IPNEWS: Bong County District #6 Representative Moima Briggs-Mensah challenged the leadership of the Liberia House of Representatives, demanding a transition from traditional voice voting (“yea and nay”) to headcount voting for high-level bills and national instruments.
The confrontation occurred during the first sitting of the third session of the 55th Legislature on January 13, 2026.
Rep. Briggs-Mensah directly confronted the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, accusing them of undermining legislative transparency and debate.
She argued that the current “Yea and Ni” (voice vote) method is “unscrupulous” and inappropriate for significant legislation. She asserted that adopting a headcount system would, align the Liberian Legislature with ECOWAS and international parliamentary standards, enhance transparency, accountability, and credibility in decision-making, and ensure major instruments are not passed without full, open debate.
“We can’t continue with this ‘Ye and Ni’ because it is embarrassing us. You can control the floor and get the vote, but you cannot do that with [headcount]”.
