Liberian People’s Party (LPP) former Standard-Bearer, Tiawan Saye Gongloe, has responded to recent media reports, which insinuated that the Gongloes are divided over endorsements given to the two parties, the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) and the Unity Party, in the pending runoff polls.
He said the Gongloe Clan is not divided, and will never be divided, for whatever reason, be it political, social, or economic. Therefore, what was reported in the media is not only incorrect, but also misleading.
Gongloe told the media during the weekend that it is important for the public to understand that his sister, Edith Gongloe-Weh, is not a member of the Liberian People’s Party (LPP), rather, the Liberty Party (LP), founded by the late Charles Walker Brumskine and others. Furthermore, he is not a member of the Liberty Party, to which his sister belongs.
He stated that as the immediate past presidential candidate of LPP in the Tuesday, October 10 general polls, he is not a member of the Liberty Party, but rather the LPP that recently endorsed the Unity Party in the second round, as all of these endorsements have no effect on the Gongloes or the Gongloe Clan.
Therefore, he continued that his sister has the right, like any Liberian, together with her or their friends, supporters, and followers, to endorse any candidate of their choice in the scheduled Tuesday, November 14 run-off, which suggests also that there is no division inside the Gongloe family.
Gongloe, who claimed the 6th spot in the overall first round final results announced by the National Elections Commission (NEC), from the general polls held on Tuesday, October 10, said Edith once served as Superintendent of Nimba County during the first term of President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf.
He went further that his sister also contested 3 times for the Senate for Nimba County in 2011, 2014 and 2020 on the ticket of the Liberty Party, and not LPP, stating that she is a well-known figure in Liberian politics, as well as the outside world.
“My sister, likewise me, or any member of the Gongloe Clan, does not believe in tribal politics. We are humans, like others, who need those others as well daily. Though we may differ with each other on policies, but that does not suggest hatred to fellow human beings. Therefore, Edith has the right to endorse whichever candidate she chooses; that is not a crime but her choice,” Gongloe noted.
He said, “As head of the Gongloe Clan, I am building bridges for tomorrow’s Gongloes to see the other side of the world, and not mountains that may not permit them to see the wider world. That is why my relationship goes across borders.”
About tribalism, Gongloe said he is a nationalist and not tribalist, for which his relationship is not only limited to Liberia, but beyond the borders of the country which has prepared him to be where he is today, pointing out that anybody who accuses him of such, then that person or group of people, do not know the man called Tiawan Saye Gongloe.
He said Gongloe and Associates Law Firm is a clear indication that regardless of who you are, or where you come from, it does not matter, because we are all human beings made in the image of the Lord, stating that this has enabled him and the LPP team to have visited over 300 villages and towns in all of the counties in Liberia during these electioneering periods.