NPP & NDPL U-Turn: A Blessing in Disguise

By siahyonkron nyanseor

Introduction: Commentator and political analyst Siahyonkron Nyanseor is of the view that the former ruling parties once headed by Dictator Samuel Doe and warlord Charles Taylor, both past presidents of Liberia, by the way are still up to no good, because they lacked political principles. The two parties he says " can no longer be considered relevant political institutions, " in a new era when competitive political engagement is the name of the game, cautioning that using using political parties to "hustle for money," is wrong.

NDC's Dew Wleh Mason

By the time the last vote is counted to determine the outcome of the 2011 elections, both the National Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Party of Liberia (NDPL), will have no future relevance on Liberia's new political landscape.

The NPP, an offshoot of former rebel leader Charles Taylor's National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) has not been able to reinvent itself; nor has the NDPL of the late President Samuel Doe despite of recent attempts to enter a coalition arrangement with other newly-formed opposition parties.

Both parties working in close collaboration with 8 other political parties, including the New Deal Movement, various factions of the Liberian People’s Party (LPP) and the United People’s Party (UPP) of the late Gabriel Baccus Matthews, and a number of other parties, came together over a year ago, to organize themselves into a political forum called the Democratic Alliance (DA).

This forum provided a basis for parties to exchange ideas and develop a common set of principles and purpose, leading to the formation of a national entity. The effort eventually gave birth to the National Democratic Coalition (NDC), one of Liberia’s newest parties participating in this year’s elections.

The idea of parties collaborating and developing a common front to challenge the incumbent or ruling party is not new to Liberia or African countries. The Liberian experience is especially rife with many ventures of this type.

For example, in 1985, several opposition parties came together under an arrangement called the “Grand Coalition” to challenge Doe’s ruling National Democratic Party of Liberia. But the Grand Coalition soon crumbled even before Liberians could go to the polls as some of its members switched support to the ruling NDPL — fearing political retribution from the Doe dictatorship.

Others traded support for self-interest and opportunism while others took the path of least resistance by going independent and fielding their own candidates.

The National Elections Commission (NEC) then under the Chairmanship of Ambassador Emmett Harmon declared incumbent Samuel Doe the winner.

However, the international observers differed with the announced results, noting that the elections were rigged and that Mr. Jackson Fiah Doe, the leading challenger and standard-bearer of the Liberia Action Party (LAP) was the winner.

Then came 1997 when rebel leader Charles Taylor agreed to try the ballot box. Opposition parties once again experimented with the idea of a coalition, this time under the banner of what was dubbed “Grand Alliance” (GA). Comprising of almost the same parties and their leaders, the Grand Alliance suffered the same fate, as was the case in the 1985 general elections; for at its first convention, the alliance miserably failed to agree or settle on one presidential candidate. Although Mr. Cletus Wotorson of the Liberia Action Party (LAP) reportedly won the nomination, his candidacy was mired in controversy - leading to the disintegration of the Grand Alliance. And off course, Charles Taylor of the National Patriotic Party (NPP) was declared the winner.

Perhaps, drawing from the experiences of ’85 and ’97, and with the country emerging from war and pursuing the path of peace, the phenomenon of an alliance appeared to have subsided in 2005. In that year, the process was considerably controlled. Liberians did not have to deal with the entrenched dictatorship and tyranny of previous ruling parties; and the opportunity for balanced political competition existed. Even though there were attempts at collaboration, they were on a much smaller scale in contrast with the “Grand” approach of previous election cycles.

Jewel Taylor & husband at the height of power

For example, there was an electoral alliance that was formed between the Liberian People’s Party (LPP) and the United People’s Party (UPP), called the Alliance for Peace and Democracy (APD). Both LPP and UPP were forerunners of “grassroots” parties and shared similar history and philosophy.

With much that has changed, including the emergence of the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) of Ambassador George Manneh Weah, whose storied rise from “poverty to fame “resonates with the average, ordinary Liberian, the APD’s relevance appeared to have rapidly diminished.

But the potential of a coalition has reemerged and persists in 2011. The formation of the National Democratic Coalition (NDC) of Ambassador Dew Tuan-Wleh Mayson, comprising more than 8 political parties, including the NPP and NDPL of Taylor and Doe respectively.

Unlike previous periods, where parties came together for political convenience, the NDC’s approach has allowed it to develop a new political culture of forming ‘authentic’ collaboration based on common objectives, mission, and principles.

All the same, such political collaboration has not been immune to problems and differences. In point of fact, holding together a coalition of 10 political parties is a daunting task. No wonder, differences within the coalition flared up. According to press reports, the NPP and the NDPL pulled out from the coalition at the 11-hour when the NDC was headed to its first National Convention to elect its Standard bearer and other national officials.

The reasons given for withdrawing from the coalition appeared frivolous and unprincipled. Among others, some key members of the NPP have been quoted as saying that the NDC Standard Bearer did not provide monies and materials promised to guarantee their continuity in the coalition.

Leading figures of the NPP, including Representative George Mulbah of Bong County, Mr. John Whitfield, past NPP party Chair, and Mr. Cyril Allen, Current Party Chair, have all been unison in their position that the party is “broke’, and lacks the financial and logistical capacity, to engage in any serious political campaign.

“We cannot field a presidential candidate because we don’t have money”, said Mr. Whitfield, adding: “NPP is broke…we were promised a pickup truck by [Ambassador Mayson] but that was not provided…”

Dictator Doe founded the NDPL

As for the NDPL, one prominent member of its national leadership, Dr. Moses C.T. Jarbo, undermining the party’s position, declared his support for President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s new Unity Party. It has been widely reported that the political influence of money was involved.

While this U-Turn may surprise many observers of Liberia’s politics, this conduct is clearly a manifestation of the core values of both the NPP and the NDPL. Should we be surprised that both parties that governed Liberia for nearly 20 years - NDPL (1980-1990) and NPP (1997-2003)- once again feel entitled to state power? What positive legacy can they point to for their near 20-year rule of Liberia, a rule that was characterized by death and destruction? What new ideas can they now offer the Liberian people?

Yet, Senator Jewel Howard-Taylor, the new symbol and embodiment of the NPP, claims her party has values. In a passionate defense of the NPP she unabashedly said:

“NPP has values and it is the soul of those who lost their lives in the struggle”. Is this for real!

Mrs. Taylor further asserts: “What the party wants is change for Liberia to live in peace and be given equal opportunities like other Liberians”.

What a biting irony! The National Patriotic Party, a party that oversaw terror in Liberia for six years, is now laying out a vision for nation-building. Where was this vision in 1997 when the war-weary Liberian people, in the spirit of reconciliation, handed power to the NPP? It is fair to say that this party has absolutely nothing to show for the six long years it held state power.

Senator Howard-Taylor may mean well as she appears to endear herself to the Liberian people, working hard to shed the image of her notorious husband and party, and building her own record as a distinguished Liberian Senator. But if Madam Taylor has any higher political ambition, she should totally relinquish any political affiliation with this dying horse they called NPP.

The National Democratic Coalition (NDC) may have been handed a blessing in disguise when both parties walked out of the coalition. If there was an opportunity that would have allowed the NPP and NDPL to reinvent themselves and become part of a promising new formation called the NDC, it has been lost. The NDC must now move on and continue to build relationships with other well-meaning opposition parties.

The principle of uniting Liberian political parties around a common purpose, and reducing the more than 22 parties that now exist is what a small country like Liberia needs at this time.

The NPP and NDPL are drowning and are only left with the empty shells of their political past. The only “soul” now left is money as they move from one political party to another. The two parties can no longer be considered relevant political institutions. They should be left to die a natural death! The game of using political parties to hustle for money should stop. For the health of our fledgling democracy, let us put a stop to this RIGHT NOW!

The Liberian Family Must Form Part of the Political Debate

By: ralph geeplay

                             

                                                           Liberian children: future leaders

Liberians are embraced for political campaigning; the race officially began on July 5^th 2011. As the nation goes to the polls to elect its leaders in what should be a smooth transition to democracy for the second time, the issue the Liberian people wants to hear must come out of the mouths of politicians.

While we still await the political slogans, catch phrases, and policy statements that are expected to drive the debates during this political spell, voters are readying themselves to glean the fact sheets of the candidates to see where they differ and how prepared they are for the Executive Mansion. Reconstructing Liberia in the aftermath of our war is not just about physical infrastructures repairs; it is also about the Liberian family.

What must not be overlook this season is an outstanding fact that, the Liberian family is in crisis.

It seems the simplest and trivial by comparison, when you want to talk about reconstructing the physical costs the civil war has ruined on the Liberian society: the economy, education, electricity, brain drain, hospitals, bridges, roads, and public and private buildings.

Post war Liberia hurts from so many societal ills and damages, that reconstructing the country and finding and fixing all the trajectories that will put the nation back on the course to prosperity seems almost an impossible feat.

The social stratums that should make our society function and hold are diminishing. It is safe to argue that the Liberian family was destroyed by the Liberian civil war says pundits, and this misfortune has had vary penalties for Liberian life.

Unemployment is at its highest level, healthcare is either unavailable or unaffordable, corruption is rampant, the cost of tuition is high – too high an unemployed parent, who just cannot afford to send a child/children to school; the cost of food is too high also that a just family cannot afford to feed their children as much as they want; crime is high and life in Liberia for a typical Liberian family is dismal.

The break down of the Liberian family can be attributed to many factors, but principally the mass displacement of families in the country and refugee camps around the sub region and the world during the war years account for the this community morass.

The Liberian civil war hurt us all. The effects are being felt everywhere. As such, Liberians from all ethnic, political and religious persuasions must come together to rebuild their country – our country for this generation and the next generation of Liberians

Liberia, as it is today grapples perversely with rapes, prostitution, corruption and arm banditry because the family structure has broken and rowdiness invasive, “that the Liberian family was dismembered by the civil war and rendered dysfunctional is not in question,” Wrote Emmanuel Dolo in September of 2008. He went on and lamented the shattering effects it has wrecked on our nation by calling it “the corrosive effects,” which he also said was due to our almost two decade’s long war. Dolo said current events in our country “on human relationships across a broad spectrum justify these sentiments,” adding, “Clearly, certain segments of the society were hit harder than others, and as a unit, the family experienced the most formidable jolt.”

Liberian Family

What is also sad is that, the Johnson Sirleaf led Unity Party administration has done little to tackle these issues. Even the political opposition in the country have said little about the problem facing the Liberian family: The social stratum of the family has worsened and it is time for corrective actions.

Schools alone will not make students compete at the highest levels in the class room. Parental participation is also necessary. Education has plummeted as is evident by the mass failures year in and out, and the poor reading and writing skills of students graduating out of high schools today. All of these, because the family has gone kaput. If our society lacks social cohesion and solidification in times when it is most needed then the cursory observer would ask, when would this serious dilemma ever be addressed, and for how long will it be ignored?

Just as the family has broken down so has violence against women and children in the Liberian society increased, very sad indeed. When women and children are not protected in the Liberian life by men and boys, what kind of society do we think we would have cultured and nurtured for future generations. Liberian traditional laws are also discriminatory in nature and bias, and have done little to sustain the pace of growth needed to breed the Liberian family in the 21lst century.

The nation’s customary laws are pigeonholes against women and are prejudicial. This issue must be looked into, it must be addressed. Liberia cannot remain a decent country and a civilized emerging democracy with such huge conflicts.

Teen pregnancies and early marriages, still to a great regret, do not help in building and rebuilding the family in Liberia. For example, in 2004, the United Nations estimated that thirty six percent of “girls between 15 and 19 years of age were married, divorced or widowed. There has been a slight increase in the average age of first marriage in Liberia.” These are disapproving facts that must claim attentions; the civic society must instruct and bring pressure to bear on the national government, so that resources are deployed to strengthen the Liberian family. For example, single mothers must receive help and scholarship from the state for school, hospital expenses for them and their infants. Young Liberians who are raising familes must also see attention come their way.

The nation’s political leadership and those aspiring for higher offices this election season must work very hard to save the Liberian family, because the Liberian family is the most important unit of society; and its cohesiveness is needed to cultivate an emerging social class of individuals from which the leaders of tomorrow will flow.

Fragmented Opposition President Sirleaf's Greatest Re-election Asset

By: paul pauley jackson

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

Introduction: Social and political critic, Paul Jackson makes a forceful posit that President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf reelection bid to reclaim the highest political office in Africa's first republic is all but certain this 2011 political season, because the major political actors in the country are puzzyfooting and doing all to undermine the chances of each other. He is of the view, that, if the political opposition is serious to dislodge the current occupant from the Executive Mansion, they must join forces and move with a unity of purpose.

President Sirleaf appears impervious to political defeat later this year partly due to a congested presidential race that holds the assumption that the more the opposition parties, the lesser the chances of the incumbent getting re-elected.

This view, birthed out of ignorance of presumption has given rise to a long line of political parties and pretenders. However, this laundry list of political parties and geniuses has never translated into victory for the opposition, as greed and narcissism have always gotten in the way of forming a single and formidable opposition capable of defeating the status quo.

We have heard of countless meetings and exchanges between these leaders none of which ever resulted in the formation of a coalition.

Throughout this piece, I will loosely exploit the term “opposition” to speak specifically of three key political figures (Brumskine, Tubman, and Weah) and their unwillingness to form a healthy, functional, and viable coalition aimed at unseating the current political leadership in Liberia.

Madam Sirleaf has consolidated power enough to employ all the resources (legally and illegally, if she so chooses) to aid her re-election bid for a second term, and has also managed to convince a significant portion of the electorate that she is the best thing Liberians has ever had since burger wheat. Looking at the existing attitude of the opposition, I don’t know whether I can discount this assertion anymore.

If our opposition leaders cannot work together on a single goal of defeating the incumbent, how in the heck are they going to be able to unite our much-divided nation? The “oldma” surely knows and realizes something we are taking a lifetime to grasp: That the more fragmented the opposition, the more ‘politically sexy’ she looks in the eyes of the electorate. And I agree with her on this one.

Don’t get me wrong, for ideological purposes and other true and honest reasons, I highly subscribe to the political parties maintaining their separate identities and agendas. But there is also this thing called “SITUATIONAL AWARENESS,” a tool that should come in handy for George Weah, Charles Brumskine, and Winston Tubman, if these people really want to put an end to Ellen’s reign of errors. But everyone seems to be having his own agenda and fantasies of sitting in the Executive Mansion.

The fragile political situation currently in Liberia demands a decisive and united opposition. Because the already ambivalent and disillusioned citizens would rather have a relatively stable and dysfunctional Unity Party leadership than a single political name brand that is unwilling to be part of an effective coalition. At least, with Ma Ellen, things are stagnant, pretty predictable, coupled with superficial economic recovery, no electricity, broken bridges, poor health care, but no gun shots or arbitrary prosecution of citizens.

The men who could be president: Brumskine & Tubman

Brumskine, Weah, and Tubman need to take advantage of these failures and work together to right some of these problems. The last time I checked, Liberians care less who is in the Executive Mansion, and gave Taylor and Ellen (one highly, the other partly responsible for the loss of so many lives) shots at the presidency via the ballot box.

The opposition has as much to play in Ellen’s re-election as Ellen herself. With friends like Weah, Brumskine, and Tubman undermining each other, Ellen doesn’t really need a political bedfellow. The electoral process would be worth another effort in futility should these key political figures refuse to work in tandem for the sole purpose of the better good of the motherland. God Help us!!

Amos Sawyer and Governance Commission Shows Teeth

By: ralph geeplay

GC Chair Sawyer

The critical issue of governance and leadership in Liberia has always been a source of conflict since the country’s founding, because political authority is highly centralized in the Liberian context and power repeatedly abused by the Liberian president.

While much has been said and written about this issue, not much has been done in Africa’s first independent republic to rectify it. The basis of that clash is the so-called appointing powers established in the Liberian constitution. The country, says pundits, has most of its innumerable problems blamed on an imperial presidency.

There is uproar currently in the country and the Diaspora about the wrongs this scenario portends, and the slippery slopes to tyranny it has become. The fume is rising and people are taking note that this exploitation of the nation’s body politic must not be business as usual.

To solve the issue the Amos Sawyer-led Governance Commission (GC) is showing resolve and hammering the point that local authorities be elected by their own people instead of directives flying out of Monrovia like saucers. The commission especially wants county superintendents elected.

The Irony of Auditor john Morlu

By: thomas bright perkins

The controversial John Morlu

Argumentum ad –hominen is what Mr. Morlu resulted to. When a man runs out of steam, he finds diatribe as the only point of solace. In a civilized environment, when a man believes he is attacked, the best think to do is to provide a logical counter argument to defend his case.

Hurling insults at other people is just rudeness! Referring to a fellow Liberian as a dog simply because they disagree with you is just inexcusable and must not be tolerated.

When pretenders masquerade as contenders: The irony of Mr. Morlu
When Shinji Onoyasaka saw her home washed away by the unforgiving tsunami weeks ago in Fugushima, she confessed to the BBC that she contemplated on committing suicide because of her desperate state. It is highly explicable why she saw that as an alternative. She was in a horrible mood. People get so desperate to protect their properties, wealth, families, integrity, fame and fat jobs.

Like Shinji, I think desperation is the best word I can probably find to describe Mr. John Morlu’s antics. The anger as expressed by the leaked email only suggests the extent to wish he can possibly go in order to catch what has now seem to be his fat job being washed away before his eyes. Like Shinji, it is also highly understandable why Mr. Morlu has become so desperate to protect his fat job. Certainly, he is in a horrible mood too.

When the email was first read by a radio presenter quoting a local daily, I thought it was a joke. I refused to accept it as I thought it was a snag against Mr. Morlu. Well, having read the full text of Mr. Morlu’s “email”, I think it will regrettably go down as a gross betrayal of professionalism and a complete let down of confidence reposed by numerous groups like the Student and Youth Unions and other civil society institutions that have called for his re-nomination. He has morally harmed all of those groups including a congressman that joined the crusade for the extension of his contract. In any case, it is reasonable that when a man’s job is given to a boy, the boy pisses in the pool.

Mr. Morlu has shown poor leadership, ugly judgment and must be condemned by every serious minded person. His attitude shows that big change is required. Yes, we do need new breed of youthful leaders, but it should be responsible persons.

The public reaction to the email is far too serious to be assuaged by any package of response coming from a group of blindfolded following. Mr. Morlu needs to pay the price for his unethical behavior. The folks from the GAC did not do him any special favor; they exacerbated the issue further and just unleashed a can of hooked worms. At one point, they tried defending portions of the email while another instance; they said it was all trash.

Sirleaf is inaugurated president

I do not doubt by any measure what Mr. Morlu has done in the human resource strengthening of the GAC. He has done tremendously well and must be applauded. But, the issue is not about how many students are in the United States or East Africa studying as the result of Mr. Morlu’s magnanimity. Mr. Morlu has blundered and must be man enough to face his words.

Let me now piece up the pieces of Mr. Morlu’s “email”:

Far removed from the issues

Argumentum ad –hominen is what Mr. Morlu resulted to. When a man runs out of steam, he finds diatribe as the only point of solace. In a civilized environment, when a man believes he is attacked, the best think to do is to provide a logical counter argument to defend his case. Hurling insults at other people is just rudeness! Referring to a fellow Liberian as a dog simply because they disagree with you is just inexcusable and must not be tolerated.

Even in the United States where Mr. Morlu claims to get his education from, intellectual sanity is observed. Americans differ with their leaders on policies. Whatever the difference, Robert Gates will not write President Obama telling him to inform Robert Gibbs or Susan Rice to have the damn job. This is insulting to the least!

Arrogance

Hear Mr. Morlu: “Even though I informed you (Madam President) that my dear wife Angie had broken her leg before charismas and I needed to be in America to take my son to the liver clinic at John Hopkins University Medical. I fought back all quiet down”.

This is a demonstration of extreme arrogance! What does the state has to do with the broken leg of his wife? We are all aware that he can afford to send his son to the best available hospital because of the mega sum he earns. Mr. Morlu does not need to brag about his wealth. It is highly unacceptable. There are millions of Liberians whose children are dying of malaria daily all because they are penniless. Those were kids who could have been better sophisticated had their parents had the opportunities to send them to the United States too.

Hear Mr. Morlu again: “I have been never afraid of anyone, as you (Madam President) know my stamina and intellectual strength”. What stamina and intellectual strength is he speaking of? Who Mr. Morlu thinks he is? If I were to relive all of his incoherent ramblings and poorly-structured arguments, this will shut up the debate.

Unprofessionalism

Mr. Morlu says to the President: “You need to decide which side you stand on corruption as the likes of Medina Wisseh and her surrogates like the new recruit Nagbe Sloh are interested in lining pockets”. What audit has he conducted to brand Medina and Sloh as sleaze cops? What informs his position in the absence of an audit? How did he sum up his conclusions? This is sheer insinuation! Professionals do not put out garbage rather they present substantiated information.

Child’s Play

Mr. Morlu states: “I have been reading a lot of books of late. I just finished a book on 1776, the American War of Independence. I learned a few things from General George Washington for how victory can be achieved: Retreat, Change position, Fight Hardest”. What is he suggesting? Does he intend issuing a disclaimer to the email? Is this his interpretation of General Washington’s words? Anyway Mr. Morlu, please stick to your audit lessons and leave quoting people. Don’t hunt what you can not kill.

Removing the veil

Mr. Morlu states again: “We were the intellectual strength behind you in 2005, not the Nagbe Sloh’s”. Again, Mr. Morlu has exposed his black hands. Okay, so he is suggesting that he is not impartial after all. Is it that Nagbe Sloh is now taking over his post in 2005? My only disappointment is that he even had the guts to accept the job in the first place.

Mr. Morlu Rants

Sarcastically, Mr. Morlu rants: “Good day. I hope you take this email with maximum serious and not underestimate my resolve to fight back forcefully as I have done time and time again when under attacked. You all will see who has real intellectual strength and credibility domestically and internationally”. I wonder how Mr. Morlu got recruited. Did he write a paper? Look at the poor grammar! What language did he write to seek the job? Latin or Greek? How did he get his papers?

humbly agree with the president’s perspective. John has done well and has set a remarkable legacy and others can now pick up from where he has stopped. The office of the president must be at all times be respected irrespective of the difference in opinions.

I will stop here for now to allow the debate to begin as Mr. Morlu has promised. I learnt that he is truthful to his words and I am also more than sure, Mr. Morlu’s dear wife, Angie, is not going to easily forgive him for the disrespect he showed to Mr. Wisseh’s wife, Medina and by extension Madam President.

____
About the Author: Thomas Bright Perkins holds double Masters in Economic Policy Management and International Relations. He is also a PHD Candidate (Public Policy). He is Liberian and resides in the United Kingdom. He is currently visiting Liberia. You may contact Thomas on tbperkins@aol.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or tbperkins@gmail.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Ellen Retaliatory Outrage

Introduction: In this piece Tewroh-Wehtoe Sungbeh chides president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf for firing John Morlu, who as head of the auditing commission was vocal about corruption in Liberia. 

John Morlu

John S. Morlu II is no longer Auditor General of the Republic of Liberia. A president who was never a fan in the first place officially terminated the much-hated auditor general, who in the eyes of most Liberians caused the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf administration much headache after the president nominated him in 2007.

According to supporters of the president, Morlu was never fired. However, a statement read by President Sirleaf on the expiration of the employment contract added that the “European Union concluded an agreement with the Auditor-General to pay the salary for the first four years of the contract with the understanding that the Liberian Government will assume this responsibility thereafter.”

So after the end of the European Union’s sanctioned four years, President Sirleaf, who couldn’t hide her disdain for the outspoken auditor general who brought so much grief to her administration, and perhaps to her personally with his public indictment of her administration as being “three times more corrupt than its predecessor,” could no longer swallow the bitter pill named Morlu.

Who is this Jeffersonian John Morlu?

By: ralph geeplay

By the time this commentary is up John Morlu will deny that he wrote a despicable letter to the President of the Republic of Liberia

“The Letter,” as it is now being referred to in many circles is probably the most interesting piece of blue notes I have read these past two years. What motivated John Morlu to write that letter says a lot about what is wrong with Liberia, where tolerance and civility are vices that will continue to hold back our country.

However, if there is one lesson that Liberians have learned over the years, it is that there is a need for a civilized public discourse where arguments and disagreements exist, and where they must go hand in hand while counting the responsibilities and costs. An example was Tiawon Gongloe’s disagreement few months ago with President Sirleaf and her government, when he refused to re-join her government after he and his colleagues were dismissed by the president. It is this paradigm of courteousness that Liberia needs in the halls of its civic dialogue

Who says politics is not dirty, or that individuals are not bound to attack their opponents in the most colorful of language reserved for their anger? But the fashion in which this self-described Jeffersonian, John Morlu chose to address the president of the republic have me still scratching my head.

I will give Mr. Morlu credit for building an impeccable institution in the name of the General Auditing Commission (GAC). “He led the GAC, at a time when public financial management in the country needed a push and a brush to sweep the dirt that had gathered on the carpet for so long, as Liberia had just emerged from over a decade and half of civil strife, electing in the process a democratic government,” says a Liberian news web based editor. He continued, “Morlu, was probably the most powerful man in Liberia until the president, last week said no to re-nominating him." Sirleaf, in refusing to have him again in her government said, ‘while there must be differences in the way we practice politics and disagree,’ she intended to uphold "the integrity of the office" of the presidency by denying Morlu a second chance at the position of AG.

Public opinion has been against Morlue since his sordid letter arrived on the scene. “His fans are literate enough and are the most surprised,” says James Troll a Liberian following the scenario currently unfolding, “but Morlu,” he concedes “still has a certain political capital, but has a thin skin for being criticized.”

Everyone knows that the post of the Auditor General of Liberia (AG) was a mere facade until it was advertised in 150 countries upon President Sirleaf assuming office in 2005. Morlu won hands down with many including the EU, describing him as brilliant. He brought a can-do managerial fighting spirit to the office, and in the process made a name for himself. He was unafraid to lead and tackle the age-old problem of corruption, ineptitude, and graft that helped to destroy the country.
The former AG positioned himself as a frontline commander against graft, and at times a little overzealous when he charged that “the Sirleaf government was three times more corrupt than its predecessor” even before commissioning his very first audit.

Morlue was rude to the president. His letter was distasteful and repugnant, especially when he called the president’s associates "dogs." Even the wayward in WestPoint would know better. Even his idol, Thomas Jefferson would be ashamed. While Jefferson was well accomplished and sought to enshrine liberty in the American psyche as most of the founding fathers of the American Revolution were, persistently advocating for an absolute government built on the separation of powers, he also understood that the importance of civility as far as public discourse and policy are concern.

So what is this Jeffersonian doctrine that inspires Morlue? I am baffled because while Jefferson was a wise man, he was the most contradictory of sort as far as the equality of blacks were concerned. He owned slaves but yet penned the declaration of independence positing, "All men were created equal..." It is hard to even imagine he would have written a disrespectful letter to his superiors when he served as ambassador to France in 1789 over major policy disagreements, or to President George Washington whom he served as Secretary of State for four years; beginning the same year he was posted to Paris.

Morlu my man, let the streets do the talking; sit back and nurse the juice. That's the way it is done, brother! Yes, you have supporters, and I was one of your fans until that sordid letter...what in the hell was that gloat? I am chuckling, fighting to hold myself back here... gees! Moving forward, Morlu must handle himself with sass if he wants a political future. For the record, we must all thank John Morlu for speaking truth to power while serving in the very government of which he was a part.

Tubman’s Last Gamble!

By: ralph geeplay

Liberian politician Winston Tubman

Politicians are gamblers. They all bet and stake their fate on the future, and this is done not in so quiet ways. To add to the spectacle, it is often executed with everyone watching, and if they do win the glee is always never mistaken: Cameras capturing the smiles of victory, newspaper banners hailing their conquests, television and radio stations blaring their speeches and images.