By Nyema Nma, Jr.
President George Weah has responded harshly to the political leader of the Alternative National Congress, Alexander B. Cummings.
The Liberian leader’s responds to the ANC political leader is in reference to an open letter to him dated August 27, 2022 in which the opposition leader, Cummings reminded President Weah that mere dismissal of the three sanctioned officials of his government by the American Government did not commensurate with their crimes.
Cummings also stated that President Weah’s inability to act decisively in said matter could raise suspicion of his (Weah) personal involvements in activities and receipt of benefits from the thievery and abuse.
The Chairperson of the Collaborating Political Parties, further warned the Liberian leader that his inaction has serious implications for himself and smears the image of the country pointing out, “The designation of these close and powerful members of your inner circle for acts of stealing and abuse of their offices is of serious embarrassment to the presidency and our country.”
“Your response, Mr. President, does not commensurate with the magnitude and gravity of this international scandal and national shame. Mere suspension of these officials is tantamount to thumping your nose at the United States and our most important development partner. Those involved are your close confidants and partisans,” Cummings said.
Mr. Cummings pointed out that, no serious investor would consider Liberia as a destination for investment to ease the hardship on Liberians through job creation and employment for the people, if the president’s reaction continues to be weak, indecisive and not equal to the seriousness of the allegations.
But in what appeared to be a tough response from the presidency, the Liberian leader informs the opposition leader that when a communication supposedly meant for his attention appears first on the front pages of newspapers and on social media, it is obvious that the intent is to achieve a political objective; an objective that has eluded Cummings at the ballot box.
President Weah noted that there is no doubt that the expressed action by the Government of the United States to impose sanctions on three officials of the government is a matter of grave concern that carries a lot of weight; not just because of the strong historical bonds that subsist between the two countries and the fact that they are our traditional ally and foremost international partner, but because the fight against corruption is a key priority of my administration, for which we have taken manifold steps to eradicate.
President Weah observed that the bilateral relationship that Liberia and the United States share continues to grow from strength to strength. He said, “As a leader, I took immediate action when the United States recently accused officials of the Liberian Government of impropriety and graft, and I informed the Nation of further pending actions.”
He brags that he is glad that the United States and other international partners also recognize the strides that Liberia is making toward consolidating democracy and good governance. He asserts, “In recent years, for instance, we have instituted more measures to fight corruption than was ever done when you served in government.”
In his well-written letter, President Weah noted that, “It is therefore the height of hypocrisy, when a person such as yourself, who dined and wined in the very system I am working so hard to fix – and never mustered the courage to speak – now wants us to believe that you have morphed into an advocate of the people – the same ones you neglected during the years of civil upheaval.
However, President Weah reminded Cummings that he is glad that the opposition leader has finally found his voice.
“Where was your voice Mister Cummings, when sixty-plus concessions awarded by the government in which you served were found to be bogus, illegal, and inimical to the interest of the Liberian people? Where was your voice Mr. Cummings, when the National Oil Company of Liberia was rendered bankrupt? The Liberian leader wondered.
“Where was your voice when cries for the pavement of a short stretch of road from Ganta to Yekepa could not be carried out because your administration – for pecuniary gains – then asked the concessionaire to default on their commitment enshrined in their agreement? He reiterated.
He ranted, “Where was your voice, when the Central Bank was crippling under staggering, unfettered borrowing by the government in which you served, undermining the nation’s strategic reserves and leading to a weakened monetary environment?
This is but the tip of the iceberg of a humongous cocktail of mismanagement, graft, ill-governance, and inefficiency that happened right under your nose, while you maintained a loud and conspicuous silence,” Weah promised the opposition.
“As President of the Republic of Liberia, I have a constitutional responsibility to all citizens, regardless of their political, ethnic, or social persuasions. I have therefore endeavoured throughout my tenure in office to ensure that stakeholders such as yourself have the requisite access that will afford the opportunity to raise views, positions, and concerns that you may have on various issues of national interest with me and officials of my administration,” President Weah furthered
“A few months ago, you were accused of forgery by some leaders of your CPP group and was afforded the opportunity to go to court and be heard. Now, you are saying that others should be deprived of that same opportunity to due process. Let me remind you that the very U.S. Government that you referenced called for due process and the application of Liberian law as was stated by Ambassador McCarthy when he unveiled the designations “we stand ready to support the Government of Liberia in pursuit of its own investigation of corruption in its jurisdiction, understanding that you will apply Liberian law in an appropriate, transparent and timely manner,” Weah charged.
In closing, President Weah said, “I have no history of violence. My rise from Monrovia’s slums is publicly documented. It was through hard work, respect, dedication, and commitment that I clawed my way out of poverty, but I have never forgotten my roots. So there is a reason why your attempts to conflate who Liberians and the world actually know me to be have not gained much traction.
I do not condone violence in any form whatsoever. It runs contrary to my beliefs. I have made that clear in all my public statements. It is therefore malicious that in your seeming desperation to be President, you would trumpet anything and everything that comes to mind, including your disingenuous posit that I condone violence.
Let me use this opportunity to remind you that our democracy, though nascent, is being consolidated over time with the holding of many free and fair elections, some of which were lost by the ruling Party. I can assure you and others of your ilk, that my commitment to a free, fair, and transparent process in 2023 remains unbending.
He said that never again will Liberia return to the dark days of violence. All those wanting to take state power must therefore submit to the will of the Liberian people, because it is only through peace, unity, development, and democracy that this nation can prosper.
But many political pundits are yet to understand why in the first place the President would choose to leave other pressing national issues only to respond to an individual whom he is aware is from an opposition bloc.
What is more mind blowing among citizens who were interviewed yesterday is the fact that President Weah being an opposition for 12 years and coming to government not with a blueprint but comparison with the very governments he criticised when himself has done more harm than good to the masses.
Here are excerpts from citizens: “Let’s take for example, it is we who are keeping the peace and not Weah,” Mr. Alphonso Stephens of New Georgia Estate observed. “He is not a man of peace as he claims. During his days in opposition, were those not his same thugs carrying characteristics as protesters, stoning public officials, carrying caskets and using invectives on the presidency,” he questioned.
While Mrs. Agnes Doe Chea of the Caldwell averred that the President’s communication is a waste of one’s energy when he should be doing the Liberian people’s job adding, “He has already failed us and wanting to buy sympathy. Weah and his government cannot point to any project that they have secured of their own; infact, all of the road projects being accredited to him were already secured by the past government and they are only implementing.”
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