Monrovia – Senator George Weah and the opposition Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) have begun assembling at the party’s Congo Town headquarters ahead of the official launch of the party’s campaign for the upcoming presidential and legislative elections.
Report by Henry Karmo – [email protected]
FrontPageAfrica reporters on the scene report that rally is reminiscent of its 2011 rally, with what has become one of the party’s anthems, “Monkey Come Down” echoing through music boxes and a rather sophisticated PA system, one of the many campaign boosters brought in by the party’s hierarchy to bolster its preparation for the upcoming elections.
As early as 8 am this morning, the party’s compound was taken over by jubilant supporters who have come to show their love for the party considered to be the voice of the mainly grassroot population of Liberia.
Many like Emmanuel Duo says he shut down his business for the day just to show his support to the party and convince their opponents that they are out for a one round victory. “This is a massage to our opponents that we are serious about one-round victory and we are not joking about that.”
But the crowd gathered here is far from the two million projected by the party’s vice president for operations, Mulbah Morlu predicted or the numbers of 2011 and 2005, confirming what many predict could be a dog fight in vote-rich Montserrado County where a total of (seven hundred, seventy seven thousand, five hundred and three votes)777, 503 votes are up for grabs. In 2011, the county recorded a total turnout of 354,360 voters in the first round.
A total of 2, 183, 683 Liberians are registered to vote in this year’s elections, only nearly half of the entire population.
Out of that number females account 1,062,733 voters for 49 percent; while males account for 1,120,950 for 51 percent. Only 472, 550 voters turned out to vote in the county in 2011
Senator Weah returned home Friday along with the Ivorian music sensation Frederic Desire Ehui , best known as Meiway, noted for pioneering the Zoblazo style, particularly his hit “Miss Lolo”.
A convoy carrying Weah and former President Pro Tempore Gbezohnga Findley is still making its way to the party’s headquarters where the official program is taking place.