Sen. Nagbe attacks Sen. Cooper

As disagreement among senators intensifies on the failure of members of the 53rd Liberian Legislature to increase civil servants’ salary and salary of personal staffers’ at the Capitol Building, Sinoe County Senator, Joseph Nagbe, has described the man heading the campaign for salary increment, Margibi County Senator Oscar Cooper, as “a coward who does not mean what he says.”

Members of the Liberian Legislature along with the Executive failed to effect increment for civil servants on grounds that the 2015/2016 National Budget has lot of financial obligations, which could not allow them to make such increment.

But Senator Nagbe said the action of his colleague, Senator Cooper, to be spreading rumors under the pretext of speaking for office staff at the Liberian Senate, is far from reality. He said Senator Cooper’s move is only intended to encourage media coverage and gain unnecessary popularity at the expense of other senators, who are dedicatedly working in the interest of the Liberian People.

Nagbe of the Alliance for Peace and Democracy or APD party of Economist Dr. Togba Nah Tipoteh, indicated that the normal practice at the Capitol Building among senators is whenever an issue is brought on the floor by a senator, who wants his or her view heard, a formal communication is forwarded to plenary of the Liberian Senate, which is debated upon and decision is taken immediately.

He said but in the case of Senator Cooper, he is busy parading the streets from one radio talk show to another in the name of fronting for the plight of senate staffers.  “Senator Cooper is a coward and unserious man. If he actually meant well for the workers, he should stop parading from radio stations to radio stations, and do a communication to plenary for a decision instead of creating the impression that he’s speaking for the people. That’s how a coward does, only causes noise for a while and the debate dies.”

Senator Nagbe, who lost the election for the Senate President Pro-tempore post early this year, made these observations Wednesday on the grounds of the Capitol Building in a chat with reporters and some employees of the Senate.

According to him, salary increment for civil servants or Senate staff is something that every senator had thought, but the timing was inexpedient, considering current economic challenges facing the nation.

By E. J. Nathaniel Daygbor – Edited by Jonathan Browne