AME University Validadoran, Mashamie Sheriff Photo source: Facebook
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Claim: A blog in Liberia, Yekeh Kolubah, alleges that the valedictorian of the AME University graduating class, a Muslim, was stopped from delivering her official address during the graduation ceremony after the administration learned that her remarks would address religious intolerance.
Verdict: Misleading! The valedictorian in question denied the claim. While she admitted not reading her speech, she explained it was due to time constraints, which had nothing to do with religious intolerance. The official statement issued by AME University also affirmed this, adding that both valedictorians of the undergraduate and graduate programmes were prevented from delivering their speeches due to time constraints, not because of religious intolerance.
Full text
A blog in Liberia, Yekah Kolubah, has claimed that the Valedictorian of the African Methodist Episcopal University (AMEU) graduating class, a Muslim, was stopped from delivering her official address during the graduation ceremony.
According to the blog, the alleged action by the University was due to her religion (Muslim), something the blog stated the University’s administration discovered only on graduation day.
This blog post generated over 500 comments, more than 40 shares, and 1.3k emojis.
What is the African Methodist Episcopal University (AMEU)?
The African Methodist Episcopal University (AMEU), a Christian faith-based institution, was established in 1995 and endorsed by the Liberian Legislature in 1996. Since then, the university has thrived within the Liberian educational sector, providing quality tertiary education to the country.
Given the significant attention this blog post has drawn, DUBAWA felt compelled to ascertain the facts surrounding the claim.
Verification
To verify this claim, DUBAWA first contacted the AME University’s administration through its public relations department, and they shared a statement refuting the claim.
According to AME University’s statement, this allegation is not only false but also malicious, and it seeks to damage AME University’s reputation.
The statement furthered that the University stands firmly against all forms of discrimination and rejects any attempt to associate its name with religious intolerance.
The AME University statement noted, “It is deeply concerning that certain individuals have chosen to distort this routine administrative adjustment into a narrative intended to inflame religious sentiment.”
Additionally, the researcher obtained a copy of the programme booklet, which included the valedictorian’s speech, Miss. Mashamie Sheriff was captured, as seen in the screenshot below.
To further verify this claim, the researcher again contacted Ms. Mashamie Sheriff, the lady at the centre of the claim. Ms Sheriff told DUBAWA that although she was prevented from delivering her speech during the graduation ceremony, it was not because of her religion, but due to time constraints.
She told the researcher via WhatsApp text message, “I was denied the opportunity to deliver my speech, yes, and the reason was time constraints. The programme was to start at 10:00 am, but the keynote speaker, Hon. Richard Nagbe Koon, arrived late, and the programme started at 12 pm.”
Ms. Sheriff also posted on her official Facebook page that her speech had nothing to do with religious intolerance, as the blog claimed. She wrote,
“I wish to address a recent and malicious claim published by the Yekeh Kolubah blog on Facebook, alleging that my valedictory speech at A. M. E. University was intended to discuss ‘religious intolerance’ in Liberia. This allegation is entirely false, fabricated, and deliberately misleading.
Conclusion
Based on the investigation conducted and information provided by both the AME University and Ms. Mashamie Sheriff, the claim that the AME University denied the 2025 undergraduate Valedictorian from delivering her official address during the graduation ceremony due to religious intolerance is misleading.
