Southeast traditional council lauds Sen. Grupee

Traditional leaders from Southeast Liberia, specifically Sinoe, Grand Kru, Maryland, Rivergee and Grand Gedeh Counties have converged on the grounds of the Capitol Building in total celebration and appreciation to Senate’s Chairman on Internal Affairs, Senator Thomas Grupee for his countless contributions to the peace and reconciliation of Liberia.

The traditional leaders headed by their President Musu Thompson said, the recognition was intended to show appreciation to the Nimba County lawmaker for his sincere commitment to peace and national reconciliation.

Madam Thompson said that since the ascendency of Sen. Grupee to the chairmanship of the Liberian Senate, he has toured the country regularly, meeting with elders, zoes and traditional leaders.

According to her, due to his close ties with the elders and traditional leaders, elders, Zoes and old people, who never had taste of governance, are today feeling government’s impact and having great time with government, especially the Senate.

For his part, Krahn Governor, Chief Chie Gaye expressed thanks and appreciation to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf for clemency extended four of nine Grand Gedeans incarcerated for cross borders attack in neighboring Ivory Coast.

Chief Gaye appealed to the senator to continue to seek the grace of the President’s so that the remaining five kinsmen can be set free before her tenure expire.  “We’re happy for freeing four of the children but we still appealing to her through you that the remaining five can be freed because if she does not do it, during her time, who will do it for us? This is our appeal; please talk for us as you have always done in the past. We depend on you and we know that you stand with us for redemption of our children,” he said.

Responding to the honor, Senator Grupee said one of the major issues that affects effective development and implementation of peace building and reconciliation in Liberia is lack of a unified definition of peace building and reconciliation.

According to him, separating peace building from ordinary development work is always a challenge that many peace building and development practitioners face. “The Roadmap defines reconciliation as “a multidimensional process of overcoming social, political, and religious cleavages; mending and transforming relationships; healing the physical and psychological wounds from the civil war, as well as confronting and addressing historical wrongs including the structural root causes of conflicts in Liberia”, Senator Grupee noted.

-Editing by Jonathan Browne