Now let me add my two cents to all this Congua-Country astray, and yes, I say astray because this divisive pattern in Liberia today has become consistent in every recent election. Since I was born well before the 1980 Coup, like many, I have a full understanding and recollection of the Liberia of yesteryears. I can say with ABSOLUTE CERTAINTY that the Liberia of yesteryears is not the Liberia of today and will never be again, nor should it necessarily be so, not after all this country has gone through.
By Henrique Caine, Contributing Writer
The perpetrators of that continuing Country-Congau divide go full throttle in galvanizing young people to push their rhetoric when they have run out of ideas. All of this after a revolutionary coup, 14 years of intermittent civil wars, over 250k lives lost, massive internal and external displacement of citizens, and a complete breakdown of society, which took major efforts by an international community of nations to help commence rebuilding. So, what the hell, just for kicks, here are a few reasons I say it’s all a bunch of complete good-for-nothing astray:
When we gather as friends and neighbors to talk about the happenings of daily life in Liberia or complain about how hard the country is, we talk about it with no division of Country-Congau.
When we go to our local restaurants, beaches, and entertainment centers to eat and have a good time, we dance and sing to the same afrobeat, hipco, hiplife, or Liberian music, and nobody is there tripping on Country-Congau.
When we enter the various Ministries and Government Agencies and complain about the level of dysfunction in service delivery, like getting a passport, marriage or driver’s license, business registration, or birth certificate, we are united in our disappointments, and there is nothing about Country-Congau.
When students line up at the various universities, struggling to get their billing and clearances to move to the next level, and line up at banks hoping to make their payments, no student even thinks about divisive Country-Congau.
As we watched the recent recruitment of soldiers into the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) a few months ago, and men and women lined up the streets around the Barracks for miles trying to enter the military and take fitness and aptitude tests, there was no concern about Country-Congua, just people trying to help each other get in.
When we line up outside the gates of the US Embassy waiting for appointments for visas or, in the case of some of us dual nationals, consular services, no one says a damn thing about Country-Congau because we all know that it doesn’t matter one bit to Uncle Sam and those foreign folks behind the counters.
When we register our kids in various schools (including the elite prep schools for those who can afford it, including parents from all tribes and counties), parents just want to educate their kids, and not one of them goes to the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) meetings about Country-Congau.
When community residents hold meetings to discuss the Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC) and how to fight for a transformer or get meters for their communities, or get together and visit LEC management for an intervention to get them a transformer, not a soul thinks about Country-Congau.
When various labor groups and union organizations, including the recent protest by government workers for increased pay and fair wages, go on strike, I don’t hear a single soul mention Country-Congau.
When Liberians gather at Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex (SKD) or Antoinette Tubman Stadium (ATS)
When Liberians gather at SKD or ATS stadiums for Lonestar games or County Meet Tournaments, I see people claiming tribal and county ties to all counties and cheering for their county REGARDLESS of LAST NAMES! Again, no divisive country-congau talk.
When youngsters go from store to store, office to office, NGO to NGO, or Ministry to Ministry desperately looking for work with diplomas and CVs in hand, they do so hoping that experience, education, and merit rule the day, and again, not thinking about Country-Congau.
When tragedy hits a community, as was the case of the fire that destroyed my neighbor’s house just a few months ago, we all woke up at 3 am to help put out that raging fire, as is often the case in many communities hit with tragedy, and no one is doing it as a Country or Congau.
When you’re like me and probably hang out and party hard with beauty queens from just about every County, you better damn well believe, ain’t NOBODY thinking about Country-Congau! That’s for sure!!!!
I can go on and on, but let me stop here. These failed politicians, failed online prognosticators, and failed manipulative agitators, including many from the past, will always gravitate to that old worn-out Congau-Country narrative when they have NOTHING else to offer up to the Liberian people. The Country will continue to move forward with or without them. We know them all too well and will reject them every time in this new dispensation.