UL Boss Frowns on Students’ ‘Destructive Acts’ At LFA -Dr. Maparyan: ‘LFA Incident Concerning to UL Family and Society’

MONROVIA – The President of the University of Liberia (UL), Prof. Dr. Layli Maparyan, has swiftly reacted to destructive and vandalizing acts carried out at the Liberia Football Association (LFA) by some members of the campus-based Students Unification Party (SUP) with calls to stop such misbehaviors that make the University look bad and harder to provide the education for which the students obtained enrolment.

Dr. Maparyan noted that it was very ironic that she was having a peaceful, productive, and informative meeting with members of the Student Unification Party (SUP) on the UL Capitol Hill campus at the very time that SUP members were carrying out the destructive and vandalizing activity at LFA.

“I think that the LFA situation is very concerning not only to us as the University of Liberia family, but also for the wider society,” he said. “You know, while that situation was unfolding at the LFA, I was literally having my first sit-down meeting with members of SUP.”

“In the meeting I had with the SUP members, I talked about the importance of reducing the violence that’s been associated with the protests and how disruptive it is to the educational mission of the university,” the UL President explained.

According to Dr. Maparyan, the students at the meeting seemed to share her view, but noted that it was ironic that the very situation was going on right at the time they were talking.

Regarding the Liberia National Police move to address the LFA situation, Dr. Maparyan said she recognized that the police has jurisdiction over the matter and expressed her support for the police doing their job and bringing people to justice.

“You know, it’s always important to make the distinction between different jurisdictions when you need to enforce rules, but should any of the rules of our own campus be violated,” she quipped, adding. “I’m prepared to take action when the names are provided. There are three kinds of actions we can take: Warning, suspension, and expulsion,” averred the UL President.

Before taking any kind of action, she noted that there would be an investigative process to give due process to the students, even within the university, and should the gravity of the situation warrant it, there shall be suspension or expulsion for culprits.

“Right now, it’s a verbal warning that I’m giving; that we’re taking these matters seriously, and that even though people say sometimes that they haven’t reviewed the student handbook, that that doesn’t mean that the policies of our university don’t exist. They do, and they must be followed,” she cautioned.