One of the leaders of the disbanded soldiers of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL), Jerry KerkulahKollie has expressed bitterness over the recent action of the Defense Ministry to have discharged two AFL Officers who stripped a male motorcyclist and paraded him in the streets of Gbarnga, Bong County.
The two AFL officers in person of Star Sergeant Keita Musa and Jugbe Peter were discharged from the military for their brutal act against the victim.
They had accused the motorcyclist of stealing a motorbike that belonged to one of the dismissed AFL officers.
Speaking recently to a team of journalists in Gbarnga, Mr. Kollie said the Defense Ministry did not do justice to the two discharged AFL Officers, claiming that it was the first offence which should not have led to the discharge of the officers.
Even though Mr. Kollie did not mention the specific article relied upon for his argument, he however insists that the Professional Military Code does not call for a soldier to be discharged on such offence.
“You know for me what I will say is that the officials of the army did not do well because they are not following the ethics that’s why they treated the two soldiers in such manner,” he adds.He believes that the discharged officers should have faced punishment instead of bringing them to public disgrace.
He terms as a mistake, the disbandment of trained soldiers by the past administration, saying “If we talk about force for good, I think we (past soldiers) had force for good at that time, but not today where anybody can come from anywhere and wear our country’s military uniforms.”
However, our correspondent observes that the action of the AFL to have discharged the two army officers brought happiness to many people in the Bong County, especially radio talk show participants as many could be heard extending commendations to the AFL.
The action of the dismissed officers has drawn the concerns of victim’s family and other human rights activists.The matter is currently in court at the 9th Judicial Circuit Court in Gbarnga.By Joseph Titus Yekeryan in Bong—Edited by Winston W. Parley
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