LOFA COUNTY – The chairman of Liberty Party, Musa Hassan Bility, is urging the opposition Collaborating Political Parties (CPP) to ban lawmakers of the collaboration who approved the printing of L$48.7 billion banknotes from contesting on its ticket in the 2023 presidential and legislative elections.
“The CPP will ensure that all those representatives who signed the resolution for the government to print new money won’t be allowed to contest on the ticket of the CPP,” said Bility, who was speaking in Lofa County Friday during a dedication of a mosque in Bolonguidu Town, Quardu Gboni District.
“We can’t be speaking against plans by the government to print new money lawmakers from our collaboration are endorsing a resolution authorizing the government.”
Bility alleged that the government’s plan to print new banknotes is an attempt to enrich officials of the George Weah-led Administration, and any lawmaker from the CPP who signed the resolution acted against the ideology of the CPP.
“If you want to remain as an opposition lawmaker, remain. If you want to become a regime lawmaker, resign from the CPP and join the government,” he added. You can’t be in the CPP and going against the aspirations of the CPP, that’s wrong.”
It’s unclear how many of the 23 lawmakers of the CPP signed a resolution for the printing of the banknotes to replace the ones that are in use within three years, beginning this year on March 19 because the signing of the resolution wasn’t done public.
Bility said that politicians have used the CPP’s fame to ascend to power but later disappoint the people who voted them into power, by collaborating with the regime to pass bogus deals in the House of Representatives.
Bility also called on the Senate not to concur with the House of Representatives and authorize the printing of new money, as doing so would empower President Weah ahead of the 2023 presidential elections.
The Liberty Party, a constituent party of the four collaborating parties which include the former ruling Unity Party (UP), the Alternative National Conference ANC and the All Liberian Party, elected Bility on January 23, 2021 at its convention in Gbarnga.
His election as chairman of the party generated criticisms from the public. The leadership of the Friends of Brumskine and Founding Executive Members of the party described the outcome of the January convention as undemocratic and betrayal to the fight against corruption.
They noted that the decision to allow Bility ascend to the chairmanship of the party considering his alleged involvement in corruption scandals locally and intentionally speaks to the leadership malaise the currently pervades in the party.
According to them, Bility’s involvement with many corruption scandals, ranging from RIA Economic Sabotage and Criminal Conspiracy Case, Tax Evasion – 27 million dollars Road Fund debacle and the widely publicized FIFA ban from football because of his involvement in corruption renders him unfit to chair the Liberty Party.