Who Is Telling The Truth Over US Citizenship’s Claim?

As members of the House of Representatives cast their votes today, Monday, January 15, 21024 for different leadership positions, most notably the speakership, the debate has in the dying minutes swayed away from who is capable of delivering the deliverables to who has  the legitimacy as  rival camps clashed in accusation of US citizenship.

Both camps of the incoming ruling Unity Party (UP) and outgoing Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) have pointed accusing fingers as each other’s candidate of being an American citizen, thus rendering the candidate unqualified to become a Speaker of Liberia.

Specifically, the UP having accused Cllr. Jonathan Foniti Koffa of the CDC of being an American, the party is reported to be planning to challenge that legally.

On the other hand, the CDC is also planning to throw similar challenge on the UP’s candidate Richard Koon, who they alleged to be an American citizen and a Nigerian background.

Amid these grave allegations, passports and other relevant documents in support of the two men’s American citizenship have been circulating on the world’s leading social media platform – Facebook.  However, these documents are yet to be independently authenticated by this paper.

But Rep. Koon of Montserrado County Electoral District #11, who was re-elected at the October polls in the 2023 Presidential and Legislative Elections, has since denied of being a US citizen.

“I got my Green Card on the teacher exchange program sponsored by the World Bank through the University of Liberia,” Mr. Koon asserted.

“I had Green card that expired since 2018 during my Professor Exchange Program at the University of Michigan. Since then I have been traveling with InfoPass Stamp in my Liberia Passport. My last Info Pass expired September 27, 2023. See attached,” he added with some documentary evidence of his passport.

Meanwhile, Cllr. Koffa has not openly responded to the claim, but his passport copy in the possession of this paper got expired since February of 2022. This paper has not established any trace of that passport being renewed since then.

But what remains disturbing is whether these arguments would not lead to a legal battle that could lead to the postponement of the Speakership election and, thus further delaying the inauguration date that would lead the country into some constitutional crises.