“Integrity Is Better Than Wealth” — Wife of Ousted Mines Minister Praises Husband After Sudden Removal

Published: October 28, 2025

Comfort Boog-Paye, wife of former Mines and Energy Minister Wilmot Paye, speaks out following her husband’s dismissal.

MONROVIA — The wife of former Mines and Energy Minister Wilmot Paye has broken her silence following her husband’s abrupt removal by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, hailing him as “a great statesman” who chose integrity over personal gain.

In a Facebook post that has since gone viral, Comfort Boog-Paye, an instructor at the University of Liberia, expressed deep pride in her husband’s public service record.

“Thank you for making me a very proud wife! Your children are equally very proud of you. Of course, your God is happy to have a child like you,” she wrote. “Choosing integrity over wealth is the best choice any true Christian can make. You are a great statesman, so posterity will judge you kindly. Thank you for a job well done, Honey!”

Her remarks come amid mounting public curiosity over President Boakai’s latest wave of dismissals, which swept through several ministries and agencies without official explanation.

Paye’s removal from the Ministry of Mines and Energy, replaced by R. Matenokay Tingban, has sparked questions among political observers who describe it as one of the administration’s most abrupt personnel changes yet.

The lack of clarity has fueled speculation, with some linking the dismissal to internal policy disagreements.

Mrs. Boog-Paye’s public statement seemed to distance her husband from any suggestion of scandal or controversy.

Mr. Paye, a former chairman of the ruling Unity Party, has not issued any formal statement since his removal. However, close associates describe him as “calm and reflective,” maintaining that he served “faithfully and with principle.”

During his brief tenure, Paye had been instrumental in promoting transparency initiatives in the mining sector and in reviving stalled energy sector reforms. His leadership also came at a time when Liberia was under scrutiny from international partners for its management of natural resources and concession agreements.

Broader Shake-Up Under Boakai

Paye’s removal was part of a sweeping reshuffle that affected multiple institutions, including the Liberia Airport Authority, the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection.

The Executive Mansion said the shake-up was necessary to “realign leadership” under the president’s reform agenda. Still, many observers have expressed concern about what they call a “pattern of silent exits”, abrupt dismissals without clear justification.

At the Liberia Airport Authority, both the board chair and managing director resigned on “medical grounds,” though insiders suggest deeper administrative frictions.