MONROVIA — A day after Assistant Minister for Urban Affairs, Mike Jabateh, threatened to assassinate Representative Yekeh Kolubah over his outspoken criticism of President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Kolubah dismissed the threat and urged his supporters to remain peaceful.
On Wednesday, July 24, 2024, a leaked audio recording between Representative Kolubah of Montserrado County District #10 and Assistant Minister Jabateh surfaced on social media. In the one-minute-and-32-second phone conversation, Jabateh angrily threatened to kill Kolubah, citing Kolubah’s repeated insults against President Boakai.
“Honorable Yekeh Kolubah, this is Mike Jabateh. Let me not lie to you. I’m a trained man from Russia; I spent two years in Russia. If you continue to insult the President and call the President’s name, I swear to Allah, we will bring mercenaries to kill you,” Jabateh stated.
During a news conference at the Movement Against Joseph Boakai Presidency Baze in his district on Thursday, July 25, 2024, Representative Kolubah downplayed the threat, asserting that Jabateh did not deserve his attention.
“I’m not going to dignify Mike Jabateh. Mike Jabateh is under instruction,” Kolubah said, though he did not specify whose orders Jabateh was following.
When asked if he was afraid of Jabateh, Kolubah replied, “I’m afraid of Mike Jabateh.”
Known for his critical stance against the Unity Party government, Kolubah urged his supporters to refrain from retaliating against Jabateh, emphasizing that the minister was not his main concern.
“I am calling on all my supporters to not attack Mike Jabateh,” Kolubah stressed, adding that they were not engaged in a religious war and that Jabateh was merely following orders.
In the audio, Jabateh also declared that his plan to kill Kolubah would be carried out within three weeks. “If it does not happen, call me a Mandingo dog. If you continue to insult the President, we will kill you, I swear to God. Try it, I give you three weeks from now and see what will happen to you,” Jabateh warned.
Kolubah, set to make a statement upon his return from an international trip on Friday, July 26, 2024, assured the public that he would speak without fear or favor, preferring to address the issue while in Liberia to avoid any perception of fear.
Amid public outcry, including reactions from panelists on the popular show Spoon Talk, Jabateh offered a public apology on the program’s Wednesday, July 24, 2024 edition. “If I said anything that hurt him, let him forgive me; he’s my lawmaker and I respect him, and I am not against him,” Jabateh apologized. However, he reiterated his warning for Kolubah to stop insulting President Boakai.
Jabateh also called on the Spoon Talk panelists to discourage individuals from insulting the president in political disagreements, stressing the importance of focusing on the country’s growth and development.
When questioned about Kolubah’s past insults toward former President George Manneh Weah and his mother during the Coalition for Democratic Change regime, Jabateh maintained that he had always condemned such behavior by Kolubah.
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