By Rufus Divine Brooks Jr., Contributor
The Liberian government has issued a strong warning to the opposition Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), signaling its intention to enforce an eviction order recently issued against the party.
At a press briefing held Tuesday by the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism (MICAT), Deputy Information Minister Daniel Sando made it clear that the government will not hesitate to act on a court-issued writ of possession concerning CDC’s headquarters.
“No one is above the law,” Sando asserted. “The Unity Party was a former ruling party too-they couldn’t pay their rent, but they left McCline’s property. That’s the honorable thing to do.”
The CDC is currently entangled in a mounting legal battle over a property it occupies, with the landlords, the Barnards family estate, seeking repossession due to unpaid rent.
The dispute culminated on Monday, August 4, 2025, when Civil Law Court Annex ‘A’, presided over by Judge George Smith, issued an order mandating CDC’s immediate eviction from its national headquarters, which sits on 4.23 acres of land legally owned by the Barnards estate.
Judge Smith’s ruling followed a motion for summary judgment filed by the Barnards’ legal team.
The court determined that there was no substantial dispute over the facts, and that a valid purchase agreement and longstanding Supreme Court ruling from 2016 affirmed the Barnards estate’s ownership, represented by Administrator Ebrima Varney Dempster.
Deputy Minister Sando did not hold back in urging the CDC to vacate the premises voluntarily.
“A small shame is better than a big one,” he said. “It’s better to move out quietly than for the public to see your belongings being thrown out.”
Sando further warned that should the CDC resist the court order, it would face additional political and legal consequences: “If the court grants the writ of possession, the government will enforce it-expect more setbacks.”
In a last-ditch legal effort, CDC lawyers had filed a motion just days earlier, requesting that the court compel the Barnards estate to sell the property to the party.
Judge Smith rejected the motion on Friday, dismissing the CDC’s attempt to force a sale as legally unfounded.
Following the eviction ruling, CDC attorneys announced plans to appeal to the Supreme Court, specifically through Justice in Chambers Cieana Clinton-Johnson, seeking a stay order and further judicial review.
Under Rule 56 of Liberia’s Civil Procedure Law, a summary judgment is issued when there are no material disputes of fact and the law clearly supports one side, allowing the court to decide the matter without a full trial.
