MONROVIA – As political campaign activities for the conduct of the ensuing October 10 general and presidential elections heighten in Liberia, former Bomi County Senator Sando Dazoe Johnson has sounded a caveat to authorities of the National Elections Commission (NEC) against rigging the outcome of the elections in favor of incumbent President George Manneh Weah.
By Obediah Johnson
Senator Johnson is a member of the campaign team of Unity Party Standard Bearer Joseph Nyuma Boakai.
President Weah is seeking re-election on the ticket of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC).
Speaking in an interview with FrontPage Africa via telephone recently, Mr. Johnson attributed the 14-year civil crisis in Liberia to the rigging of national elections.
He said authorities of the commission should be mindful of thwarting the results of the elections to retain President Weah to avoid stirring up confusion in Liberia.
“Election rigging has been one of the main causes of trouble or crisis in Liberia. When (former President) Samuel Doe rigged the elections, we saw what happened. And so, the National Elections Commission (NEC) knows exactly that rigging elections will bring confusion.”
Mr. Johnson said the commission should ensure that the election results are free, fair, and transparent, regardless of who will win the presidency.
The presidency is the highest seat in Liberia.
“Whoever wins cleanly, that person should be considered the leader. Any attempt to thwart or rig (the results) in favor of anybody or the ruling establishment, the Liberian people will not accept that.”
He stressed that in order for Liberians and other foreign residents to go about their normal businesses and continue to live in peace and harmony to move the country forward, those heading the NEC should announce the actual and fair winners elected by the Liberian people.
He maintained that Liberians would not be willing to accept the denial of the will by the NEC just to please a particular group of people.
“I am calling on NEC to ensure that they remain credible and they should observe all the election laws and make sure all these (electoral) bad practices are stopped so that Liberia can move forward.”
Mr. Johnson expressed confidence that the opposition Unity Party would “man and protect” their votes to avoid being cheated.
“(President) Weah cannot win Montserrado, Bong, Nimba, Grand Bassa, and Lofa. And so, how does he become President?”
We remain focused
Since the start of the political campaign on August 5, Unity Party Standard Bearer Ambassador Joseph Boakai has been the subject of verbal personal attacks from his main political archrival President Weah and scores of executives and partisans of the CDC.
He has been teased consistently for being a “sleeper and sick man” due to his old age.
Though grassroots supporters of the governing party are on record for calling on their leaders to desist from personally attacking their political opponents and sell their platform and gains made over the last five years to the electorates, the throwing of jibes continues to dominate speeches coming from leaders of the CDC at campaign rallies.
However, it appears that the campaign team of the Unity Party Standard Bearer is not giving ears to these attacks from an executive of the ruling party.
“Our focus is to campaign for Joseph Boakai. We are not going after people who will insult Boakai because if you go after them, it will serve as a distraction and we will lose focus and get off balance. We are not going to react to everything. We are focused. Some of their denigrating statements will promote Ambassador Boakai.”
On his previous support to Weah, Mr. Johnson pointed out that he braced the CDC over Ambassador Boakai in 2017 due to the decision taken by his former party, the National Patriotic Party (NPP) to form a merger with the CDC.
According to him, Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor was also instrumental in luring his support to President Weah.
He said the Liberian leader has miserably failed to develop Liberia and help transform the living conditions of the masses as promised during the campaign period of the 2017 elections.
This, Mr. Johnson added, continues to serve as a major reason why he and others who previously supported the presidential ambition of President Weah have refused to support him and now want to “undo” what they did.
“Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor came and talked to me about supporting Mr. Weah. I voted for him because of the intervention of VP Taylor. She appealed to me and I decided to help him thinking that they were going to move the country forward to another level. We thought that because (President) George Weah is a young man and he comes from a slum community, he will make us proud by doing what he promised and was supposed to do. But he has failed us.”
“We have been going back to people we campaigned to before to say that, we are sorry; we made a mistake by giving our country to these people who are not able to manage it. That’s the message we’re taking.”
He claimed that the fight against corruption, high level of division, huge local and international debts, secret killings influx of illicit drugs in the country, poor healthcare and education systems, and disrespect for the rule of law, are unresolved issues that would prevent President Weah from retaining the presidency.
Meanwhile, Mr. Johnson has called on Liberians to remain steadfast, and vigilant and vote for the leaders of their choice during the elections.
He said a true leader with the experience, integrity, and honesty is needed to transform the country and help ensure that citizens benefit from the wealth and resources of Liberia.
“Our resources should be properly managed. It should not be used for only a few privileged people. And so, we are calling on our supporters to remain calm and responsible during this campaign. We don’t want any violence; we will remain peaceful and civilized.”