Ellen sweeps ahead of 2017

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has begun cleaning up her cabinet immediate dismissals amidst resignations ahead of the 2017 elections in which she is not a contestant.

Mrs. Sirleaf on Friday while accepting the resignation of her Foreign Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan, she announced the dismissals of seven other officials with immediate effects.

Those fired from the government are Morris Dukuly – Minister of Internal Affairs, Liberia’s Chief of Protocol Rufus Neufville and the Assistant Minister for Public Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Horatio Willie.

Others also dismissed by Mrs. Sirleaf are the Assistant Minister for Land and Rail Transport at the Ministry of Transport, Mr. Abu Kamara and the Assistant Minister for Administration at the Ministry of Post and Telecommunication, Ms. Margretta General-Smith.

Mr. Willard Russell and Mr. Emmanuel Bowier were also relieved as Members of the Boards of Directors of the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company and National Port Authority respectively.

President Sirleaf also suspended with time indefinite the Deputy Minister of Justice for Economic Affairs, Cllr. Emmanuel Tulay. An Executive Mansion release issued Friday said the president’s move is in line with Article 56 (a) of the Constitution.