Incumbent Representative George Beyan Samah of Electoral District #12 in Montserrado County including those who have expressed their desire to contest the district’s representative seat have been accused of “Voter Trucking” during this three (3) weeks Biometric Voter’s Registration exercise which begins today.
But the insinuation or perceptions from the Friends of Jerry Kolubah Yogboh (FOY), the movement that is driving the election bid of Representative Aspirant, Jerry Kolubah Yogboh, did not or could not provide convincing reliance to the media on their allegations.
However, Yogboh’s Friends claimed to have uncovered plans harbored by the lawmaker, Samah, and all those aspirants in the district of allegedly trucking voters to register and vote in the Tuesday, October 10 Presidential and Legislative Elections.
FOY made these comments when unveiling their Voter Registration Taskforce last Friday, 17 March in the district (Gardnersville Township) mandating it to checkmate particularly Samah, who they claimed got elected through “illegal” scheme in the October 2017 Presidential and Legislative Elections.
The Taskforce is made of FOY’s executive members and coordinators in all of the communities within the district and it is to ensure that Samah and all aspirants will not transport voters to register at any of the 22 registration centers in the district.
“Members of the Taskforce will work in collaboration with the citizens of the district to resist all non-residents of the district from registering in the district, adding, “The Taskforce will be assigned at the targeted bordering voting centers.
It believes that Samah and all aspirants in the district are engaging in malicious acts by bringing people who are not residents of Electoral District #12 (Gardnersville) to get registered and vote in their favor in the pending election expected to be held later this year.
It believed that the Representative has lost the trust of the district’s residents based on his reprehensible act of abandoning the constituent since his election in 2017 and has become unpopular for which he can no longer get the support of the district.
To make matters worse for him, FOY continued that Samah has increased anger and disappointment of the district’s residents by investing both financial and material resources intended for the district towards his failed quest for the Lofa County’s Senatorial seat.
“Voter trucking is a scheme designed by politicians to buy votes usually from poor electorates and truck them to register and vote in electoral districts where these voters have no right to do so,” FOY explained angrily.
FOY’s Chairman, John Y. Scere, and General Secretary, G. Emmanuel Junius, who made these statements among many things that voter trucking is illegal and is only attractive to politicians who have less confidence in themselves based on their failure to impact the lives of the people, but choose to use ill-gotten public money” to manipulated the people’s decisions.
“Voter trucking robs the electorates of their constitutional right and duty to choose their leaders in keeping with Article 1 of the 1986 Constitution which states that: “All power is inherited in the people. All free governments are instituted by their authority and for their benefit and they have the right to alter and reform the same when their safety and happiness so require,” they said.
In order to ensure a democratic government responds to the wishes of the governed, FOY went further that the people shall have the right at such period and in such manner as provided for under this constitution, to cause their public servants to leave the office and to fill vacancies by regular elections and appointment.
“The imposition of leadership on a district by trucked voters is illegal and makes the representative unresponsive and unaccountable to the people. Therefore, FOY made it clear that any attempt by Samah and other representative aspirants to engage in voter trucking will be vehemently resisted,” it sent the serious caveat.
Meanwhile, FOY is therefore calling on the National Elections Commission (NEC) to ensure that the enforcement of, and adherence to Section 10.2 (a) of the 2014 Amended New Elections Law on voter trucking which states: “Influencing or attempting to influence the results of elections through voter trucking of the election law.”
“We equally warn citizens who are not residents of Electoral District #12, Montserrado County to stay clear off the district’s voter registration centers. Remain in the district and get registered. Unlike in the past, voter’s registration system, the Biometric Voter registration system will easily identify and disqualify all Liberians who attempt double or multiple registration,” FOY pointed out.
Under doctrine of Representative democracy like the one being practiced in Liberia, the group went further that a representative of the people must be decided by the people he or she represents.
“It is undemocratic and creates lack of accountability to the people when the elected representative is not the product of the expressed will of the people from the represented constituency,” FOY expressed.
