Gov’t undermines opposition

Opposition presidential aspirant Mr. Benoni Urey is accusing the Liberian Government of allegedly undermining oppositions here; making claims that “government wants to stop every opportunity that will bring the opposition together”.

“If we don’t get serious about moving this country forward, then it will become a problem because the government wants to stop every opportunity that will bring the opposition together. But they are wasting their time,” Mr. Urey said at a meeting on Wednesday, 21 December with senior journalists.

The businessman turned politician who heads the All Liberian Party or ALP, is one of many opposition aspirants seeking to deny the ruling Unity Party a third term in office. He cataloged series of instances in which he claimed the government had been manipulating the opposition parties saying that as things stand there are only two main opposition parties in the country, his ALP and that of the Movement for Democracy and Reconstruction or MDRP of ex-warlord turned politician Senator Prince Johnson.

He said the rest of the 22 registered political parties including the Congress for Democratic Change or CDC and Charles Brumskine Liberty Party are Government collaborators.

Urey casually dressed in a white Polo T-shirt and jeans stretched out his hands as he gave graphic descriptions of how he thinks the government has been undermining the opposition bloc.

He said the coalition between the CDC, NPP (National Patriotic Party) of jailed ex-president Charles Taylor and LPDP (Liberian People Democratic Party) of indicted ex speaker Tyler, was a strategic being hatched by the ALP, the CDC and NPP but one of the parties, he did not name allegedly received money from government to destroy the initiative.

He explained further that some members of the opposition have continued to play double standard. He said for instance, Brumskine of the Liberty party had gone to beg VP Boakai to be his running mate a day before the Ganta meeting of opposition parties. He said after Cllr. Brumnskine was denied the opportunity, he had no other option but to run to the meeting the next day.

He said even though many of the opposition leaders did not go to Ganta in good fate, he still affixed his signature to the Ganta declaration that called for collaborations among opposition parties.

He said the betrayer being portrayed by some opposition figures will not deter him from further engagement, because for him it is not a must that he wins the presidency-but that the UP should not be returned to power.

“Look let’s face this, only two political parties that have spoken up for the Liberian people – the ALP, and the Prince Johnson party. Besides, the rest of them have not spoken in the interest of the Liberian people,” he alleges.

He accused President Ellen Johnson – Sirleaf’s government of using Liberians for 11 years one month, predicting that the government is even prepared to do it continuously “if we don’t open our eyes and be wise to say enough is enough”.

Mr. Urey says he never supported President Sirleaf’s presidency, but in the back of his head, he thought he could trust the Liberian people, saying “Remember where she said corruption has become a vampire; you said there would be zero tolerance for corruption”.

“It is time to stop playing with Liberia, who will look at somebody who should have retired 15 years ago, and say they want to make him president? Or somebody who can’t read and write to make him president? Where are we heading as a country?” Mr. Urey wonders.

Further, Mr. Urey wonders how one can promote somebody that cannot stay up for five minutes, urging Liberians to be realistic about somebody they have no confidence in. Right now, Mr. Urey says “all of our foreign reserved is zero;” blaming the ex-Central Bank Governor, now a presidential aspirant for the mess, while claiming that during the regime of imprisoned former President Taylor in which he worked “we still have foreign reserves”.

“Don’t make fool of the Liberian by introducing one side of the hydro. Why can’t you wait for the entire hydro to be completed before dedicating it?” he questions the Sirleaf government.

He concluded that there were many ways to kill people, saying “if one look at how many persons die here, compared to the ones that have died over the years, it was the result of lack of jobs and social pressure that caused people to fall off and die.

-Othello B. Garblah