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Minister Grigsby instructed Liberia’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Al-Hassan Conteh, to convey the objection to ECOWAS. Despite these efforts, ECOWAS rebuffed Liberia’s objections, asserting that the appointment of Resident Representatives falls under the sole discretion of the ECOWAS Commission President, and is not subjected to national quotas.
Media inquiry affirmed that Ambassador Kemayah’s appointment stemmed from his distinguished tenure as Liberia’s Foreign Affairs Minister, characterized by his anti-corruption stance, professionalism, and dedication to transparency.
The UP-led administration persisted in its opposition, prompting President Boakai to personally engage Sierra Leonean President Julius Maada Bio during the South Korea-Africa Summit. Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti similarly advocated against Kemayah’s appointment to her Sierra Leonean counterpart Timothy Kaba, both encounters yielding no reversal of ECOWAS’s decision.
Dee Maxwell Saah Kemayah is a seasoned Diplomat, philanthropist, activist, and politician who has served in several diplomatic positions including, Foreign Minister under President George Weah’s administration.
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