False! Protesters didn’t set Liberian parliament building ablaze 

2024-12-31 0

By Taiwo Adeyemi 

Smoke rises from Liberian parliament building in Monrovia, Liberia

Photo Source: BBC

Claim: An X user shared a picture of the Liberian parliament building on fire and another picture of relics of the building after the fire incident with a caption that “Liberia’s Gen Z have completely burnt down their Senate & Parliament buildings”.

Verdict: False! Statements by the Liberian police and media reports confirmed that the incident was not linked to anti-government protesters in the country.

Full Text

The nationwide protest in Monrovia, capital of Liberia took a new dimension when the nation parliament building, Capitol  in the nation capital, Moronvia went up in smoke in a fire incident. 

Protesters in the country a day before the inferno that happened on Wednesday, 18th December, 2024 have besieged the parliament building to protest against the purported removal of the speaker, who faces accusations of corruption. The demonstrators are also calling for the president to step down.

The mysterious incident occurred after clashes between the police and demonstrators of the opposition alliance “Coalition for Democratic Change” (CDC) led by former President George Weah, who were protesting against the attempt by the presidential majority to oust the current Speaker of Parliament, Jonathan Fonati Koffa (a member of the CDC).

An X user, Jim Njue @jimnjue_ shared pictures with a post that the Gen Z have burnt the Liberian parliament. 

“Liberia’s Gen Z have completely burnt down their Senate & Parliament buildings”.

Gen Z are a generation born in the mid 1990s and early 2010s. 

This post has been generating many reactions from the users, as at 31st December, 2024, over 2 million users have viewed it, over 5,000 reposts and over 17,000 likes.

An X user, Inpector Mao @inspectormao tweeted that if the lawmakers are not there, it’s a waste of fire.

“Were the parliamentarians inside, if not, that was a waste of fire!!”

Another user Mr._Nobody @doubleu1515 criticized the Kenyans for the government only on the Internet. 

“Yet Kenyans are just on the internet, making cartoons of Ruto and typing #RutoMustGoNow, thinking that will bring him to justice.”

Black Jesus @osunkentanD wishes it happened in Nigeria. 

“I need to experience this in Nigeria before I go back to my Maker”.

This tweet has been generating mixed reactions, so the researcher decided to verify the truth. 

Verification

According to authorities, they did not immediately confirm the cause of the fire in the capital, Monrovia. 

The Police Chief, Gragray Coleman did not link the incident to the protesters. 

Conclusion

Post that Liberian Gen Z set the country parliament building on fire is misleading, statementS from the police didn’t link the incident to the protesters and anybody.