MONROVIA, Montserrado – The Ministry of National Defense has described a call by the Liberty Party standard bearer Charles Walker Brumskine to recruit so-called zogos into the Armed Forces of Liberia as a violation of the new defense act.

The zogos are mostly car loaders who are said to be involved in petty crimes and chronic drug abuse. While there is not a precise definition for who all fit into the category, most have not completed high school and some may be former child soldiers.

During his acceptance of Liberty Party’s nomination as the standard bearer, Brumskine recently said if elected as president, his government would use the AFL to foster Liberia’s development.

He said his government would “establish auxiliary units, such as the Agriculture Battalion, the Engineering Battalion, and the Medical, in which zogos and other troubled youth” could serve.

But in sharp reaction, the Ministry of National Defense said it disagrees with any a plan to recruit zogos into the AFL, as it would “dampen the professional content of the force.”

The Defense Ministry said such recruitment would be a “deliberate breach of the legal requirements for eligibility into the AFL and recruitment procedures.”

Those requirements include being between the ages of 18 to 35, possessing “not less than a high school diploma or equivalent vocational education, and meet the professional, medical and other fitness qualifications of the AFL.”

The law also says that “the AFL shall at all times reflect the national character of Liberia.”

Additionally, the ministry noted applicants being recruited into the AFL have to be approved by the joint personnel board comprising one representative each from the civil society, United States government, United Nations Mission in Liberia and chaired by the Minister of National Defense.

Several ‘zogos’ at the Monrovia City Court in 2016. Photo: Zeze Ballah

The ministry said it further views the call for recruiting zogos into the AFL by Brumskine as a flagrant disservice to the efforts of United Nations, ECOWAS, as well as bilateral partners, particularly the United States government, which has over the years invested both human and material resources aimed at creating a professional, properly trained, and equipped security apparatus that is non-political and respectful of the Constitution.

Featured photo by Zeze Ballah