By Kruah Thompson
The Vice Presidential Candidate of the Unity Party, incumbent Senator Jeremiah Koung of Nimba County, has pledged that the UP will exert every effort in upholding joint security measures put forth by the Minister of Justice, Frank Musa Dean, but it would be based on thorough verification.
Speaking to reporters following a Joint Security peace dialogue held Tuesday, August 8, at the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Ministerial Complex in Congo Town, Senator Koung underscored a need to having law enforcement officers, who will be responsible to counter spread of hate messages, rather than to protect individuals propagating them.
According to him, such actions pose a significant threat to the fragile democracy of the State, so he raised this concern during the dialogue, to address and mitigate some of these occurrences.
“And that is why I raise the issue during the dialogue so that they can help to curtail some of what we see happening because these are the things that lead to violence,” he cautions.
The senator says while he aims to convey an advanced notion to the Joint Security of Liberia, he emphasized that as leaders, their authority stems from the presence of peace, adding “Without peace, we are nobody and that is why it is on us to protect the peace.”
On the other hand, to ensure that security forces will act positively, Minister Dean reveals that a peace review board will be set up to investigate any joint security misconduct.
“With this context, we’ll offer essential security provisions. We’ll assign four armed security personnel to each party or candidate for VIP protection, to coordinate security during campaign activities”, the Attorney General assures.
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He says these uniformed armed security personnel will coordinate with the country’s broader security forces to ensure a violence-free electoral process come October.
Official campaigns for the 2023 Elections kicked off here on Friday, August 4, with 19 candidates, including one female campaigning to defeat incumbent President George Weah, who is seeking reelection. Editing by Jonathan Browne
