James K. Mulbah, General Manager of Roberts International Airport (RIA), is expected to replace John-Charuk Saah Siafa as Mayor of the Monrovia City Corporation (MCC). Mulbah was appointed General Manager of RIA by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai on February 28, 2024. He officially joined the ruling Unity Party (UP) last December. If nominated, Mulbah would require confirmation by the Liberian Senate, as Siafa did in 2024.
Siafa's tenure as Mayor has been dogged by controversy, including allegations of financial and procurement irregularities at the MCC. In June 2025, claims surfaced about the rapid elevation of staff to senior paid positions. MCC contractors protested in front of City Hall over unpaid wages, and the mayor and the Civil Service Agency came under fire from civil society over the dismissal of civil servants.
Some of the sharpest attacks have come from within the ruling party itself. In September 2025, Queen Johnson, Deputy Director for Records at the National Port Authority and a staunch UP member, publicly called for Siafa's dismissal, labeling him corrupt and incompetent. Days later, MCC employees planned a protest demanding his resignation over the city's persistent sanitation problems.
The mayor has had defenders, including the Civil Society of Liberia (CSNL), which dismissed the corruption claims as propaganda driven by suspended staff. The MCC has also pushed back against reporting on the deteriorating City Hall theater, insisting the mayor inherited the facility in ruins and has made progress rehabilitating municipal buildings.
At the heart of Siafa's defense has been a recurring complaint: that the national government has failed to fund the city. Appearing before the Legislature for his first budget hearing in April 2024, Siafa blamed Monrovia's filth on the government's failure to allocate adequate funding to the city government. He told lawmakers the MCC needed US$11,023,583 to function effectively.
The 2024 draft national budget allotted the MCC US$3,777,965, and the 2026 national budget allocated US$4.5 million to the MCC — still well short of the mayor's own estimate of what the city needs. Whoever takes over City Hall is likely to inherit the same dilemma: a capital that residents and critics say is drowning in waste, and a city government that says it has never been given the means to clean it.
Mulbah made the announcement during the Unity Party's Homecoming Program, where he arrived at the party's national headquarters accompanied by a large group of supporters. He told journalists at the time that the UP was the first political party he had ever joined and that President Boakai's stance against corruption was a major reason for his decision.
Key points
- James K. Mulbah is set to replace John-Charuk Saah Siafa as Mayor of Monrovia City Corporation amid criticism of Siafa's stewardship.
