By Bill W. Cooper
The standard bearer of the Liberia National Union (LINU), Clarence Moniba, is raising his voice to emphasize the crucial link between justice and sustainable peace in Liberia.
Moniba, a new figure in Liberia’s political landscape, further warned that without addressing the injustices of the past and current, Liberia will continue to struggle in its quest for lasting peace and social cohesion.
He spoke Wednesday, August 2, 2023, during a one-day intensive forum with 2023 presidential aspirants and members of the Board of Commissioners of the National Elections Commission (NEC), ECOWAS and UN-Liberia, on promoting a peaceful 2023 general elections.
The day-long intensive forum was held under the theme: “Building the confidence of the presidential candidates in the workings of the National Elections Commission” as the nation gears up for the upcoming Presidential and Legislative elections.
However, the history of Liberia is marred by a series of devastating events, including a prolonged civil war that lasted from 1989 to 2003. The said brutal conflict left an indelible mark on the nation, causing immeasurable human suffering and deep-seated fractures within society.
Despite years of progress and efforts to heal these wounds, the country still grapples with issues such as systemic corruption, lack of accountability, and the growing divide between the ruling class and ordinary citizens.
Moniba, who, like other candidates, is aiming to unseat President George M. Weah through the ballot box on October 10 of this year, argues that these unresolved issues stem from a failure to address the crimes committed during the civil war.
He believes that the government of President Weah and other opposition candidates must prioritize justice, in order to foster true reconciliation and set the foundation for a peaceful future.
According to him, the need for opposition leaders to unite and speak against the creeping acts of injustice and the unexplained mysterious killings, since the inception of the CDC government, cannot be overemphasized.
He further expressed that holding perpetrators of these crimes, which is recipe for chaos, accountable, will not only provide justice to victims but also send a powerful message that impunity will no longer be tolerated in Liberia.
“We cannot be preaching oral peace without actualization because there will be no peace without justice in this country, and it is incumbent upon us political stakeholders to begin to act now,” he emphasized.
By pledging to prioritize justice, if elected as President of Liberia, Moniba has also offered a glimmer of hope that Liberia can break free from its troubled past and current breakdown of rule and order and emerge as a beacon of peace and stability in West Africa.
