By James T. Brooks
MONROVIA – Liberian police arrested several University of Liberia students on Tuesday as hundreds of their peers marched through the capital. The protesters are demanding that President Joseph Nyuma Boakai implement sweeping reforms, including slashing top government salaries by half, guaranteeing a $500 monthly minimum wage, and nationalizing the country’s natural resources.
Police spokesperson Sam Collins confirmed the arrests but declined to provide specific details, noting that authorities are currently preparing a formal statement regarding the detentions. Despite the police intervention, the Student Unification Party (SUP) remained defiant. The group delivered a comprehensive 10-point petition to President Boakai, Vice President Jeremiah Kpan Koung, House Speaker Richard Nagbe Koon, Senate Pro-Tempore Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence, and Chief Justice Yamie Quiqui Gbeisay, warning of further escalation if their demands are ignored.
SUP Chairman Odecious Mulbah emphasized that the demonstration was not mere political theater. He told the gathered crowd that the issues raised in the petition are concrete manifestations of structural conditions that continue to undermine the dignity and future of Liberian society. The march, which stretched from the Capitol Building to the U.S. Embassy corridor, featured a prominent banner asking why a nation so rich in natural resources remains “wretched and destitute” after 179 years of independence.
Economic Demands and Nationalization
At the heart of the petition is a demand for radical economic redistribution. The students are calling for an immediate 50 percent pay cut for the president, vice president, lawmakers, ministers, and heads of state-owned enterprises. They propose redirecting these savings to provide a 50 percent salary increase for civil servants, teachers, nurses, doctors, and soldiers.
Beyond salary adjustments, the students are demanding a guaranteed minimum monthly wage of $500 for all employed Liberians and the immediate nationalization of the mining, logging, agriculture, fisheries, and banking sectors. The petition argues that state control is the only way to generate the jobs and infrastructure necessary for development, accusing foreign companies and international financial institutions like the World Bank of exploitative practices.
Agriculture and Local Protectionism
The students also urged the government to comply with the Maputo Declaration by allocating at least 10 percent of the national budget to agriculture. They called for a stricter enforcement of the “Liberianization” policy to protect local farmers and rubber exporters from foreign interests and alleged corruption within the government.
Human Rights and Institutional Decay
The petition touched on several high-profile social and political issues, including a demand to halt the expulsion of Montserrado County Representative Yekeh Y. Kolubah. On the issue of sexual violence, the students named specific suspects and demanded their immediate prosecution, alongside better support systems for survivors.
The final demand focused on the University of Liberia itself, calling for the modernization and expansion of the institution. The petition highlighted sobering statistics to justify the students’ anger, noting that 35.5 percent of Liberians are undernourished and nearly 27 percent of children under five suffer from stunted growth.
As of Tuesday evening, the Boakai administration had not yet issued an official response to the petition or the escalating tensions in the capital.