Ex-speaker Jonathan Fonati Koffa charged with arson

Liberia’s former speaker of parliament has been charged with arson over a fire at the nation’s House of Representatives, local police have said.

The huge blaze broke out last December, a day after plans to remove Jonathan Fonati Koffa from his role as speaker sparked protests in the capital, Monrovia.

Koffa had been locked in a stand-off with his political opponents, with dozens of lawmakers voting for his impeachment in October over accusations of poor governance, corruption and conflicts of interest.

Police said on Friday that there were “credible links” to suggest Koffa was “strategically involved” in the incident. Five other lawmakers have also been detained in connection to the case.

Koffa has previously denied any connection to the fire breaking out.

Police chief Gregory Colman said Koffa had been charged with a string of offences including arson, criminal mischief, endangering other people, and attempted murder.

Colman said Koffa had used his office and staff “to co-ordinate sabotage efforts from as early as November 2023”, according to news agency AFP.

Koffa and several other lawmakers were summoned to the Liberian National Police headquarters on Friday as “persons of interest” in the case, local media reports.

The former speaker and three sitting members of the House of Representatives were then remanded to Monrovia Central Prison on Saturday, newspaper FrontPage Africa reported.

The blaze on 18 December 2024 destroyed the entire joint chambers of the West African nation’s legislature. No one was inside the building at the time.

The day before had seen tense protests over the plans to remove Koffa, with demonstrators including an aide to former President George Weah arrested.

Several individuals, including Koffa and Representative Frank Saah Foko, were brought in for questioning by police.

Foko, a prominent figure in the House of Representatives, allegedly uploaded a video to Facebook in which he said: “If they want us to burn the chambers, we will burn it.”

A team of independent US investigators brought in to assist the investigation concluded that the fire was set deliberately.

Liberia’s House of Representatives has been beset by a long-running power struggle.

Although the bid to impeach Koffa fell short of the two-thirds majority required, the group of 47 lawmakers who had voted for the move unilaterally appointed their own speaker.

Last month, Koffa resigned as speaker after months of political deadlock.