Monrovia, Oct. 20 -- WHEN PRESIDENT JOSEPH Nyuma Boakai appointed Dr. Dougbeh Chris Nyan as Director-General of the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL) in August 2024, the move was widely hailed as one of his administration's most brilliant decisions.

DR. NYAN, AN accomplished biomedical scientist, inventor, and infectious disease expert, brought home a wealth of international experience and credibility at a time when Liberia's public health system needed visionary leadership. In less than a year, his stewardship at NPHIL revived hope in the country's disease surveillance and research capacity.

THAT IS WHY his abrupt dismissal last week-barely a year into his five-year statutory tenure-has left many Liberians disappointe...