Ex-Associate Justice Kabineh M. Ja’nah says he is mobilizing lawyers to challenge the legality of the 2025 National Budget in court.
By Lincoln G. Peters
Monrovia, Liberia, December 24, 2024 – Former Associate Justice Kabineh M. Ja’nah vows here to sue the Government of Liberia, particularly the Executive Branch of Government, if President Joseph N. Boakai signed the controversial Fiscal Year 2025 budget.
Speaking on Spoon Midnight conversation, Cllr. Ja’nah said that he has spoken to a few senior lawyers, and they are planning that the moment President Boakai signs the Budget, which they believe was passed illegally, they will take the matter to the Supreme Court.
“If the President signed this Budget into law that we believe was not legal at all and didn’t meet the requirements, we will take the government to the Supreme Court to ask for a Legal Declaratory of Properties as to the way this budget was passed. Now, we are not doing this to say oh, this is what we’re going to do to the Supreme Court; we will bring it to the court and say: please make a declaration whether the passage of this budget met the legal requirements under our system”, he explains.
According to him, the way they want to do it is by starting from the lower court and after that, they will go to the Supreme Court based on the decision from the lower court, adding that they want the court to clearly state the procedure.
The Liberian Senate over the weekend unanimously concurred with the Majority bloc of the House of Representatives on the passage of the Fiscal Year 2025 National Budget in the amount of US$880.07 million.
Members of the Liberian Senate took the decision late Friday, December 20, 2024, following a motion from Grand Kru County Senator Numene Bartekwa. However, of the 30 senators, 19 voted in favor of the budget.
Prior to the senate passage of the Budget, the majority bloc passed the budget at the Monrovia City Hall (MCC) in a special emergency session.
Meanwhile, following the passage of the 2025 National Budget and subsequent concurrent by the Liberian Senate, embattled House Speaker J. Fonati Koffa labels the Majority Bloc’s recent passage of the 2025 national budget as ultra vires.
“Ultra vires”, Cllr. Koffa posted on his official Facebook page on December 21, 2024.
Ultra vires is a Latin phrase that means “beyond the powers” or “lack of power.” It’s a common law principle that describes when a person or entity acts without legal authority. The doctrine of ultra vires is most relevant in corporate law, administrative law, and constitutional law. It ensures that laws are made legally and that corporations and government agencies act within their powers. Editing by Jonathan Browne
