–Says Fmr Pres. Weah, Condemns Arrest of Veep Taylor
— Boakai Uses Extrajudicial Powers to Trample Liberians’ Rights
Hours after the arrest and levying of charges on former Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor by the officers of the Liberia National Police today, former President George Manneh Weah has described the police action as “democratic decline” in Liberia.
Former President Weah says that Liberians are witnessing the “continuous use of extrajudicial powers by President Joseph Boakai to trample upon the constitutional rights of Liberians who hold opposing views.”
The police stopped Madam Howard-Taylor from leaving the country at Roberts International Airport and was taken to the headquarters of the Liberia National Police, where she was charged with eight crimes.
Madam Howard-Taylor was charged with “Unlicensed Importation of a Controlled Drug or Substance under Section 14.83 of Liberia’s drug law of 2023, Unlicensed Sale, Trading, Administration, Dispensation, Delivery, Distribution, Dispatch in Tran and Transportation of a Controlled Drug or Substance (Section 14.83), Illicit Trafficking of a Controlled Drug or Substance, (Section 14.93).
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Other charges include Criminal Solicitation, under Section 10.2 of Chapter 10 or the Penal Law of Liberia, Criminal Facilitation (Section 10.2), and Criminal Conspiracy (Section 10.3). Madam Taylor was also charged with Money Laundering under the Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing law, Section 15.2.
The Liberian Government also announced charges for three foreign nationals, including Nikolai Ivancic, a Croatian national; Mihovil Vrlovac, also a Croatian national and Tara Zaderieko, a Ukrainian national.
Read former President Weah’s statement below:
Statement By
H.E. GEORGE MANNEH WEAH
Former President of the Republic of Liberia
&
Political Leader of the Congress for Democratic Change
August 19, 2026
Fellow Liberians,
What we all witnessed today has further revealed the extent of our democratic decline in the last few years, marked by the continuous use of extrajudicial powers by President Joseph Boakai to trample upon the constitutional rights of Liberians who hold opposing views.
As you may know by now, former Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor has become the latest victim of these rising authoritarian tendencies—which have historically plunged societies, including ours, into chaos. While we support all legal and judicious efforts to rid Liberia of the current drug epidemic, we condemn attempts to use this crisis to score political points.
Today, without any prior notice, the former Vice President was unlawfully prevented from traveling, in violation of her constitutional right to free movement, and was subsequently harassed and detained. I have since spoken to the former Vice President, who has vehemently, strenuously and categorically denied all the politically motivated allegations being made against her by the Boakai administration.
In a government statement today, the Justice Minister read out blanket accusations without providing any supporting explanation of how they were formulated.
This action by the government comes after two major drug(Cocaine) discoveries amounting to nearly half a billion dollars, which officials themselves have admitted were brought into Liberia after we had peacefully handed over power to the Boakai administration.
Rather than treating the investigation with the degree of diligence and urgency it deserves, the government has instead sought to fabricate and concoct connections to the CDC administration, while giving a slap on the wrist to its own government and security officials – many of whom still roam the streets despite being named and accused as true perpetrators.
We have continued engagements with several regional and continental leaders to again iterate and underscore to them, how the rule of law and democracy in Liberia is being systematically undermined, and how grave a danger such action poses to our peace and security.
Despite a peaceful democratic transition, President Boakai seeks to rule as a tyrant. This we must all resist.
Following my engagements, I shall return to Liberia to rally the CDC along with all well-meaning Liberians to resist this tyrannical attempt to trample upon our burgeoning democracy, using all political and legal means guaranteed to us under our constitution.
God Bless Liberia
George Manneh Weah, Sr.
