No sooner had the Senate voted to suspend and replace Senate President Pro-Tempore, Isaac Nyenabo, than it became clear to analysts that the Upper House was in for a protracted leadership squabble that portends discord. It did.

But the NDPL asked the Supreme Court to intervene, hoping that the rule of law would prevail.

In reverence to its constitutional duties, the high court consented and issued an injunction, ordering the reinstatement of the senate’s oversight administrator pending an October 4, 2008 determination of the case by the FULL BENCH.

Well, the Senate met Thursday at their regular plenary for the first time following the issuance of the Supreme Court’s order without giving it the courtesy of a deliberation. Observers call this the “Senate’s cold shoulders” and they fear Capitol Hill may be going back to square one of home turf politics .

where obsession with proving the most powerful branch of government on the hill takes precedence over the grounding of the rule of law in Liberia. But is it? Is the rule of law doomed?

The Analyst Staff Writer has been finding out.

Senate Meeting

The Liberian Senate, Thursday, met without reinstating or deliberating the reinstatement of suspended Senate President Pro-Tempore, Isaac Nyenabo.

The Supreme Court, Tuesday this week, issued an injunction on the leadership of the Senate, ordering the reinstatement of Senator Nyenabo to his post pending final hearing and determination, next month, into issues pertaining to the suspension.

Observers, describing the Senate’s action as “a cold shoulders to the high court, say it indicated that Capitol Hill was going back to square one, fearing that the rule of law may be doomed to the detriment of the establishment of the culture of democracy and of the fight against the culture of impunity in post-war Liberia.

Minus the leadership question and the Supreme Court’s injunction, the Senate plenary resumed regular sessions amidst unfinished business impacting the effective governance of the Liberian nation.

The resumption of the honorable body came short of a three-month agricultural break that members of the National Legislature had already begun, in order to meet with constituents to devise ways and means in which food security and other developmental programs set by national government could be achieved.

At Thurday’s session with the President of the Liberian Senate, Vice President Joseph Nyumah Boakai, in attendance two major issues formed part of the body’s agenda.

One was the conduct of confirmation hearings of the newly-appointed Co-Chairman of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), Mr. Joseph Akoi, and the other was deliberations on an Act calling for a referendum to amend “certain portion” of the Liberian Constitution.

There were no details, however, on which portion of the constitution was being eyed and of what benefit to the Liberian people. But information available to The Analyst say following deliberations on the two items, senators Isaac Johnson of River Gee and Joseph Nagbe of Sinoe

County immediately raised issues about the Supreme Court’s decision rendered on Tuesday, calling for the reinstatement of suspended President Pro Tempore of the Liberian Senate, Grand Gedeh County Senator Isaac Nyenabo to the position.

It can be recalled that on Tuesday, August 5, 2008, the Plenary of the Liberian Senate, sitting in extra session, took a decision to suspend the President Pro Tempore for a period of six months, arising from claims that Senator Nyenabo was administratively inept.

Subsequently, at its ninth extraordinary session held on August 19, 2008, the Senate “selected” the Senior Senator of Bomi County, Lahai G. Lassanah, to act in the stead of the suspended President Pro Tempore during his suspension period.

Consequently and in furtherance of the Senate’s decision, a three-member committee was constituted to develop a Terms of Reference (TOR) and benefits for the Acting President Pro Tempore during the suspension period for the consideration of the Plenary.

Count Six of the Senate Standing Rules, Session 1-7 provides the TOR of the President Pro Tempore of the Liberian Senate under which it is underscored that “Unless otherwise decided by the Plenary of the Liberian Senate, the Terms of Reference and benefits of the Acting President Pro Tempore of the Senate is contingent upon the existing Rules of the Liberian Senate.”

A Crashed Executive Session

However, at yesterday’s session which most members of the public had expected to have been characterized by fireworks over the latest decision taken by the Supreme Court restoring Senator Nyenabo to his previous position, an executive session is reported to have been called by the senators in attendance.

It is not clear what the executive session will discuss, nor is it clear who will be in attendance, but observers say it is likely to discuss the Supreme Court’s order, a discussion that was earlier proposed by senators Johnson and Nagbe.

The reason for a separate leadership session, they say, is to steer the discussion towards the expectation of the international community and the Liberian people who they fear are likely to frown on any senate disregard for opinion of the Supreme Court of Liberia.

“As lawmakers, they must be seen to obey the law even at the expense of their own egos and power. A significant numbers of senators believe that it is better seen to respect the laws that they make than to be seen to be powerful and not subject to any external rules or interpretation of the law,” said one observer.

He said a finger full of senators, though, care less about the public image of the Upper House and that during the executive session it is these senators that would be coaxed out of their stance on the leadership question in reverence to the order of the high court, which is final arbiter of all legal issues in Liberia.

Some say the executive session idea would make a breakthrough easier, but reports late last evening say the executive session convened and dispersed yesterday before anything concrete was discussed.

According to the reports, some disenchanted members of the execution session began walking out shortly after the issue of the Supreme Court’s order was again raised by Senators Johnson and Nagbe for deliberation.

This paper could not get information on what contention led to the walk out or whether there was a walk out, was after all, or just a suspension of deliberations.

Whichever way the executive session turned out – crashed landed or suspended – analysts say it will benefit no one on Capitol to amplify the inter-branch power weighing to the detriment of the establishment of a culture of the rule of law in Liberia.

According to them, it is unlikely that any well-meaning senator will expect to be respected by his constituency and the Liberian people as their true representative if he or she shows no reverence to the high court of the land.

“If you are in the business of making laws to protect the principles of democracy in Liberia, you must not only claim or be assumed to have regards for order based on law, but you must also be seen to be subject to that very law – whether it is constitutional or statutory. It is by how you treat the law that people will trust your judgment in the making of law,” said one observer.

In that sense, he said, disobeying the Supreme Court on the argument that the Senate is an institution of the Legislature, one of three separate but coordinate branches of the Liberian government, is to undermine the very significance of the Senate.

“The laws the Senate makes, it cannot interpret; it is the Supreme and its subordinate courts that will interpret the law. If you render the Supreme Court a bulldog by what you do and say, would you expect ordinary Liberians to obey the same court?

Impossible; mind you, the Executive Branch is watching the Senate. It is waiting to see what the Legislature, the people’s voice in government, will say tomorrow in a showdown between the Judiciary and Executive,” he said.

He said this was the third time in a row that the Legislature – twice with the House of Representatives and now the Senate – was snubbing the decision of the high court acting as a bench or through a chamber justice.

He recalled the George Dweh-NTLA and Edwin Snowe-House of Representatives leadership question, fearing that an ugly pattern of house disregard for the law of the land was slowly forming.

Analysts say while it is not clear yet whether or not the Senate is making nothing of the Supreme Court’s order, it was important that the Senate leadership consider the points raised in order to advise its own action.“This is important for the future of legislative politics in Liberia and the healthy co-existence of the tri-camera republican government of Liberia.
Another observer agreed:

“Giving the Supreme Court cold shoulders is taking Capitol Hill back to square one of home turf politics where obsession with proving the most powerful branch of government takes precedence over the grounding of the rule of law in Liberia.

This makes the rule of law doomed, a luxury of governance Liberians must not countenance at this crucial time when Liberia’s political mentors and economic partners are tying continued assistance to steps the country takes in all matters.”

That aside, our Capitol Building Senate source said another troubling issue at the Senate surrounds the benefits being set aside for the Acting President Pro Tempore by the Ways and Means Committee.

According to the source, there is reportedly no provision in the rules of the Senate setting aside budget for the acting president pro-tempore position that was created by Senate plenary last month.

However, “preliminary documents” in the possession of The Analyst reveals that during the period of the five months suspension of the President Pro Tempore, which constitutes 42 per cent of the 12 months, an amount of US$178,046.40 will be appropriated for the running of the office of Acting President Pro Tempore.

The amount, as specified through a break-down contained under the major object details, covers basic salary for senate staffs, general allowance, fuel and lubricant for vehicle, vehicle servicing, maintenance and repairs, other specialized material and services and other operational expenses.

Other major expenditure objects include other materials and services, printing and publication services, entertainment representation and gifts, residential property rental/lease, fuel for electricity generation and domestic daily subsistence allowance.

Foreign means of travel, foreign daily subsistence allowance which constitutes the highest, US$17,010.00 or 9.55 per cent of the overall budget, foreign incidental allowance and cars, are also major objects for the running of the office of the Acting President Pro Tempore, if approved.

In a recommendation submitted by a three-member committee set up to develop the TOR and benefits for the Acting President Pro Tempore office, comprising Senators Sumo G. Kupee of Lofa County, Clarice Jah of Margibi County and Frederick D. Cherue of River Gee County, it suggested that the 58 per cent or US$245,873.60 constituting the balance in appropriation for the suspended President Pro Tempore be held in escrow pending the end of the suspension period.

Further suggesting that the allowances of the Acting President Pro Tempore be swapped to the suspended Pro Tempore, the committee asked that furtherance to Count Two, the allowances of the suspended President Pro Tempore be the same as all regular senators and that the staff of his office be kept on their benefits during the period of the suspension, as the action of the Liberian Senate.

With these formative developments emerging on its first day session, after the curtailment of its recess to address crucial state matters, high expectations however abound amongst the public that notwithstanding the seeming slap in the face of the Supreme Court’s latest decision, it would only require hours for the members of the Liberian Senate to address themselves to issues surrounding their colleague, before the appearance of respondents by October 4 which falls on a Saturday, a no public workday in Liber