Boakai’s Drug War Stumbles Amid Family Ties to Liberia’s Deadly Trade

IN PHOTO: Joseph Boakai, Jr., Gregory Coleman, Anthony Souh, and Quita Kosso

MONROVIA, Sept 4 – Liberian President Joseph Boakai, who won office promising to crush what he termed a “national drugs pandemic,” is now facing mounting criticism at home and abroad over what opponents describe as a hollow and compromised anti-narcotics campaign.

Far from stemming the trade, drug abuse and trafficking are surging at unprecedented levels. Critics say Boakai is waging a “charade war” in which senior security officials charged with tackling the crisis are themselves dogged by allegations of collusion with traffickers.

"The president promised action, but instead we have dealers in charge of fighting dealers,” said a highly placed source, speaking on condition of anonymity for safety reasons.

Concerns intensified after authorities at Roberts International Airport seized luggage packed with narcotics, each plate estimated at $50,000. Officials initially recorded 18 plates during the count following the seizure. Yet, in the official report filed by the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA), only 10 plates were listed, fueling suspicions that drug enforcement officers diverted part of the shipment.

The luggage in question belonged to a woman identified as Quita Kosso. Security sources say she is linked to major drug networks, with alleged connections to Boakai’s son, Joseph “Joejoe” Boakai Jr., alongside associates of a Nigerian cartel. Two senior security officials told Insights Liberia that U.S. diplomats intervened via the National Security Agency to ensure Quita remained in custody, describing attempts to secure her quiet release.

Sources further indicated that Gregory Coleman, Sam Gaye, and several Lebanese businessmen are actively involved with the cartel. Additionally, insiders claim Gregory’s two sisters are also deeply embroiled in the drug trade. He has reportedly used his influence to recommend allies for key security positions at the LDEA, Liberia Immigration Service (LIS), and at the airport.

For Boakai, the optics are grim. His campaign-era denunciations of former President George Weah for presiding over rising drug abuse now risk rebounding as hypocrisy. “He said this was a pandemic. Well, the pandemic is now worse than ever. And sadly, all those Boakai has appointed do not have the credentials to combat the menace. Abraham Kromah, the first choice, was an ex-combatant whose only strategy was to create an impression that he meant well, raid a few ghettos, and then start doing business with the cartel.

Boakai's second appointment, Anthony Suoh, who was dismissed by Madam Sirleaf, proved even less effective. Our sources report that Suoh was so involved in the trade that he could not change anything. His administration targeted only a handful of dealers not connected to CTEATE Optics, leaving the broader network untouched.

The absence of a coherent national strategy, combined with allegations of political entanglement, has eroded public trust.

For now, Boakai’s “war on drugs” appears less a crackdown than a spectacle—placing both his credibility and Liberia’s fragile stability increasingly on the line.