Liberia: Rep. Kollie Pleas with CSA to Reinstate Suspended Phebe Hospital Workers - FrontPageAfrica

SUAKOKO – Bong County District Five Representative Eugine J. M. Kollie has called on the Director General of the Civil Service Agency (CSA), Josiah Joekai, to reconsider and lift the suspension of seven health workers at Phebe Hospital who were penalized following a recent go slow action at the facility.

By Selma Lomax, selma.lomax@frontpageafricaonline.com

The seven health professionals, including nurses and other clinical staff, were suspended after staging what authorities described as an unauthorized protest over benefits and working conditions.

The action reportedly disrupted services at the hospital and prompted swift administrative intervention from the CSA and the Ministry of Health.

However, Representative Kollie has intervened, urging CSA to temper disciplinary measures with dialogue and understanding. According to the lawmaker, health workers do not abandon their duties without serious cause. He argued that their action signals deeper systemic issues that require urgent attention rather than punishment.

Speaking on the matter, Rep. Kollie emphasized that doctors and nurses are frontline heroes who dedicate their lives to saving others, often under difficult circumstances. He noted that protests within the health sector are typically driven by unresolved grievances, including delayed benefits, inadequate working conditions, and administrative challenges that directly affect service delivery.

“These medical professionals did not wake up one morning and decide to disrupt services for no reason,” Representative Kollie stated. “When doctors and nurses take the difficult step of staging a go slow, it means that repeated appeals and internal engagements have not yielded results. We must listen to them before we discipline them.”

He continued by calling for wisdom and compassion from the CSA. “I am respectfully appealing to Director General Josiah Joekai to use his experience and wisdom in handling this matter. The suspension of seven health workers may deepen the crisis at Phebe Hospital rather than resolve it. Dialogue, reconciliation, and immediate engagement with their concerns will better serve the public interest.”

Rep. Kollie further stressed that protecting health workers is synonymous with protecting citizens. “Our nurses and doctors are among our most valuable national assets. They work long hours, often without adequate resources, and in rural counties like Bong, they form the backbone of healthcare delivery. If they feel unheard and unsupported, the entire community suffers. Leadership is about standing with your people, especially when they are crying out for fairness.”

The lawmaker also warned that punitive measures without constructive engagement could discourage other professionals in the health sector. “Suspension sends a message of punishment,” he said.

“What we need instead is a message of reform, accountability, and mutual respect. If there were administrative missteps, let them be addressed, but let us not lose sight of the bigger picture, which is improving healthcare for our people.”