Monrovia – On the heels of the 2005 Presidential campaign, Dr. Joseph Boakai, then a contender for the Liberian presidency had a sense that the current President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf would tip him as her running mate.
Report by Rodney D. Sieh, [email protected]
Vice President and ruling party standard bearer is reportedly coming close to naming a running mate; with age, experience factoring in on selection process
Writing in his biography, From Foya to the Capitol, Dr. Sakui Malakpa writes: “While Joe was being wooed, a number of his Loma nephews, including Victor Lamin and Forkpa Gizzie, wanted him to become VP of the Unity Party.
If this was possible, Joe was not sure initially, but somehow, he noticed a strange but consistent seating arrangement.
Although Mrs. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf had not asked him to be her running mate, each time he went to a Unity Party meeting, a seat was always prepared for him next to her.”
Dr. Malakpa continues: “His friend and classmate, Ambassador Francis Karpeh noticed the consistency of this seating arrangement, and that was enough to convince him to join the Unity Party.”
Boakai, finally confronted Sirleaf that he had a chance to become Senator but wanted to know her thoughts relative to a running mate.
“She did not definitely commit, but only said she was eyeing him. However, in Saclapea, Nimba County she clearly and openly disclosed that her choice for a Vice Presidential candidate was Joe Boakai, from Lofa County.”
The pair went on to win the presidency.
In recent weeks, political observers have been cueing the speculations line looking for signs of potential 2017 pairings.
Whether it is Liberty Party’s Charles Brumskine’s recent outings with businessman and Liberia Football Association Chief Musa Bility or the recent merger of CDC, LDP and NPP which will likely see football legend George Weah pairing with Senator Jewel Howard Taylor, the rumour mills have been busy.
For Boakai, however, it has been difficult to decipher.
Earlier speculations had linked to VP to the likes of Internal Affairs Minister and former Cuttington University President Henrique Tokpah, Harrison Karnwea of the Forestry Development Authority and Jeremiah Sulunteh, Ambassador accredited to Washington.
But insiders have confided to FrontPageAfrica that the VP may likely opt for a younger and more viable but recognizable number two, in hopes of addressing the age concerns many fatigued over the Sirleaf-Boakai pairing.
One name that is said to be on the radar is human rights activist and former Public Works Minister Samuel Woods who is said to be quietly working behind the scenes of the Vice President’s push for the presidency.
Woods is among a wide range of progressives said to be building Mr. Boakai’s momentum heading into the 2017 elections.
Woods, according to sources, has been dispatched to a number of foreign errands on behalf of Boakai and is seen as one likely to bridge the gap between the old and young and address some of the concerns surrounding questions about Boakai’s potential lapses.
While many political observers and even politicians eyeing the presidency have been linked with vote-rich Nimba and Bong for pairings, Boakai’s gamble to look southeast could offset the conventional expectations and throw some of his competitors off guard.
The geographical implications of the 2017 elections will no doubt be a major factor in determining the next President especially in the backdrop of the multitude of political parties, at last count, 25 eyeing to lead a country of just over four million people with only half that number likely to actually cast their votes.
In 2011 some only 1,798,930 Liberians were registered to vote amounting for 58.72 percent turnout at the polls.
Ironically, some political observers say, the scramble for prominent citizens from Bong, Nimba and Lofa Counties could diminish their impact on the deciding results for presidency.
In 2011 for example, only 65, 963 electorates cast their votes in Bong. Of that number, Sirleaf of the ruling Unity Party won 52,949 while CDC’s Winston Tubman won 10, 499.
In Nimba, another vote-rich county, only 120, 683 residents of the county cast their votes. Of that number Sirleaf who won the endorsement of Prince Johnson, claimed 114,528 for 96.7 percent to CDC’s Tubman 3, 868.
Similarly, in Lofa where Boakai hails, the ruling party was also victorious. Of the 81, 614 voters, UP’s Sirleaf, thanks to Boakai, claimed 72, 309 of the votes to Tubman’s 6, 470.
Ahead of the 2017 Presidential elections, turnout will be crucial. However, it is widely believed that Liberia’s history of voting on tribal lines could see Boakai winning his home county of Lofa, Brumskine winning Bassa and Senator Prince Johnson clinching the bulk of the votes in Nimba as he did in the first round in 2011. Weah’s CDC had Montserrado locked in 2005 stuttered in 2011.
Of the 214, 690 votes tallied, Sirleaf’s UP won 190, 120 to CDC’s Tubman, 14, 571. There are some pundits who counter that the dynamics were different because CDC boycotted the run-off.
It will interesting to see how those numbers add up in 2017. Those numbers pales in comparison to 2005 when the CDC dominated the county.
For the 2017 elections, Montserrado is expected to be up for grabs with several factors coming into play.
The emergence of Benoni Urey’s All Liberia and the multitude of competing political bases located in the capitol could split votes down the middle.
It could come down to the likes of Boakai (Lofa), Brumskine (Bassa) and Prince Johnson(Nimba) fighting for the edge in not just Montserado but the entire southeast where the CDC coalition could have advantage.