By Our Correspondent
MONROVIA – In the landmark ruling handed down by the Supreme Court of Liberia on February 16, 2026, the Director General of the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), Dr. Dougbeh Christopher Nyan was ordered immediately reinstated or compensating for remaining tenure following his Supreme Court victory in the wrongful termination case brought against the Executive Branch of the Liberian government. To date, the ruling has yet to be implemented, but already violated by the Executive Branch of government which is glaringly disrespecting the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court granted the Writ of Prohibition and affirmed the Peremptory Writ, which automatically bars the Officer-in-Charge or Acting Directing General, Dr. Sia Camanor from carrying out any functions at the NPHIL as of the issuance of the ruling on February 16, 2026.
Sia Camanor, believed to be the President’s niece, was co-chair of the NPHIL Board of Directors and a signatory to the illegal Board Resolution upon which the President acted to wrongfully terminate the Director General, Dr. Nyan. During the Supreme Court hearing on January 15, 2026, the Board resolution, which was the thrust of the government case, was found to be unlawful and without evidence, and violated the NPHIL Act of 2016 as well as administrative procedural laws of Liberia.
In the 20-page ruling delivered on Feb. 16, 2026 by Associate Justice (in Chambers) Jamesetta Howard Wolokollie, the Supreme Court Justices held that the Executive Branch acted outside its authority when it dismissed a statutory officer [Dr. Nyan] protected by tenure without satisfying the removal conditions explicitly laid out in the NPHIL Act 2016 and further violated Article 20 (a) of the Liberian Constitution of 1986 as well as Internation Human Rights Conventions to which Liberia is signatory.
Reports from Executive Mansion circles indicate that the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) have officially informed the Executive Mansion about the Supreme Court Ruling, its implications, and consequences regarding any act of non-adherence to the Writ of Prohibition and the Peremptory Writ which were granted and affirmed in favor of the Petitioner, Dr. Nyan. The MOJ also reportedly sent a copy of the Ruling to the NPHIL Office-in-Charge, Sia Camanor, a pediatrician appointed by President Boakai to act as caretaker at the scientific and public health institute.
The Ruling validates Dr. Nyan’s communication to the President on September 17, 2025, contended that “the eleven counts of the Board’s request for my removal are unconstitutional and do not satisfy Section 4.4(i) of the NPHIL Act of 2016, stating further that “the Board’s allegations are broad, vague, lack specifics, lack evidence, and are functionally inaccurate.”
The Court agreed with Dr. Nyan as the justices rejected the government’s central defense that an investigation justified the dismissal as the Court found no evidence of an investigation. With the board alleged “misconduct” and “gross inefficiency,” the Court also found no evidence, as these were accusations not established through a legally valid inquiry, no investigation, and no reports. Affidavits submitted by Minster of Health Louise Kpoto and NPHIL Board Chair Stephen Kennedy were also found lacking in evidence by the Court, and described by Dr. Nyan’s as personal attack, emotionally charged, and politically motivated.
Said claim of the NPHIL Board of “misconduct” and “gross inefficiency” were contradicted by the independent Report of the government’s General Auditing Agency (GAC) which indicated “marked efficiency with a well-coordinated administrative leadership and financial compliance” with an overall score of 81 percent under Dr. Nyan’s leadership at NPHIL as opposed to 61 percent in the previous NPHIL administration.
Under Dr. Nyan’s administration, the NPHIL’s technical, diagnostic, research, diseases surveillance and administrative capacities were strengthened. The public health entity has also achieved national and international recognition, with NPHIL designated as an “Africa Regional Center of Excellence for National Public Health Institute Development” by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).
Meanwhile, observers spot a conflict of interest, whereby Sia Camanor, who is co-chair of the NPHIL Board of Directors, also crafted and signed the illegal Board Resolution upon which the President acted to wrongfully terminate Dr. Nyan. In court, the Board resolution was found to be unlawful as it violated the NPHIL Act of 2016 and procedural laws of Liberia.
What has been the fate of the Board and the Minister of Health after the Supreme Court ruling? This question remains central since the court found no evidence in the resolution as well as the separate sworn affidavits submitted to the Court by the Board Chairman, Stephen Kennedy and the Minister of Health Louise Kpoto. These actions brought the President to international disrepute by acting on documents saturated with falsehood and no legal basis.
Under a rigorous system of governance, the Minister of Health and the Board Chairman would have been asked to immediately tender in their resignations due to the demonstrated lack of integrity and for intentionally misleading the office of the President. Pundits are questioning as to whether these officials still enjoy the confidence of the President when issues of trustworthiness exist.
For Dr. Nyan, a world-class biomedical scientists, doctor, public health expert and inventor, “it is not about the job; instead, it is about exposing the official lies and conspiracy, those who misled the president that led to him being ridicule, and it is about everyone abiding by the rule of law” in this country.
In unmistakable terms, Dr. Nyan has demonstrated a high level of intelligence, astute professionalism, strong show of patriotism, and immense respect for the judicial process in the country. His Supreme Court victory is already etched in history as a major success in his challenge of the imperial presidency and exposing the constitutional limits of executive power.
Dr. Nyan is the world-renowned inventor of the Rapid Multiplex Realtime Isothermal Detection System for Pathogens (“The NYAN-TEST”) which was granted three US patents. He is the 2017 Winner of the Africa Innovation Award for Social Impact and 2025 Africa Genius Award. He led a team of young scientists last year at the NPHIL which discovered the Monkeypox Clade IIa in Liberia, over fifty years after the virus was first detected.
For now, this is a test of President Boakai’s government and adherence to the rule of law to either immediately reinstate a top-notch biomedical scientist who evidence show was performing well in his government or compensate him for the remaining years in his tenure with other legal remedies as so ordered by the Supreme Court of Liberia on February 16, 2026.
