The Unity Party (UP) led-government of President Joseph Nyuma Boakai has been linked to masterminding a calculated ploy to prevent the appointment of ex-Liberian Foreign Affairs Minister Ambassador Dee Maxwell Kemayah as the Resident Representative of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to Sierra Leone.

Ambassador Kemayah is a closed confidante of ex-President George Manneh Weah of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC).

He was reported to be appointed by the President of the ECOWAS Commission Dr. Omar Touray to represent the regional body in neighboring Sierra Leone.

But FrontPageAfrica has gathered from sources that the Boakai-Koung administration, through its Ministers of State for Presidential Affairs and Foreign Affairs Sylvester Grigsby and Sara Beysolow Nyanti respectively, with the acquiescence of President Boakai, have been leading a ploy, objecting to the appointment of Ambassador Kemayah to the post.

According to sources from the International Community, the Liberian Executive Mansion and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the two Ministers pleaded with President Boakai to send an official letter of objection to the President of the ECOWAS Commission on the appointment of former Foreign Minister Kemayah as the Resident Representative of ECOWAS to the Republic of Sierra Leone, and recommended Ambassador Marjon Kamara to ECOWAS for the same position.

Ambassador Kamara previously served as Minister of Foreign Affairs during the administration of ex-President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

Sources revealed that Minister Grigsby personally instructed Liberia’s Ambassador to Nigeria and Permanent Representative to ECOWAS, Ambassador Al-Hassan Conteh, to send to ECOWAS the official objection of the Boakai-Koung administration to Ambassador Kemayah’s appointment as the Resident Representative of ECOWAS in Sierra Leone.

However, FPA gathered that the Boakai-administration’s request, sent to ECOWAS through Ambassador Conteh, was uprightly rejected by the regional body, in a June 6, response to him.

The ECOWAS Commission rejected the objection request from the Liberian government on grounds that the position of Resident Representative of ECOWAS is absolutely not a statutory position set aside for Liberia and any other member countries in particular.

Sources pointed out that ECOWAS made it clear in its response that it is only the President of the ECOWAS Commission who has the mandate to appoint citizens from member states in the region to serve as Resident Representatives of ECOWAS based on competences and balance of representation of member states.

“This appointment of Ambassador Kemayah is within the absolute purview and authority of the President of the ECOWAS Commission, which is strictly in line with the decision of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government in December 2014 which established the positions of ECOWAS Resident Representatives,” the source said.

“What’s very concerning to us is the position the former Foreign Minister of Liberia Ambassador Kemayah is being appointed to is a non-statutory position and certainly not a position set aside for Liberia and any other member state of ECOWAS. The President of the ECOWAS Commission has the authority to appoint any qualified citizen of the ECOWAS community as is the case with Ambassador Kemayah.”

Why Kemayah was considered?

Investigation conducted by FPA and confirmed the appointment of Ambassador Kemayah to serve as ECOWAS Resident Representative to Sierra Leone was due to his competences, skills, outstanding performance and the great deal of respect the regional bloc holds for him when he worked with ECOWAS and the Commission as Liberia’s Foreign Affairs Minister.

“His uncompromising stance against corruption, high level of professionalism, result-oriented drive, integrity and principles of accountability and transparency in public service are also additional values that Ambassador Kemayah possesses which may have led the President of the ECOWAS Commission to prefer him to serve as ECOWAS Ambassador to Sierra Leone,” another well-placed and highly respected international source disclosed.

All of our multiple international, Liberian Executive Mansion and Ministry of Foreign Affairs sources confirmed that Liberia would miss the opportunity to have one of its citizens serving as Ambassador or Resident Representative of ECOWAS if the President of the ECOWAS Commission rescinds his decision to appoint Ambassador Kemayah to the position based upon unnecessary unprovoked pressure from the Boakai-administration.

Our sources hinted that the President of the ECOWAS Commission will not support or appoint any other Liberian in this capacity as evidenced by the outright rejection of Ambassador Marjon Kamara.

Ambassador Kamara has consistently opted and developed interest to serve as ECOWAS Resident Representative to Sierra Leone for unknown reasons. She is also a long-time closed associate of the Minister of State for Presidential Affairs Sylvester Grigsby.

Not giving up

Though the ECOWAS Commission has rejected the objection request from the Liberian government against the appointment of Ambassador Kemayah, FPA gathered that Ministers Grigsby and Beysolow Nyanti encouraged President Boakai to meet with President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone at the just ended South Korea-Africa Summit held in South Korea to further object to Ambassador Kemayah’s appointment,” a source from the Executive Mansion stated.

The source added that the two Ministers appealed to President Boakai to plead with the Sierra Leonean leader to revoke and withdraw the approval granted as host country in favor of the appointment of Ambassador Kemayah as Resident Representative of ECOWAS in Sierra Leone.

“President Boakai met President Bio in South Korea and registered his objection to Ambassador Kemayah’s appointment in Sierra Leone, Foreign Minister Sara Bysolow Nyanti also met Foreign Minister Timothy Kaba of Sierra Leone in South Korea and further registered the Boakai-Koung administration’s objection to the appointment of Ambassador Kemayah. Sierra Leone denied the request on grounds that Ambassador Kemayah’s position is absolutely not statutory and moreover that this is a process which was in progress long before the election of President Boakai,” the source from the Liberian Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted.

Sources further disclosed that both Ministers Grigsby and Beysolow-Nyanti also encouraged President Boakai to further discuss their objection of Ambassador Kemayah’s appointment with Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and other ECOWAS leaders at the just ended ECOWAS Summit.

Written By: Obediah Johnson