By the Liberia Forest Media Watch
Two Forestry Development Authority’s agents, a Zone Warden, Selma Kolako, and a Ranger, Oliver Jelleh, are said to be in trouble for doing their work in the Grebo-Krahn National Partk, where they have been assigned.
On Sunday, March 2, 2025, Zone Warden Selma Kolako, assigned to the north of the Grebo-Krahn National Park in Grand Gedeh County, had to flee for his life after being tipped about an imminent arbitrary arrest by traditionalists.
Kolako is accused of defying the traditional order that prohibits the FDA from engaging in activities around a specific area of the park, His subordinate, Ranger Oliver Jelleh, who accompanied him during the letter distribution in the park, has been held hostage for more than a week now.
The whereabouts of Oliver Jelleh remain unknown. Family members fear he may be severely tortured by the traditional people, and could sustain life-threatening injuries. His family members who preferred anonymity, are calling on relevant authorities to intervene quickly before it is too late for their son.
“Liberia is a country of law, so this act by the traditionalists is uncalled for. If care is not taken, the traditional leaders might disregard any form of government,” the family member stated.
Describing his ordeal, Warden Selma Kolako expressed confusion about why he was targeted and what the traditionalists’ motives were. “I was in bed when I heard a persistent knocking at my room door. I hesitated to answer, but as the knocking continued, I eventually opened it. At that point, the person pleaded with me, saying, ‘Kolako, you must leave right now before the worst happens. You are not safe here in Ziah Town any longer. Please don’t argue; go immediately!'”
With this information, Kolako said he quickly got on his assigned operations motorbike that was parked at his house, and hurriedly left the community, leaving behind his personal belongings, including cash that he could not lay his hands on at that moment.
Minutes after his departure, he said he received information that his home had been ransacked by individuals believed to be agents of the local tradition.
The FDA’s Park official told the media that he cannot accept assignments in Grand Gedeh County, particularly around Grebo-Krahn National Park, where residents are allegedly intimidating FDA staff due to growing interests in cocoa farming by the locals.
Kolako predicts that if this situation continues, Liberia may lose a substantial portion of the park to local residents and Burkinabe migrants who are determined to pursue industrial cocoa farming.
The conflict between the FDA’s agents and local residents began early January 2025, when fringe communities near the park, represented by their traditional leaders, forcefully prevented FDA teams from conducting normal forest surveillance patrols.
These patrols are part of the community Eco guard program, a flagship initiative of the FDA supported by the Wild Chimpanzee Foundation. This program enlists community members to assist in the sustainable management of the park by regularly collecting data on wildlife and human activities in the area, including conservation awareness and education campaigns within the vicinity of the park.
In February 2025, the tension escalated as several communities, primarily in the Glio and Twarbo Chiefdoms, obstructed the FDA and various partners, including the United Nations Development Program’s LeH Go Green Project, from participating in any activities related to the national park.
The communities cited dissatisfaction with the management of the park and the failure of the FDA and its partners to deliver on benefits promised since the park’s establishment in 2017.
In response to the unrest, the communities, through the Grand Gedeh County Authority, requested a revision of the management plan and a reassessment of future benefits that align with the government’s ARREST agenda. In light of these concerns, FDA Protected Area Manager, Evangeline Swope, requested a stakeholders’ consultative meeting, with the aim to address the issues regarding the protection of Grebo-Krahn National Park in both Grand Gedeh and River Gee Counties.
Despite this, things worsened when individuals believed to be strong supporters of the traditional priest declined to accept the meeting invitation. Their decision was later rescinded when Senator Thomas Yaya Nimely, who was visiting the Glio Chiefdom intervened.
But days after the senator’s departure from the area, all those who received and signed for the letters were summoned by the traditional authority in a town called Garleo for questioning. A source close to the traditional priest revealed that all recipients of the letters were fined one goat and seven thousand Liberian Dollars.
Amid the escalating tension, the FDA remains tight-lipped about the prevailing situation around Grebo-Krahn National Park, despite organizing a two days (February 26-27, 2025) stakeholders’ meeting in Ziah Town, which also ended in a deadlock.
Compounding the issue is the continued silence of the Grand Gedeh County Authority, led by Superintendent Alex Grant, who has yet to issue any public statement despite being notified by the FDA and its partners during a briefing session earlier this week.
