Emboldened by Impunity, They Abuse Power -Weah Blames Headquarter Demolition on Boakai, UP

MONROVIA – As ordinary members of the Congress for Democratic Change remain stunned seeing their lovely party’s symbolic powers (headquarters) crumbling down into rubbles last Saturday, and confused in thoughts, not sure if the lethal incident is a result of negligence on the part of leaders to firmly secure the facilities while in power for six years, or it is handiwork, and some calling for ‘war’—the unassuming leader is calling for calm ‘in the interest of peaceful coexistence’. George Manneh Weah is not however shying away from ‘calling spade of spade,’ as he calls out the ruling Unity Party and its Standard Bearer Joseph Boakai for what he called their “gross disregard for the rule of law, emboldened by impunity.” The Analyst reports.

Following his party’s eviction and demolition by government, the political leader of the former ruling Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), is calling on citizens, “especially our supporters and sympathizers to stay calm, remain law abiding and respect due process, in the interest of our democracy, the rule of law and a peaceful co-existence among all Liberians irrespective of party, social, ethnic or tribal affiliations”.

In his first reaction to the widely reported and discussed incident, George Manneh Weah said though unfortunate and regrettable as the demolition and eviction was, he was encouraging all Liberians to stay calm.

“Today we witnessed yet another testament of the Unity Party government gross disregard for the rule of law,” the former Liberian leader said “Emboldened by impunity, they continue to abuse power, testing our nation’s fragile peace and democracy.”

Weah said while the Unity Party’s list of violations grows daily—from police brutality against ordinary citizens to outright disregard of court orders, “We must, however, take the high road.

“In the interest of peaceful coexistence, I urge everyone to remain calm, law-abiding, and respectful of due process, despite this partisan political mischief from the Unity Party government.”

He insisted that in the legal battle over the ownership of the CDC headquarters, the party has always followed the rule of law and openly stated its willingness to abide by the court’s final ruling, regardless of the outcome.

“Yet, before the matter was fully exhausted, the trigger-happy, partisan leadership of the police force, with direct instructions from Boakai himself, sprang into action,” Weah added. “This was not a lawful eviction; it was a failed mission to destroy and erase the CDC in an attempt to fulfil the very wish Boakai has repeatedly expressed to his lieutenants.”

He contended that while the Unity Party was executing demolition of CDC headquarters, which he called “this criminal act”, there were cheers of their partisans, but they failed to notice the loud silence of the vast majority of ordinary Liberians.

“Our people are in disbelief at this administration’s reckless behavior in its quest to consolidate power,” Weah further said, swearing that “Posterity will punish them harshly”.

He assured partisans and sympathizers that while the loss of the office building is a setback, it was “only temporary”.

“We shall overcome this sooner rather than later, thanks to your unwavering commitment, determination, and resilience fellow Cdcians, coalitions, well wishes and sympathizers,” the former president said, acknowledging prevailing difficult times, and “worse situations” his party is facing “even from the very same actors we see today—and we have emerged stronger. We shall prevail.”

Weah terms the UP leadership under Boakai as destroyers, and the CDC is a builder.

Special Headquarters Committee

Meanwhile, the political leader of the CDC has announced the forming of a Special National Headquarters Delivery Committee “established to immediately begin the construction work so that we can have a modern, state of the art new home in record time”.

He vowed: “We shall execute this while we embark on a national tour to inform our people. In my journey to the heights I have achieved, I have seen such hiccups before. We shall never waver. Together we will build. We are survivors by history. We are blessed with a spirit that overcomes even the most tragedies and misfortunes. Remember: the unity, strength, and identity of our Party and coalition are not found in bricks and mortar. They live in the minds, hearts, and fighting spirit of our teeming supporters.”

The CDC leader called on every member of his party and sympathizers to mobilize and focus their energies on constructing the next premises.

“I must be clear: resist the temptation to take the law into your own hands. However disappointed we are by this outcome, I call on each of you to continue respecting the law and due process.”