The Center for Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding (CECPAP) reconciliation dialogue has brought together rival groups (Hard Work and Moifengan) in the just ended 2023 presidential and legislative elections.
The reconciliation dialogue is being organized and facilitated by CECPAP with funding provided by the UN Peacebuilding Fund and the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM) is supervising the implementation of the project.
Meanwhile, Porkpa District has always become a hotspot during electioneering period and since the 2020 special senatorial election, the district became the hub for violent acts in Liberia.
Properties such as vehicles and other values were set ablaze while people sustained serious injuries due to the deadly riot that rocked the entire district.
The act of electoral violence was once again repeated in Porkpa District during the 2023 presidential and legislative elections when there was a contestation for the district only seat in the House of Representatives.
The group under the banner of Moifengan (a Mendy word meaning ungratefulness, deceitful, and unappreciative) went against the group named Hard Work in the race for the House of Representative.
According to reports, the Hard Work group chose to call former Representative Bob Sheriff a moifengan because of what they termed as his ungratefulness towards Mr. Idarsah Massaley, a business mogul in the Grand Cape Mount County and father of Porpka District’s current lawmaker, Bindu Massaley.
As the report goes, during the 2017 presidential and legislative elections, Mr. Sheriff sought and received businessman Massaley’s financial and moral support to win the district seat in the legislature.
Following Sheriff’s ascendency to the House of Representative, he began to pay back Mr. Massaley with the act of deceit and ungratefulness, something that made the business tycoon’s supporters to petition Bindu to contest against Bob Sheriff during the 2023 legislative election.
Even though the elections are over, the district remains divided and it was against this backdrop that the Center for Conflict and Peacebuilding moved into Bamballah Town, Porkpa District headquarter and on last Thursday they began kindling peace, reconciliation, and unity amongst residents.
Earlier, Hard Work and Moifengan supporters benefited from a two-day lecture training on conflict resolution and thereafter, the former rivals grabbed the vision to reunite for the betterment of the community and the future of their kids.
The women from the two groups vowed to convene a large gathering of women on Friday in Bamballah town to stress the need of embracing peace and reconciliation in Porkpa district.
Meanwhile, addressing the participants at the closed of the two-day reconciliation dialogue session, CECPAP’s Executive Director Charles Crawford expressed happiness over the reunification of the residents and admonished them to keep watering the seed of peace, reconciliation and unity planted in Porkpa District.
“They want to see your divided and so they will do everything possible to bring division among you guys. They think that when your guys are divided, they will get their selfish goal achieved. Don’t allow them to succeed in their devilish act. Their aim is to use your and get wealth at your expense. They mean no good for you,” Mr. Crawford further told the gathering.
