By Jerromie S. Walters
Following a tense campaign process, supporters of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) on Sunday, October 8, 2023, assembled in parts of Montserrado, and other counties across Liberia- to climax their campaign activities.
Amid the massive turnout, the evening hours sadly met an unorthodox reaction from individuals believed to be supporters of the All Liberian Coalition Party (ALCOP), who alleged threw stones at supporters of the CDC and other vehicles that were part of the president’s convoy.
As vividly seen in video footages, the alleged supporters of ALCOP were later resisted by supporters of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), a scene that reportedly resulted to a single death, minor injuries, while parts of several vehicles were damaged.
The clash occurred on the Japan Freeway (Somalia Drive). Blunt objects including- stones, sticks and irons were exchanged between supporters of the two parties. The incident affected also properties, as shops and other businesses in the BardnersvilleJunction, Gardnersvile Supermarket and other areas were shut down due to the situation. People fled the environment for their lives and safety.
Undoubtedly, this violates the Farmington River Declaration which was signed and agreed upon by most of the political parties, prior to the campaign process.
Recently, the Head of the ECOWAS Observer Mission to Liberia, Professor Attahiru Muhammadu Jega and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Leonardo Santos Simão, undertook a joint mission to Liberia from 3 to 4 October, and strongly warned political actors and their supporters against electoral violence.
The objective of the mission was to assess Liberian stakeholders’ political perspectives and to convey messages of peace and inclusivity in the context of the electoral process. The Joint Mission consulted with political stakeholders and national institutions. They also interacted with members of the Diplomatic Corps and the United Nations Country Team.
The Mission acknowledged the progress in the preparations towards the elections, and underscored the need for peaceful, credible, transparent and inclusive polls in an atmosphere of tolerance that promotes unity in Liberia. In particular, the Mission urged political actors to refrain from incendiary rhetoric that incites violence and encouraged all actors to exercise restraint, and assiduously safeguard the hard-won peace and maintain national cohesion in the country.
Meanwhile, as he engages Liberians for a second term mandate, President George Weah says if he’s reelected, his goal for the second term is to do more, with major interventions in every sector.
President Weah spoke Sunday, October 8, 2023, when he joined thousands of his supporters at the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) headquarters in Congo Town, Liberia, for the climax of his campaign process.
“While I’m seeking reelection on these achievements, my goal for the second term is to do more and bigger things for the betterment of Liberia” President George Weah assured his government’s commitment to invest in every sector- following his reelection.
More to this, the President says in his second term, his government will focus on increasing the salaries of civil servants. “AS we improve the government pay system, our goal in the years ahead will be to continue to increase the salaries of government workers in keen sectors, such as- health, education and local government.”
“My second term will be dedicated to completing Liberia’s roads infrastructure, every county capital must be connected to the nearest county by a paved road. I will also continue to grow our economy in order to provide more jobs for Liberians, more of these jobs will be created in a small and medium enterprises sectors and in keen sectors like agriculture manufacturing.
At said occasion, President Weah hailed Liberians for the opportunity given him- to stair the affairs of the state for the last five years. Throughout, he acknowledged that there were challenges, but amid the different challenges, he believes they did better.
As he disclosed from the genesis of his administration, President Weah emphasized that they inherited a broken economy. However- the President said his government did much more in its first term. “I refused to be complacent or take your vote for granted, because I believe in the power of your choice and I believe in the promise of a better Liberia.”
He bragged of his government free tuition policy, efforts to boost electricity, and other significant interventions in major sectors. President Weah tells Liberians- “We were able to do more with less resources.”
“I have also built markets for all our market people and housing units for some Liberians and of course we have built more community roads than any government in our history,” President Weah said.
In his message to youth and first time voters, President Weah states- “To our first time voters, I want to say that your participation in this democratic process is a testament to the strength of our democracy, your voices matter and your vote will shift the future of our nation.”
At the same time, he thanked the first lady, the VP, the entire CDC campaign team as well as supporters of the CDC for their commitment to the party’s campaign process. “We have come to the end of a remarkable journey together, a journey that has taken us to every corner of this great nation.”
Liberia is expected to conduct its presidential and legislative elections comes Tuesday, October 10, 2023. The National Elections Commission (NEC) puts the exact figure of electorate at two-million-four-hundred-seventy-one-thousand-six-hundred-seventeen.
The figure was contained in data from the final voter roll released on Monday, July 17, 2023, by the NEC Chairperson, Davidetta Browne-Lansanah. The release of the statistics followed the conclusion of what Commissioner Browne-Lansanah called de-duplication and adjudication of the Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) provisional roll. President George Weah will face about 19 opponents at Tuesday’s polls.
