Waiting for what lies ahead

All but one of the 20 presidential candidates in the race will win the October 10 election, meaning 19 of them should brace themselves to accept defeat. That’s the reality that awaits all Liberians one week from now – whether it is in the first round or a runoff, only one candidate will get elected as the next President of Liberia.

Whoever that will be, one thing is clear: Liberia will have won. The whole world is watching keenly to see how Liberians would behave during and after these elections, which will be critical for the smooth and peaceful political transition that we all envisage as a nation.

Let it be made abundantly clear that whichever political party that will emerge victorious does not have all of the prescriptions to the country’s enormous problems that range from jobs, infrastructure, economics, education, health to peace and stability and reconciliation. Whether it is the CDC, Liberty Party, the ruling Unity Party or ANC, etc, that party would need the collaboration and contributions of other parties to effectively steer the ship of state.

That’s the basis of democratic governance – inclusive participation rather than running a government of exclusion. Liberia needs all of its best minds to move forward. No doubt there are candidates out in the fields with very brilliant ideas about how to fix Liberia.

We challenge whichever party or candidate that wins the impending election to muster enough courage to bring others onboard for the forward march of our country.

Politicians seeking power should be reminded that winning an election in itself does not automatically translate to meeting the expectations and needs of the people. It would require a well-defined and practical developmental agenda that will impact lives.

And this is why we continue to insist that candidate clearly tell electorate how they intend to achieve those promises being made on the campaign trails, which is very important because it speaks to sincerity of leadership.

The people are beset by grinding poverty, hunger illiteracy, disease and misery. They want somebody who can give them genuine hope as they go to the ballot box on Tuesday, October 10.

No politician should take advantage of the current plight of majority of the people to give them false hope for the sake of votes, because when the electorates eventually realize that their votes were exploited, that government so elected would be on its way out of power. The Constitution guarantees citizens that power to do so in order to ensure their continuous peace and happiness.