President Sirleaf shall take the blame if October 2017 elections should go awry especially because, in a mere five months from now the story of the Ellen Johnson presidency and for all what it means will come to an end with what should be a transition in January to a new democratically elected President.
Having grown accustomed, over a 12 year period, to presidential privilege and perks, i.e. bodyguards, personal servants, travel allowances, the power to make or break out-of- tune officials, e.tc., would suggest the temptation to cling on to power at all costs pinches as is the case with African leaders generally when their time in office is up.
However, illegal attempts by some African leaders to cling on to power cannot be said of President Sirleaf although there were hints, at some point in time of a third term which is barred under the Constitution.
But President Sirleaf’s stay in office could possibly be prolonged in case the outcomes of the voting exercise yield inconclusive results especially given the messy situation at the National Elections Commission created by inept, incompetent and corrupt leadership to the point where it is becoming increasingly clear by the day that the October 10, 2017 elections is headed for trouble.
The current crisis situation emanating from the mishandling of the Voters Registration (VR) exercise, the results of which show alarming figures of omissions, have raised into question the integrity of the entire voters roll especially in view of fraudsters caught red-handed with illegally acquired voting cards and other voter registration materials during the VR exercise.
Some of those individuals caught in illegal Voters registration activities included even elections workers and a highly placed official in the office of the President.
To date no one knows for sure the full extent of such fraud. And with the final Voters roll now showing exceedingly large numbers of illegal omissions and some inclusions, the need for a re-run of the VR exercise is clearly manifest.
And if such an idea does gain traction, it could lead to the drumming up of possible but crucial international support for the re-run of the VR exercise, howbeit the huge costs involved. But as diplomatic sources put it, in order to avert a potential return to violent conflict whose spillover effects could eventually set the sub-region on fire, the need for ECOWAS direct involvement in the Liberian electoral process has now become exigent.
And as there are now growing calls from the international community for the conduct of free, fair and transparent elections as evidenced recently by the call from the United States Ambassador, Christine Elder, and as well as by the ECOWAS Authority over which President Sirleaf currently presides as Chairman, it remains to be seen whether President Sirleaf would heed the concerns of the U.S. Ambassador or whether she would even budge to such pressures from ECOWAS.
According to diplomatic observers in Monrovia, President Sirleaf may not be in ECOWAS’ good stead. Her first, singular and perhaps last, opportunity ever to preside over a full gathering of West African Heads-of-State, as Chairman of ECOWAS, was hopelessly squandered when she single-handedly, according to sources, decided to invite Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to grace the summit of ECOWAS Heads-of-State-a unilateral decision which, according to sources in Abuja, constituted a slap in the face of ECOWAS.
After all it was ECOWAS that took the lead and provided nine tenths of the resources to end the crisis in Liberia. And while a flotilla of U.S. warships, aircraft and marines idled in our waters just off shore and watched the nation burn in 1990, ECOWAS came to the rescue when even the UN had failed to act.
Although the Doe government enjoyed excellent military and economic ties with Israel, yet it remained aloof during the entire period of our prolonged civil conflict. And so the question remains, why the invitation to Netanyahu.
But the key players in the sub-region, especially Nigeria, made their displeasure about Netanyahu’s invitation known by sending rather low key delegations to the summit of Heads-of-State in Liberia. And appearing rather unpeeved by their absence she instead happily announced plans by Israel to invest one billion dollars in solar power production in the sub-region.
Critics claim that such a move was intended to divert the attention of ECOWAS from Liberia where the electoral process was and still is in grave danger. According to insider sources, reasons for holding the summit at the Lebanese owned Farmington Hotel far away from the capital Monrovia, aside from providing patronage to family friend George Abi Jaoudi, was because of the fear of possible protests by opposition groups against NEC Chairman Korkoya which would have painted an ugly picture of the government.
And so questions about whether she (President Sirleaf) even gives a hoot about concerns from ECOWAS relating to free, fair, transparent and credible elections in Liberia are debatable, what is however not debatable, according to sources is how and when she will eventually kowtow to demands from the U.S. Government (granted the U.S places such demands) for free, fair transparent and credible elections in Liberia.
Already hints are being dropped according to sources. And those hints appear to be coming from the country’s oldest and longest standing ally, the United States of America. In remarks at her country’s Fourth of July independence celebrations, U.S. Ambassador Christine Elder remarked that her government looks forward to free and fair elections in October or November.
Sources say that the Ambassador’s expressed uncertainty about the elections date was but a thinly veiled reference to considerations for a possible re-run of the Voters registration exercise which would invariably require an extension of the elections date from October 10 to a later date in November 2017. But the October 10 date for elections is a Constitutional provision which can only be amended in a national referendum.
Such a referendum must be done no sooner than 1 year before the elections. In short the constitutionally required time frame for the holding of a referendum has long since passed and any contemplated change in the elections date may likely obtain as a result of an ECOWAS sponsored UN resolution or as a result of resolutions passed by a sovereign National Conference.
In any event, the likelihood that President Sirleaf could possibly retain her hold on power should elections results prove inconclusive appears to be, to the contrary, untenable in view of current developments pointing to the imminent direct involvement of the international community especially ECOWAS in the electoral process.
This may come in the form of experts to help midwife the process along with a shake-up of the Commission which should see Chairman Korkoya taking his exit.
Ultimately, President Sirleaf will have to bear full blame for the messy situation at the NEC having been warned long since through several sources including publications, of the ineptitude and corrupt character of the NEC leadership. Rather than taking decisive action to bring the situation under control long since ago, she instead allowed it to fester like an old sore.
And true to its foul smelling characteristics as an old sore, the stink is spreading. According to insider NEC sources, the total number of recorded omissions from the Voters roll far exceed the 13,000 (thirteen thousand) reported recently by NEC Chairman Korkoya under oath before the Legislature, which of course, was an obvious lie.
From all indications, such lies were intended to placate Legislators as well as to assuage public opinion by falsely declaring that the 13,000 figure was infinitesimal.
But contrary to fact, the figures from just Grand Cape Mount County alone amount to 18,000 (eighteen thousand) not to mention other electoral districts around the country such as Maryland County Electoral District #2, Code# 2707, at the Bassa Community School in Harper city, where the names of 1,558 persons were omitted from the Voters roll. Simply put, the credibility of the current Voters roll is questionable, highly suspect and should as such be scrapped.
President Sirleaf must not lose sight of the fact that tension is building and even rising. The stoning of Vice President Boakai’s convoy in Klah Town on Thursday allegedly by CDC elements and open pronouncements by Presidential aspirant Simeon Freeman of the Movement for Political Change (MPC) declaring that Klah Town is a no go area for the Vice President should prove instructive.
Such endorsement of elections related violence by a candidate in the forth-coming elections is a clear sign of what is to come. It means that some individuals are prepared to unleash and use violence as a means to attaining political ends.
Therefore President Sirleaf, through her action or inaction should avoid playing into the hands of power hungry individuals like Simeon Freeman with no defined political agenda and constituency but yet determined to capture state power.
It can be recalled that about two years ago he fled the country following a series of openly provocative exchanges with government which led him to charge that the Government was after his life. But his charges did not gain traction locally or internationally.
Here was a man who had, during the early inception of this government, been awarded a contract to bring into the country an asphalt plant for use by the Ministry of Public Works.
He brought in a dilapidated apparatus that never worked and remained idle and dysfunctional even up till now. And there is no evidence anywhere that he ever refunded the more than US$250,000 he allegedly received from the Ellen Sirleaf led Government and he was never called to account.
Yet he purports to be a fierce critic of government. Since his apparently surreptitious return to the country a few months ago, he has upped the ante launching a series of scathing attacks on Vice President Boakai.
His declaration that Klah Town is a no go area for Vice President Boakai and that the Vice President’s convoy was stoned because the people are angry at the Vice President for allegedly ignoring their plight is in effect a declaration of support for thuggery and senseless political violence to achieve whatever ends.
In actual effect it means that the city is being balkanized with groups either using or threatening the use of violence to stake their claims to the city, or least part of it, as was demonstrated in Klah Town on Thursday.
To conclude, President Sirleaf has an opportunity to act decisively and possibly salvage a fast deteriorating situation. She should, without reservation, solicit the involvement and support of the international community and allow ECOWAS to take the lead on this matter.
Next she should invite elections experts from ECOWAS to conduct an assessment of the current problem with the view to providing recommendations for urgent implementation.
Additionally, President Sirleaf should “bite the bullet” and issue Mr. Korkoya his marching orders. Last but not least, she should at a near future date address the nation on steps taken to address the prevailing situation.
This is a key confidence building step which she can only ignore at her peril. Therefore she has to summon every ounce of courage to usher the nation into the pathways of peace through transparent, free, fair and credible elections.
As it appears, President Sirleaf has little choice but to act decisively on the side of truth and reason and she has little time to do so. Because the threat of pre and post electoral violence remains high, no effort should be spared to ensure that the elections are free, fair, transparent and credible.
Should she fail however, history will judge her very unkindly, her famed and prized status as a Nobel laureate will come to naught and above all else she will take the blame should the nation slide back into conflict as a result of official misfeasance, malfeasance or non-feasance.
John H.T. Stewart, Jr., Contributing Writer