Verdict: No, members of the minority bloc were in attendance at the President 2025 State of the Nation Address
Full Text: Speaker Koffa currently is faced with allegations ranging from financial mismanagement to loss of confidence among a faction of lawmakers. Recent attempts by a majority block within the House to convene sessions without Koffa have further complicated matters, leading to disputes over legitimacy and adherence to constitutional requirements for quorum and leadership, as well as disrespect for the House’s rules.
He was rooted out by a majority member of the house through the election of Richard Koon to succeed him, a decision he (Koffa) has struggled to overturn even at the level of the Supreme Court of Liberia.
The Supreme Court is the final arbiter of justice in Liberia. Koffa filed two separate lawsuits with the Supreme Court of Liberia to overturn his colleagues' (majority bloc) decisions and enable them to come under his gavel, but his efforts did not materialize.
The high court on 6th December handed down judgment on the “unconstitutionality of several actions taken by certain members of the House of Representatives.” Shine Liberia, a local Facebook blog during the “State of the Nation Address,” posted, among other things, that Koffa and minority bloc representatives resolved to not attend the 2025 SONA.
The State of the Nation Address is a significant event in Liberia's political calendar, mandated under Article 58 of the Constitution. Each year, on the fourth Monday of January, the president presents this address to the Legislature, providing an overview of the country's status and outlining the government's legislative agenda for the coming year.
This constitutional obligation ensures that the President communicates directly with both lawmakers and citizens about key national issues.
Verification: We contacted Shine Liberia to help with detailed information about the claim. The blog said it was informed by the embattled speaker Koffa long before it made the post.
The blog replied, “But the Speaker and his team didn’t go. Didn’t you see it? The speaker told us personally before we did the publication And they didn’t attend. Now appreciate us for our timely reply and authentication.”
When questioned about evidence of his conversation with the speaker, the blogger declined to share a screenshot of the exchange with the speaker.
“ No. Who does that? Did the speaker and his team attend? No professional person will share private conversations with anyone. Chey, my man, nothing to authenticate here. The minority bloc had a press conference that they will not attend and they did not do exactly that. Hope this press conference from the chairman will help you.”
We also saw a press release posted on the Facebook page of Musa Bility, Representative, Nimba County District #7, who is the chairman of the minority bloc of the House of Representatives, that they will not attend the SONA.
The Stage Media spoke with some legislative reporters that covered the 2025 State of the SONA.
They confirmed seeing some members of the minority bloc, even though Bility Release and Shine Liberia claim none of them will be present.
Nyanti Togba, OK FM legislative reporter who agreed to be quoted, said, “Few members of the Rule Law Caucus are in attendance at the capitol for the address.
Togba named Sumo Mulbah, Bintu Massally, Ellen Attoh Wreh, Emmanuel Dahn, Rugie Barry, and Samuel Enders as those lawmakers that were in attendance; however, Representative Musa Bility was not present.
Conclusion: Our findings prove that, contrary to both Bility's and the blog’s claim that no members of the minority bloc of the House of Representatives will attend the SONA, at least six attended.
