By Othello B. Garblah
Just before the dust begins to settle over the October 10, 2023, Legislative Elections results, the battle for Speakership at the lower House seems to be gathering steam already.
Among the contestants seeking to replace House Speaker Bhofal Chambers are Deputy House Speaker Fonati Koffa of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), newcomers Musa Bility of the Collaborating Political Parties (CPP), and Ms. Prescilla Abram Cooper of the Unity Party.
Deputy Speaker Cllr. Koffa would face a daunting task in his bid to replace Speaker Chambers in that he would face Constitutional checkpoints. Should incumbent President Weah retain his seat and Senate Pro-tempt Albert Chie gets lucky to retain his, it would be difficult if not impossible to allow the President, the Speaker, the Chief Justice, and Sen. Pro-tempt to hail from the same county.
The current President George Weah, Chief Justice Sie-A-Nyene Gyapay Yuoh, and current Sen. Pro-tempt Albert Chie all hailed from Grand Kru County. Electing Deputy Speaker Cllr. Fonait Koffa as speaker would mean the entire leadership of the three branches of government heading from one county-Grand Kru. Thus, Deputy Speaker Koffa’s chances at the Speakership would stir up some constitutional challenges.
The next known candidate is CPP Musa Bility. Musa Bility’s chances at the speakership are very slim, slimmer than even Deputy Speaker Kofa. Bility, an incoming lawmaker is a former president of the Liberia Football Association (LFA). He is also the CEO of SRIMEX Gas and Oil Company. Besides, Mr. Bility is the owner of Renaissance Communication Incorporated owner of Truth FM. Bility also has a lot of international experience under his belt, one of which includes serving on the FIFA Board.
However, Bility has a lot of skeletons in his closet and would be washed out should the politics for the speakership begin. Some of these skeletons would be better off should they remain in the closet.
There are reports that he plans to infuse money into his campaign, but this is very unlikely to win him the speakership.
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The next known candidate so far is fellow newcomer Priscilla Abram Cooper Representative-elect of Montserrado District#5. Not much is known about Ms. Cooper’s political astuteness.
However, Ms. Cooper has an experience in the corporate world: General Manager/Co-Owner- Executive Inn Thinkers- village, Paynesville – Liberia., Executive Assistant – Cellcom Telecommunications Inc., Capitol By-pass, Monrovia-Liberia, Customer Care Coordinator-Lone-Star Cell Communications, Congo Town-Monrovia-Liberia, and Senior Customer Care Officer- Lone-Star Cell Communication, Congo Town-Monrovia-Liberia.
During her time at the entities above and businesses she established, she was able to employ over 3,000 individuals, some of whom are residents of District #5, Montserrado County.
She also seems to have a little experience working in public office: County Affairs Coordinator Office of the Senator – River Gee County, The Honorable of House of Senate, Capitol Hill, Monrovia- Liberia; *Executive Officer – Prevailing World Mission Int’l, Paynesville 72nd – Liberia; and Expeditor -Ministry of State, Executive Mansion- Monrovia- Liberia.
Political Experience
As an aspiring professional woman, she has been very meticulous in how she aligns with and conducts herself in a society where politics is viewed by many as a game in which personal interest supersedes group interest.
Since 2005, she has been an ardent adherent of the Liberty Party political Platform centered on the four R’s: Reconciliation, Reform, Recovery and Rebuilding. She is of the unbending conviction that although politics is sometimes defined in terms of who gets what, when, how, and where, contemporary Liberian politics must present a human face. This, to her, entails going beyond defining politics in the often-narrow view of “what is her ultimate interest?” Owing to this view, she continued to work along with her political party in projecting what is known as the utilitarian value of politics: the greater good for the greater number of people.
With no inclination to pursue politics in the context of “what can one get out of it personally” and disregarding the overall interest of the political environment in which one lives.
As a young entrant to politics in 2005, she worked with different auxiliaries including the Brumskine Women Movement, the Friends of Brumskine, among others, in projecting the four pillars of the Liberty Party platform to the public. By the time of the 2017 General and Presidential Elections, I featured prominently in the political auxiliary called Charlie Angels. This group was active in the mobilization and recruitment of scores of partisans and supporters for the presidential bid of the late Political Leader, Cllr. Charles Walker Brumskine, whose vision for a better Liberia attracted support from different shades of political persuasions. With her endurance and active participation in the running of a major political institution like Liberty Party, she attained one of the significant standards of trust needed in Liberia’s quest for effective public sector reform drive, still holding up to those values she has moved on and joined the Unity Party, whose standard bearer holds all those same principles.
