By Lincoln G. Peters
Opposition Vision for Liberia Transformation Party (VOLT) political leader Dr. Jeremiah Z. Whapoe says the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) government ascended to power with no plan on how to govern.
Speaking on a talk show Wednesday, 19 October 2022, Dr. Whapoe alleged that the government is treading on the path of trial and error.
He said the government has no good governance and economic plan that will improve the lives of the vast majority of the ordinary Liberians.
The presidential hopeful lamented that it is pathetic that people who are in positions do not know what to do when circumstances arise.
He claimed that they make a whole lot of statements that will further worsen and confuse the population.
Dr. Whapoe’s statement comes about Speaker Bhofal Chambers’ recent comment that the country’s wealth should be equally distributed among its people.
“If Speaker Chambers will come out to say that everybody should have a fair share of the natural resources, when did he get to know, after he has signed all of the concession contracts and Liberians are not benefiting?” Whapoe lamented.
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“Now that we are having food shortage as a country, let him come out with a bill and pass it about equitable distribution of resources,” Whapoe said.
Chambers is the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and a stalwart of the ruling CDC.
The opposition leader argued that not only Speaker Chambers, but everybody in the Weah-led government does not have the intent to accomplish anything for the Liberian people.
He claimed that the worsening part is that the government does not respect the Liberian Constitution.
According to Dr. Whapoe, the Constitution calls for the protection of every citizen, but President George Manneh Weah has urged everyone to protect themselves.
Whapoe believes the President’s statement means he does not know what he was elected to do.
“Right now, we do not have [a] government, because when you have [a] government it must be checkmated by the Constitution,” Dr. Whapoe argued.
“But what we see in Liberia is a private enterprise and the Chief Executive Officer is President Weah,” he alleged.
Meanwhile, Whapoe alleged that he brought an investment contract worth US$20 billion, but the office of the President of Liberia rejected it.
He said before the elections in 2017, he traveled to several friendly countries including Japan and Malaysia.
Dr. Whapoe explained that he secured the contract in the hope that when he is elected president, investors will come to Liberia.
However, he said having lost the 2017 election, he decided to link the CDC government to the investment, but it did not show any interest.
“They will come not only to provide road network, electricity but to create opportunities for jobs so that when Liberians are employed, the economy will grow,” said Dr. Whapoe.
“However, I did not win the election. Obviously, I made a telephone call to the president, [and] he answered and said you know there is protocol, thereby turning the phone over to the security,” Whapoe explained.
Additionally, he said he placed a call to then Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Nathaniel F. McGill, and told him that he had this contract that he wanted Liberia to benefit from.
“I took the contract to his office and showed it to him. After all the discussions, Mr. McGill told me to tell the people to come, which I said no, it doesn’t work that way,” Whapoe continued.
Besides the contract, he noted that he brought five millionaires into this country, to invest in the agriculture sector of the country.
He mentioned that he knows where those investors are, but they are not willing to come to invest in this allegedly corrupt government.
Commenting on the judicial system of the country, he explained that the justice system in Liberia is supposed to be blind.
However, Whapoe lamented that it has worn optimal glasses with corrupt practices.
