The National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) has moved decisively to dismantle the current leadership of its United States chapter, suspending the entire interim body amidst accusations of insubordination and a concerted effort to undermine the party’s authority.
Following an emergency session convened on February 22, 2026, the NEC announced the immediate suspension of the CDC-USA Interim Leadership, citing a protracted administrative impasse that has plagued the diaspora branch. According to a resolution released Tuesday, the party’s highest decision-making body in the absence of a National Congress has accused the suspended officials of attempting to fracture the organization and reject the chain of command emanating from the headquarters in Liberia.
At the heart of the dispute is a fundamental challenge to the NEC’s jurisdiction. The resolution states that the Interim Leadership, initially chaired by Mr. Yahaya Talata Sheriff, communicated a position that it does not recognize the authority of the National Executive Committee, “asserting jurisdictional parity with the sovereign governing body of the Party in Liberia.”
The crisis, which the NEC inherited, initially prompted a reconciliatory approach. Atty. Janga A. Kowo, the National Chairman, briefed the emergency session on the efforts made to restore normalcy, including the formation of a special Reconciliation Committee. That committee established an Interim Leadership of National Unity, with a clear mandate to steer the chapter’s affairs and conduct a National Convention within one year. A foundational condition of that compromise, the NEC emphasized, was that interim appointees would be ineligible to run in the subsequent 2026 elections.
However, tensions escalated when the Interim Leadership, now under the chairmanship of Mr. Sheriff, allegedly failed to comply with directives to submit an electoral roadmap. The NEC claims the chapter’s leaders rebuffed written requests for dialogue and refused to attend multiple scheduled meetings.
In an attempt to preserve the party’s integrity, the NEC initially suspended Mr. Sheriff, leading to Vice Chairman Mr. Donald Todey ascending to Acting Chairman. To circumvent the administrative paralysis, the central party then constituted a separate 2026 National CDC-USA Convention Committee, chaired by Rev. Solomon M. Muin, tasking it with organizing a national convention in Philadelphia scheduled for June 2026.
The final break came on February 18, 2026, when the authorized Convention Committee formally petitioned the NEC, alleging that the Interim Leadership was actively working to undermine its mandate. According to the resolution, the suspended leaders are not only refusing to cooperate but are concurrently organizing a “parallel, unauthorized convention in Minnesota in direct opposition to the sanctioned Philadelphia convention.”
The NEC characterized these actions as “a deliberate effort to fracture the party, mislead the membership, and bring the good name of the Congress for Democratic Change into public disrepute.”
Citing constitutional provisions granting it the power to supervise all party organs and dissolve or reorganize branches, the NEC has suspended all activities of the CDC-USA under the current leadership. The list of suspended individuals includes Acting Chairman Donald Geelpay Todey, Vice Chairperson for Operations Vera Davis Okyne, Secretary General Abraham A. Monobah, and Treasurer Comfort M. Taye, among others. Chapter chairs in Minnesota and Iowa were also suspended for their alleged involvement.
All suspended members have been referred to the National Grievance and Ethics Committee for disciplinary proceedings. In the interim, all administrative and financial authority for the diaspora chapter has been vested in Rev. Muin’s Convention Committee, which is now recognized as the only legitimate body authorized to conduct CDC-USA activities leading up to the Philadelphia convention.
The NEC has declared the proposed Minnesota gathering illegal and null, warning any individuals using the party’s name or logos for unauthorized events to cease and desist immediately. In a statement accompanying the resolution, Atty. Kowo reaffirmed the party’s commitment to internal democracy and the rule of law, signing off with a forward-looking pledge to “unseat the failed Unity Party government in 2029.”
