Lofa County – With more than a year to the pending senatorial elections across the country, the struggle for the lucrative ‘house of elders’ job (the Liberian Senate) is gradually gaining momentum in vote-rich Lofa County.
Report by Stephen Kollie, Contributor
Individuals, mostly old and new faces are not taking any chances as they form alliances and political friendships in a bid to grab what may be described as a fierce political duel in northern Liberian county – the homeland of defeated unity party candidate and former vice Liberian president Joseph Boakai.
In the run-up to the senatorial race, Lofa County have witnessed a series of formal and informal endorsements from various groupings supporting rival aspirants across the county. But with just a year remaining to enter the political season, many aspirants are hopeful and have been working behind the scenes to galvanize more supporters and even pullover would-be-candidates in the pending race.
FrontPage Africa looks at the current names popping up, their weaknesses and possible chances in grabbing the one lucrative legislative opening of Lofa County in 2010.
Senator George T. Tengbeh
With nearly eight years at the Liberian Senate, Tengeh seat is up for grasp in 2020. Before coming to the Senate, he served as the Administrative Assistant to the Superintendent for Lofa County under the administration of former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and then superintendent Galakpai Kortimai. In 2011, when he contested for the Senatorial seat, locals, especially the youth and women who were often seen collecting monies from door-to-door, financed most of his campaigns.
Weakness: With about 15 months toward the end of his nine-year tenure, Senator Tengeh has come under serious criticism from his constituents about his performance at the National Legislature. Many say Tengeh has done little or nothing to win him a second term.
Many youths, who once regarded him as a down-to-earth man, have since withdrawn their support to other aspirants of their choice because they say he always ignore their calls whenever invited in the county.
Reports in recent times have suggested that the senator is contemplating on relinquishing his quest for a second term for fear of defeat. A couple of Tengbeh’s kinsmen are lining up for his post. They are likely to weaken his support base in the Foya region. Notable among them is the former Minister of National Defense Brownie J. Samukai.
More besides, Tengbeh has been struggling to get the blessing of his Kissi kinsmen, and losing a lot of Kissi votes could dampen his political drive.
Chances: Although highly criticized in several corners around the county, he managed to implement few legislative projects including market buildings and town halls in mostly his hometown of Foya.
Sumo G. Kupee
Kupee contested in 2005 and successfully won the senatorial seat for nine years, serving as the Liberian Senate committee chair on Ways Means and Finance. Despite his lucrative role at the Liberian Senate, he failed to regain his seat thereby finishing 6th place in the 2014 race.
Weakness: Kupee failure to maintain his seat at the Senate has made him very unpopular in the eyes of many Lofans – people of Lofa County. Many see his defeat as a clear manifestation that he is not the best choice to represent Lofa at the National Legislature.
Complicating matters is the fact that Kupee has been named in several corruption scandals including the Global Witness report. At one point while serving as Chairman of the Lofa Legislative Caucus, he was accused of conniving with other lawmakers of the county and members of the executive to give out the Wologisi Mountain to an Indian firm known as Jindal. He later denied the allegations.
News of his involvement in an alleged ritualistic death of a little boy in Zorzor characterized the rest of his tenure and many people are yet to forget the saga.
Chances: Kupee has managed to have a community in Voinjama City named in his honor and he is still a respected son of the soil and still enjoys the support of his followers in the Zorozor region. Reports suggest that local officials often seek his advice on matters concerning the smooth running of the county. Kupee is currently running a foundation called the Sumo Kupee Humanitarian and Educational Foundation, Inc., co-named (The Sumo Kupee Foundation), which he claims is striving to provide humanitarian assistance and educational.
Mariamu B. Fofana
Fofana is the incumbent representative of Electoral District #4 in Lofa County. She has won two terms, and she’s now the chair on the House’s Committee on Rules, Order and Administration.
Weakness: Rep Fofana is reportedly holding consultations mostly with her people of her Mandingo tribe in the Quadu Gboni region where she has a support base for the possibility of replacing Sen. Tengbeh. Many of her supporters and office staffers have bragged about her senatorial ambition on social media in recent times.
Many Lofans believe Rep Fofana has just won a six-term mandate and that there would be no need for a by-election that would cost the government extra funding to hold a by-election.
Her tenure has been characterized with allegations of tribalism. She has been accused of hiring only members of her ethnic as staff although her constituency is also home to Lorma-speaking people.
There is still a post-election division within her district – the Lorma and Mandingo ethnic groups. The Lormas have often accused Rep Fofana of rigging the 2017 election that led to the narrow defeat of their consensus candidate, Gizzie Kollie. Reports suggest that Kollie has vowed to vigorously campaign against Fofana if she throws her hat in the 2020 race.
Chances: Despite the odds, Rep Fofana are regarded as one of few lawmakers in the county that often makes progress report to her constituents. Every year, she releases a written report about her initiatives and activities at the National Legislature. She has been instrumental in constructing town halls, police stations and several other public infrastructures in her district through legislative projects.
Brownie J. Samukai
Samukai was the Minister of National Defense and perhaps the longest-serving official of Government in the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf regime. He is a prominent son of Foya – a massively populated district in Lofa County.
Weaknesses: Many Lofans see Samukai as one who has spent too much time in government and has done nothing much to impact his county. They believe that Samukai’s return to government will only continue to enrich him as he spent nearly 12 years in former president Sirleaf’s Government but has done little to point at.
Before leaving the Ministry of National Defense, Samukai role in an alleged corruption scandal that led to deductions of millions of dollars intended for the warfare of AFL soldiers. This allegation is still fresh on the minds of many. Some claim Samukai may have benefited from the AFL soldiers money, which he is reportedly using to galvanize support for his senatorial ambition.
Samukai came under serious scrutiny from elders of the county after news reports suggested that all the chiefs and elders have endorsed him. Many of the chiefs and elders distanced themselves from the story, a situation that puts him in jeopardy.
Chances: Although he’s new on the block, Samukai has managed to galvanize few groups of people mostly in his native Foya to beef up his political effort. He is said to be the favorite of his Kinsmen in Foya.
Cllr. Joseph K. Jallah
Cllr. Jallah is a Counsel-At-Law and former Deputy Attorney General of Liberia between 2004-2009. In 2011, he contested the Lofa County senatorial election and finished third in the race. He again, contested the 2014 mid-term election but obtained a second slot position with 8,554, constituting 17.5%. He challenged the result of the election at the Supreme Court that later ruled in his favor that a recount of the ballot papers be carried out by the National Election Commission.
After the recount, Jallah took exception to the process on grounds that the NEC ignored and refused to follow any procedure like using the Final Registration Roll [FRR] and again appealed to the Supreme Court for redress. While the decision of the Supreme Court was pending, the Chiefs and Elders of Lofa County intervened and Cllr. Jallah accepted and withdrew the matter from the Supreme Court of Liberia
Weaknesses: Although highly respected in the county and seen by many as a favorite candidate, if Cllr Jallah does not carefully take extra measures to coordinate the huge level of support that is spontaneously building up for him across the County, he could lose couple of votes to a little known new emerging Gbandi rival Cole Bangalu, who is frantically struggling to put up a challenge.
Chances: Jallah has gained a lot of prominence among the youth, elders and the women. Recent opinion polls conducted in the county puts him in a favorite position among his rivals. In most part of the county, people regard him as a “man of his words”.
His scholarship initiative since 2012 at the community college, the University of Liberia and other high Schools in the county gives him huge youthful followings. He was hailed by heavy storm victims in 2014 when he quickly responded to their cry by donating bundles of zinc at the time and was the first Ebola person after the Government to donate a double cabin Pick Up to Kolahun District, the first after the Government to donate buckets and chlorine in Foya, Kolahun, Voinjama, Quandu Bondu, and Zorzor as Salayea and Vahun were less affected by Ebola.
He has maintained pleasant relationship with the traditional and religious community (mostly Muslims and Christians) in the county. He is still hailed as one the first persons to donate Ebola preventive materials when the county was badly hit by the virus apart from the Government. Jallah has managed to rally several aspirants from various districts who contested in past elections both as senators and representatives.
Tribal politics could play a key factor in Jallah’s political ambition. Already, members of the Gbandi ethnic group, supported by a huge group of Mandingos have already resolved to support Cllr. Jallah’s quest for the senate.
J. Cole Bangalu
Bangalu is a former Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Labour in former President Sirleaf administration and a staunch stalwart of the opposition Unity Party. He is a prominent son of Lofa County and a serious supporter of sports.
Weakness: Bangalu, like many of aspirants, has been accused of not doing much for his county even though they had the opportunity to do so when they served in the past administration.
Observers say his visits to the county only intensified at the latter stage of the Sirleaf’s regime and he decided to hunt of the 2020 senatorial seat. He was also accused of allegedly masterminding the severe flogging of a prominent businessman in Voinjama, Kemeko Kamara who is his fierce critic. His campaign county coordinator was reportedly arrested in connection with the saga.
The failure of the Lofa County football team to emerge from the preliminary rounds also brought criticisms to his doorsteps.
Chances: Although still struggling to build a solid political bloc, Bangalu has managed to grab the attention of some youth in Voinjama city.
He recently donated a DSTV set to an intellectual forum in Voinjama to boost his visibility in the county and even donated sporting outfits to youth groups in the county.
Bangalu is said to be contemplating a return to the ruling CDC to enable him get the support of the party in 2020.