Gbarnga, Bong County – Pressure seems to be mounting on Bong County senator, Dr. Henrique Tokpa, to drop his re-election ambition in 2023 in the face of growing health issues and his “failure to deliver on key campaign promises” since his election in 2018.
Dr. Tokpa, who’s in his late 70s, has been in the United States of America for over three months seeking treatment for an undisclosed illness, FrontPageAfrica gathered.
The senator, it was learned, had been approached by some supporters to withdraw from the race amid increasing odds against his re-election bid.
“Senator Tokpa has all the re-election odds against him and it will only be a wise thing if he abandons his ambition,” Patience Sumo, a supporter of Tokpa told FrontPageAfrica.
“His old age coupled with his inability to deliver to residents of the county would be a major challenge for him in 2023.”
“I am not going to shy away from the expectations people had before Dr. Tokpa became senator. I was one of the leading players in the campaign that brought that made my former Cuttington University president senator,” 42-year-old Joshua Flomo of Zota District claimed.
“We promised residents of Bong County quite a number of things, particularly centering on uniting the caucus, continuing with tuition aid for students in the county, and on economic growth. Have we been able to attain all of what we promised? Obviously not.”
Another supporter of Senator Tokpa, Tormue Flomo, took to social media to disengage from the “Friends of Tokpa”, a political group that supported the senator’s ambition in 2018. He posted: “I regret to announce that I hereby withhold and withdraw my support from “FOT” as of today’s date .This is due to frustration and disappointment over the period of time. Let this be noted that, I will be having series of press conferences to state the reasons that prompted my decisions.”
Dr. Tokpa promised to unite the Bong Legislative Caucus, ensure his share of the county’s development fund is utilized, and pursue the development of the county through people-centered initiatives.
However, the county legislative caucus has become more divided since he became senator of the county, and he hasn’t accounted for development funds given him from the county’s development fund, particularly money given him to construct boreholes in and out of Gbarnga.
But Senator Tokpa’s office insists he will seek re-election despite claims of his poor and his failure to deliver. Cassius Kpoeh, a staffer of the Bong County senator said, contrary to media reports his boss hasn’t done well, there are a lot of development initiatives his boss has undertaken since 2018. He named the provision of tuition aid to students of the county and renovation of damaged chairs for students, among others.
Plotting Sen. Tokpa’s downfall
With less than 20 months to the 2023 senatorial elections and with odds against Sen. Tokpa’s re-election, FrontPageAfrica has gathered that influential members of the senator’s team, including Sen. Prince Moye, Gbarnga businessman and a former minister under former president Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Tornolah Varpilah, have begun scouting for a “sellable” aspirant to rival District Five lawmaker and senatorial aspirant Edward Karfiah, who’s is seen as an early favorite to replace Tokpa in 2023.
Pinky Bemah, a native of Sanoyea District, has been scouted, while former Bong County superintendent Ranney Jackson, who has been residing in the United States of America for the past five years, is also being considered, FrontPageAfrica has gathered.
Jackson, who contested three senatorial elections, finishing fourth, second respectively, is also a brother-in-law to Tokpa. FrontPageAfrica has gathered that Jackson, who contested against Tokpa in 2014, is reportedly skeptical of contesting if his brother-in-law is still considering seeking re-election.