Partisans, supporters and well-wishers of the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change from across Monrovia and parts adjacent converged at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex in Paynesville Saturday, 21 November to officially launch their campaign for the December 8 senatorial and representatives’ by-elections, chanting battle cries and party slogans.
CDC partisans and supporters took the principle streets, emerging from various street corners and communities dressed in their official blue and white colors, as they marched thru the main route from Central Monrovia to the sports stadium in Paynesville, deliberately obstructing traffic, forcing both commercial and private vehicles to park for hours in huge traffic.
All 17 gates of the sports stadium were parked to capacity with CDCians and supporters, including VIP area that was filled with senior government officials and stalwarts of the ruling establishment.
President George Manneh Weah, standard bearer of the tripartite Coalition which comprises the Congress for Democratic Change, the National Patriotic Party and the Liberian People Democratic Party, mandated partisans to reclaim Montserrado County, once its stronghold, from Senator Dillon.
The CDC had held onto Montserado since its formation in 2004 up to 2017, when it disgracefully lost to the county with most populated voters to the opposition in a defeat it has never recovered from.
From the 2005, 2011 and 2017 general and presidential elections, the Coalition topped all political parties that participated not until the 2019 senatorial by-election when the CPP candidate Dillon, overturned the table, placing him at the top of the table unbelievably even to President Weah himself despite the President personally lifting the hand of CDC candidate Pualita C. C. Wie in the campaign.
Dillon swept the poll with more than 70 percent of the total votes against his rival Paulita, who traded behind with about 40 percent, from the preliminary results, a lead she failed to reverse up to the final results that gave the CPP a convincing victory against the ruling Coalition.
Speaking at the rally, CDC Montserrado County Senatorial Candidate and incumbent District No. 5 Representative Thomas Fallah, lauded the gallantry of members of the CDC for the show of support, especially, their standard bearer President George Manneh Weah for giving him the opportunity to serve on the ticket of the Congress for Democratic Change back in 2005.
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” I say this time without number my sincere gratitude to His Excellency, President George Manneh Weah for giving me (a plank seller), the opportunity back in 2005 to serve. Since then, I have served my party with all my being and today this plank seller has set for himself, the CDC, the people of district No. 5, as Representative in this highly energized Montserrado County.”
“Mr. Standard Bearer, thank you for the opportunity. Certainly with the show of support here today, from our partisans who have come; abandoned their works and other family issues; you can be assured Mr. Standard Bearer, Mr. President, that all CDCians regardless of their reservation have agreed to reclaim Montserrado County. This promised Mr. President, we are committed to do come December 8, 2020.” Fallah told cheering supporters.
Liberians go to the poll December 08, to elect 15 senators nationwide to fill the Liberian Senate in January, 2021.
The National Elections Commission has since announced the inclusion of the additional two hundred ninety-nine thousand nine hundred sixty-nine (299, 969) new registrants, the total number of registered voters stands provisionally at two million, four Hundred, eighty-three thousand, three hundred fifty (2, 483, 350) ahead of the publicized senatorial elections.
By E. J. Nathaniel Daygbor–Editing by Jonathan Browne
