No Proof that police force Supreme Court Justices to attend SONA.

 

Claim: “Police send to Compel Justices of the Supreme Court”

Source:  The Closing Argument 

Verdict: Unproven; no evidence supporting the claim that police were instructed to compel Justices of the Supreme Court to attend the SONA

Full Text: During the State of the Nation Address (SONA) presidented  by President Joseph Boakai, the Closing Argument, an online media platform, reported on January 27, 2025, that officers of the  Liberia National Police (LNP) were instructed to compel Justices of the Supreme Court of Liberia to attend the event.

 

All five justices of the Supreme Court of Liberia were absent from the 2025 State of the Nation address as per tradition. 

The cause of the chief justice's absence was conveyed in a Facebook post by the director of press at the judiciary but he could not give a position on the rest of the four justices absent at the event as he was outside of the country on a function with the chief justice.

This claim has generated the attention of 46 reactions, 72 comments, and 4 shares noted at the time of the check.   

The Liberia National Police (LNP) services encompass a range of law enforcement activities provided by different agencies tasked with maintaining public order, preventing and investigating crimes, and ensuring the safety and security of communities. 

Verification: To verify this information, we reached out to Cecelia Clarke, spokesperson of the LNP. She said there has been no directive from the police to compel justices to attend the SONA. “It is untrue,” says Clark.

The Closing Argument said their new platform has a strong political focus: “While similar reports often rely on classified intelligence, “this particular story came from a senior police officer. Although his information was credible based on his track record of approximately 98% accuracy in previous reports, the predicted event did not occur. This may have been due to our public disclosure causing a change in plans. We consider this source reliable given their consistent history of accurate reporting.”

Conclusion: Based on the information gathered, there is no evidence supporting the claim made by The Closing Argument that police have been instructed to compel Justices of the Supreme Court to attend the SONA.