Monrovia – With the waves of activities as the campaign for the 2017 elections begin; some political pundits believe that Vice President Joseph Boakai support base seems to be shrinking gradually – something the ruling party believe is not true.

Report by Al Varney Rogers, al.rogers@frontpageafricaonline.com

With the National Election Commission release of its final listing of those vying for representative seats and the presidency, revealing names of those who initially started trumpeting Boakai presidential ambition are now on the ticket of different political party other than the Unity Party.

The listing leave many to wonder whether the names of staunch members of the ruling party and supporters of Vice President Joseph Boakai appearing under a newly established political party Coalition for Liberia’s Progress (CLP) is an offspring of the Unity Party apparently meant to maintain a dominance in the lower house, or it might represent a decline in the support for Vice President Boakai presidential bid.

 Coalition for Liberia’s Progress (CLP) is considered a safe haven for appointed officials whose fate was at the mercy of the Supreme Court.

In 2011, Alexander A. Suah Sr. ran on the Unity Party ticket and served as an assistant Minister at the Ministry of Internal Affairs but is now on the ticket of the Coalition for Liberia’s Progress vying for the Montserrado district five seat, current Minister of Gender Julia Duncan -Cassell who for months has been trumpeting Veep Boakai’s presidential bid and Bong County Superintendent Selena Mappy Pulson who was allegedly coerced by chiefs to support vice president Boakai, something she denied, will not be a Unity Party candidate in Bong County.

And Deputy Minister of Information Andrew Tehmeh of Bong district seven 7 is also not a Unity Party Candidate for the representative seat.

Recently, Vice President Boakai has received unprecedented endorsements across the country before naming his running mate.

After naming his second man the narrative seems to be changing, so whether those endorsements are intact is something that has to pass the test of the campaign.

It is also reported that Findley is about to exit the Unity Party, his move comes in the aftermath of the Vice President’s decision to select Emmanuel Nuquay.

Findley sudden reversal is likely to deal a major blow to the ruling party which is said to have been relying on Findley to help capture a sizeable number of voters in the Bassa belt and put Brumskine off course.

The Assistant Secretary General of Unity Party Mo Ali said those candidates still remain strong supporters of the vice president presidential bid. 

“They are still strong supporters, today Selena Mappy Pulson was with us, both Mappy Polson and Duncan Cassell are still in the forefront of the Vice President campaign,” Ali said.

As for the news of Findley leaving, the Assistant Secretary General of Unity Party said the party has not receive any communication regarding Findley exiting the party.

“We don’t know about that, we only read the news in FrontPage Africa, consulting his family does not mean he is leaving and we have not receive any of such communication,” Ali said.

Totota, Bong County – Last week’s ruling by the Supreme Court on the controversial Code of Conduct (CoC) has brought what could be described as life into the political ambitions of former Bong County superintendent Madam Selena Polson-Mappy and former Deputy Minister of Information Andrew Tehmeh, who were virtually out of the political process.

Report by Selma Lomax, selma.lomax@frontpageafricaonline.com

After winning the ruling Unity Party primary in District #6 in Bong County, the party did not submit Polson-Mappy’s nomination papers, eagerly awaiting the outcome of multiple petitions filed before the high court on the CoC.

She waited patiently as her political ambition vanished in thin air, until the last day, when she finally submitted her papers after the court ruled in favor of Liberty Party’s vice standard bearer Harrison Karnwea and the vice standard bearer of Alternative National Congress (ANC) Jeremiah Sulunteh that the National Elections Commission should rather levy fines than barring these two from contesting.

Now, after the submission of her candidacy to the NEC, Polson-Mappy Tuesday received a heroic welcome on her return to Totota, electoral district six, where she will be aspiring as representative of that district.

Polson-Mappy, whose appeal on the CoC was rejected by the Supreme Court in March this year, had insisted that she would be a candidate for the district.

Legislative candidates in the district including Lee Rogers of Liberty Party and Corneh had hoped that the court bars Polson-Mappy from contesting.

“I hope the Supreme Court will uphold the rule of law and bar Polson-Mappy from contesting because we have to respect the law,” Corneh spoke to FrontPageAfrica prior to the Supreme Court’s ruling on Polson-Mappy.

Rogers expressed disappointment in the ruling.

“We are disappointed in the Supreme Court for the ruling. Polson-Mappy would have been the main person the Supreme Court would have barred from contesting,” he said. 

Taunting opponents

On her return to the district, Polson-Mappy who resigned her post as superintendent of Bong County on July 6, 2017, sent jibe at her opponents who had wished negative about her in the CoC saga.

“The plans of my opponents have failed. I will be a candidate in the race and I will defeat every one of them like I defeated the Code of Conduct. “

“They thought I wouldn’t contest in the district, but I want to tell them that I am back with vigor,” Polson-Mappy said.

Polson-Mappy said the Supreme Court’s ruling has given her more vigor to defeat her opponents in the upcoming election.

“The latest ruling from the Supreme Court has given me strength and enthusiasms to continue to do more for my people of electoral district six. I am the next lawmaker of electoral district six,” Polson-Mappy said.

Could CoC clearance boost Polson-Mappy’s chances?

Even before the Supreme Court’s verdict on Polson-Mappy, Polson-Mappy used her position to attract county-sponsored projects to district.

Though her critics say her projects attracted to the districts are government funded projects, Polson-Mappy boasts of attracting over 15 projects since her five years stint as superintendent of the county.

She constructed a town hall in Zeanzue clan, rehabilitated feeder roads in the three clans in the district can testify to benefit.

For Polson-Mappy, who firstly contested in the 2011 election and finished third in the district with 2400 (22.4 per cent), believes her position as superintendent has increased her popularity among her kinsmen.

“This is the best chance I have to win the district because I have come to the election with impeccable records as former superintendent of the county. “

“Through my position I have managed to attract more projects to the district and those projects are now impacting the people of the district,” she said.

“I contested the 2011 election when I was just an accountant of a fishery company and I got 2400 votes.”

“This time around I am going into the election as a former superintendent who has come with so much history,” she added.

The ruling by the Supreme Court ultimately comes as boost to the former Superintendent as voters could even sympathize with her situation and prefer rewarding her for her courage, according to political observers.

She was the first in the Republic to muster the courage to challenge certain provisions of the Code of Conduct, insisting that it violated her constitutional rights.

Such bravery by a sitting Superintendent to file a petition against the government for a law that was signed by the President of the Republic could be some of the reasons to help the former Superintendent attract more supporters.

When others dare challenge the law, she took the lead, which is a good trait of a leader and with her clearance; her opponent might be up for a big fight in October.

Tehmeh in the clear, too

In Bong County, another person whose opponents were wishing to see off the race is the former Deputy Minister for Administration at the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, Andrew Tehmeh.

Incumbent lawmaker of District 7 Corpu Barclay openly expressed that she wished the Deputy Minister was barred from contesting to give her an edge in the process.

Surviving death, Tehmeh says           

Tehmeh, after his clearance on the final day like the case of Madam Mappy, described the situation as surviving death.

“This is like surviving a death trap, it has given me more strength to fight,” he said.

Like Tehmeh and Mappy, the decision by the Supreme Court has come as big boost to their political ambitions, according to political observers.