By By: Alphanso G. Kalama;
Former Associate Justice Kabineh M. Ja’neh has declared his intention to challenge the legality of Liberia’s 2025 fiscal year budget, should President Joseph N. Boakai sign it into law. Speaking on December 27, 2024, during the Spoon Midnight Conversation, Ja’neh revealed that he and a team of senior legal experts plan to sue the government, alleging that the budget’s passage violated procedural and legal requirements.
Ja’neh emphasized that the group would initially file the case in a lower court, with the intent to escalate it to the Supreme Court if necessary. They aim to secure a judicial ruling on whether the legislative process leading to the budget’s approval adhered to constitutional and statutory mandates.
The budget, amounting to US$880.07 million, was passed by the Liberian Senate on December 20, 2024. This followed a special emergency session at Monrovia City Hall, during which the House of Representatives’ Majority Bloc approved the budget. The Senate later endorsed the measure with 19 out of 30 senators voting in favor. However, critics, including Ja’neh, contend that the expedited process bypassed standard legislative procedures.
Adding to the controversy, House Speaker J. Fonati Koffa has openly criticized the budget’s passage, describing it as ultra vires—a legal term meaning “beyond the powers.” In a post on his official Facebook page, Koffa argued that the Majority Bloc acted outside its legal authority, further intensifying the debate over the budget’s legitimacy.
The term ultra vires is commonly used in legal contexts to describe actions taken beyond the scope of an individual’s or entity’s lawful powers. In this case, both Ja’neh and Koffa suggest that the procedural irregularities may render the budget legally null and void.
The unfolding legal challenge could have significant implications for Liberia’s fiscal governance and the administration of President Boakai as it moves into the new year.
