By Musa Hassan Bility
This morning, I write from Saclepea with the quiet emotions that always come when a year ends and another begins. There is something about this season, about the last hours of December and the first breath of January, that forces a man to pause. To look back. To remember what we survived. And to ask himself, honestly, what kind of country we are building for those who will come after us.
We have left 2025 behind. It was not an easy year. For many families, it was a year of tight pockets, unanswered questions, and heavy hearts. For others, it was a year of endurance, learning again how to hold on when life offers little comfort. And for Liberia as a whole, it was a year that reminded us of a painful truth, that a nation cannot move forward on speeches alone. It moves forward on sincerity, on planning, on leadership, and on the courage to do what is right even when it is not convenient.
Now 2026 has arrived.
And I want to say this as personally as I can, I am entering this new year with hope, not the hope that comes from fantasy, but the hope that comes from commitment. The hope that comes when you know the struggle is real, but you also know the people are stronger than the struggle.
In 2026, we at the Citizens Movement for Change will not hide behind titles or slogans. We will come closer to the people. We will expand our reach, yes, but more importantly, we will expand our listening. We will consult more. We will spend more time in the towns, in the villages, in the communities that always feel forgotten after elections. We will sit with market women, with motorcyclists, with teachers, with young people who carry big dreams but feel trapped in a system that refuses to open doors.
I want this year to be a year of deeper bonding with the Liberian people, real conversations, not staged meetings. Not politics for cameras, but politics for country.
And in the Legislature, I promise you, we will be more robust. We will continue to engage the government. We will continue to point out failure where failure is obvious, not because we enjoy conflict, but because accountability is the duty of any responsible opposition. When the government gets it wrong, the people must not be left alone to suffer in silence. When public resources are misused, someone must speak. When promises are made and abandoned, someone must ask, what happened to the commitment?
But my dear people, let me also say this, we will not only criticize, we will build. We will continue our development drive. We will continue our nationwide consultations. We will continue to shape a party that looks different, acts different, and inspires people to believe that Liberia can be prosperous and patriotic again.
Because the truth is, Liberia needs a new kind of politics, politics with purpose. Politics with humility. Politics that does not insult the intelligence of the people. Politics that respects hard work. Politics that treats leadership as service, not entitlement.
As we begin 2026, my prayer is that every Liberian can wake up with a new mindset. That we can be more positive about life, even when life is difficult. That we can be more patriotic about our country, even when the country disappoints us. And that we can be more magnanimous toward each other, more forgiving, more respectful, more human.
This year must not be a year of empty noise. It must be a year of meaning, where business has purpose, where public service has purpose, where our national debates have purpose, and where the future of our children becomes the center of our decisions.
From Saclepea, I look forward to 2026 with an open mind and a strong heart. I look forward to continuing to build a coalition that can change Liberia once and for all, a coalition not built on ego, but built on conscience, not built on division, but built on national renewal.
Happy New Year, my people. May 2026 bring peace to your home, strength to your hands, and hope to your heart. And may it bring Liberia closer to the unity, dignity, and prosperity we all deserve.