Fresh controversy is brewing over the 2025-2026 National County Sports Meet, with questions now hanging over the legitimacy of Nimba County's record 7th title following a contentious ruling from the Ministry of Youth and Sports that has favored Lofa County.
The Ministry recently constituted a three-member Special Ad Hoc Committee drawn from the 2026 Protest & Grievance Committee and Appeals Board to review Lofa's disqualification from the tournament.
Lofa had been disqualified by the main Protest Hearing Committee after Grand Cape Mount County filed a complaint alleging the use of ineligible players - with the Liberia Football Association (LFA) ruling at the time that the players in question were not properly transferred via the Domestic Transfer Matching System (DTMS) as required by regulations.
In its review, the Ad Hoc Committee concluded that the initial US$5,000 fine slammed on Lofa was "excessive and inconsistent" with the tournament's regulations, and subsequently reduced the penalty to US$1,500, citing Article 22.1 of the 2025 NCSM Rules and Regulations.
But an Intel Sports investigation has uncovered what appears to be a glaring conflict of interest at the heart of that decision.
The investigation established that the Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee, Cllr. Jeremiah Samuel Dugbo I, was an open and strong supporter of Lofa County during last year's protest saga. In several social media posts reviewed by Intel Sports, Cllr. Dugbo had publicly declared that the Ministry of Youth and Sports was wrong and openly declared support for Lofa.
His open partisanship has now raised serious questions about the independence and impartiality of the committee he chaired, and whether its decision to rule in favor of Lofa can be considered credible.
Sports pundits are asking: If Lofa's disqualification for fielding players deemed ineligible by both the LFA and the original Protest Committee was wrongful, what does that mean for the entire knockout stage that followed?
With Lofa out, Nimba County went on to clinch their 7th County Meet title. But if Lofa was unjustly removed, is Nimba's triumph legitimate?
The Ministry of Youth and Sports is yet to respond to the conflict of interest allegations against its appointed committee chair, leaving a major unanswered question over the integrity of the nation's biggest sporting festival.