Liberia: Lawmakers Decry Seating Preparations at President Boakai’s State of the Nation Address

MONROVIA – Members of the fifty fifth Legislature have expressed dissatisfaction over the seating preparations on the ongoing State of the Nation Address delivered by President Joseph Boakai.

By Gerald C. Koinyeneh, [email protected]

The lawmakers described the association as poorly organized, criticizing the choice to seat cupboard ministers on the stage whereas putting lawmakers among the many basic viewers. They argue that, as legislators, they need to have been accorded equal recognition with stage seating preparations.

This yr’s State of the Nation Address is being held exterior the Capitol Building beneath canopies, relatively than its conventional venue within the Joint Chambers. This change was necessitated by the hearth that gutted the constructing in December.

The annual occasion, historically held on the fourth working Monday in January, is modeled after the U.S. system, the place the President outlines the administration’s achievements and legislative agenda. However, this yr’s occasion is overshadowed by a management deadlock within the House of Representatives, resulting in a partial boycott by some lawmakers from each the House and the Senate.

The absence of the Supreme Court from the occasion has additionally raised questions. While Supreme Court spokesperson Darryl Ambrose Nmah said that Chief Justice Sie-A-Nyene Yuoh was absent because of worldwide engagements, there was no clarification for the absence of the opposite 4 justices.

As the occasion continues, the management disaster within the House of Representatives casts a shadow over President Boakai’s tackle, with uncertainty about whether or not the Justices’ absence is linked to the continued legislative deadlock.