Monrovia – Until his death on November 20, 2019, Charles Walker Brumskine had sought the Liberian presidency three times, 2005, 2011 and his final lap in 2017. Now, five years after his death, two of the rising politicians he helped groom into politicians have taken a giant milestone in their political careers. On Monday, the Senate elected Senator Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence as its President Pro Tempore while the Lower House tipped Representative Jonathan Fonati Koffa as its Speaker for the 55th Legislature.
By Rodney D. Sieh, [email protected]
In his first try at the Presidency in 2005, Brumskine placed third, winning 13.9% of the vote. The party won 2⁄15 of the half up for election seats in the Senate and nine seats in the House of Representatives.
In October 2010, the party was set for a coalition with the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC), the largest party in the Legislature. The deal would have seen the two field a single list of candidates and presidential candidate in the next year’s elections; a shared leadership of Brumskine and the CDC’s standard-bearer, George Weah. The deal, however, fell apart, and the party accordingly announced in February 2011 its senator Franklin Siakor had been chosen as Brumskine’s running mate for the election.
In 2014, the senatorial elections saw the party take second place, with 11.47% of the vote, however the third-largest tranche of party-political seats – all being geographic – happened to favor the then lesser-polling Unity Party. The LP share of the up for election half of senate seats was 2⁄15. The party boasted four of the 30 senators, the most recently elected being Abraham Darius Dillon in 2019.
In the 2017 two-purpose elections, the party eked out third (or fourth if including the independents), with 9.62% of the presidential vote; 8.57% in the House. In the latter its sum of three seats was surpassed by the lesser-polling PUP, and by the greater-polling independents with 13 of the 73 seats.
With Brumskine out of the picture, the party has seen its stock plummet amid a split that saw its chairman Musa Bility and two of the party’s stalwarts Senator Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence and Abraham Darius Dillon part ways: Bility, taking one half of the party to Mr. Alexander Cummings of the Alternative National Congress while both Dillon and Karnga-Lawrence aligning with the UP’s Joseph Boakai, the incoming President.
Both Koffa and Karnga-Lawrence owe their political life to the late LP leader, who personally scouted and groomed them into the politicians they are today.
In August 2018, Cllr. Koffa, who won the post of Speaker Monday, crossed over from the LP to the ruling CDC. Rep. Koffa had won his seat representing Grand Kru County in the House, as a member of the LP.
Rep. Koffa said at the time of his crossover, that his reason for joining the CDC was because of his loyalty for the party and its officials. According to him, while in opposition, people of the CDC showed him loyalty despite their diversity in politics during their opposition days. “I am here because I want to be a part of the CDC’s legacy. When people show you loyalty in a state of neglect, it is good to pay them back with loyalty and that is why I am here today,” Koffa said.
Koffa was immediately tipped to be the Speaker following his election, but it was clear that he was not the choice of President Weah, with the arrangement that the two political parties with the highest number of lawmakers will hold the Speaker and Deputy Speaker’s positions.
Despite interest from other candidates including candidates of the CDC, President Weah saw Bhofal Chambers as his best choice.
On Monday, Koffa’s moment had arrived as he survived an onslaught of political maneuverings to clinch 36 votes to 31 votes victory over the UP’s candidate, Richard Koon.
Following his victory Monday, the new Speaker promised to collaborate with the president-elect Boakai on anti-corruption, infrastructure especially roads that he has identified as a priority. “We will also want to finally resolve the issue of war and economic crimes which is lingering from the 54th.”
Karnga-Lawrence, another one of the late Cllr. Brumskine’s mentees, is a two-term Senator and the first female Senator of Grand Bassa County. She was born and raised in Liberia—a small country located on the west coast of Africa. She has experienced severe adversity, including surviving a raging civil war that engulfed her homeland for nearly 15 years.
Following her triumph Monday, the new leader of the Senate remarked: “As a mark of transparency and accountability, and to lead by example, I hereby inform that I will declare my Assets and Liabilities as well as publish this week. I encourage my Distinguished Senators to make every effort in doing same.” She continued: “We have a duty, and we must do! Over the last couple of years, I have had the opportunity to collaborate with Members of the Senate, regardless of political affiliation, to address the pressing issues facing our country.”
Her ascendance to the leadership of the Senate has cemented Karnga-Lawrence’s legacy as one of the most powerful political voices in Liberia, a feat owed partly to the late Cllr. Brumskine, who’s strong vision and leadership paved the way for a lot of young leaders that also includes Montserrado County Senator Abraham Darius Dillon.