‘Bullets Will Not Prevent Peaceful Assembly’ -July 17 Protest Organizers Alarm of Assassination Attempt

MONROVIA – There appear to be early signs of standoff between state security apparatus and the “Enough is Enough” demonstration organizers, headed by the Solidarity and Trust for a New Day (STAND), in collaboration with a broad-based coalition of Liberians under the banner ‘We the People’. The organizers say they are smelling attempts of assassination allegedly plotted by National Security Agency and the Liberia National Police – suspected maneuvers they say will not cower them into submission. The Analyst reports.

STAND and its allies, We the People, say they strongly condemn what appears to be a targeted attack carried out by operatives of the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Liberia National Police (LNP).

In this official statement, WE THE PEOPLE Movement describes these joint actions (allegedly) orchestrated by security agents loyal to the Boakai-led government as desperate, fearful, and cowardly tactics feebly aimed at silencing dissent before the July 17th nationwide peaceful resistance.

NSA/LNP DUPORT ROAD ATTACK

On Monday, May 5, between 10:30 and 11:00 PM, STAND Chairman Mulbah K. Morlu—one of the leading voices behind the July 17 peaceful protest—was ambushed near the Duport Road traffic light.

Unknown assailants, the group said, including a female accomplice, attempted to forcibly open his vehicle, one attacker was reportedly visibly armed with firearm.

“Thanks to divine grace, the Chairman was able to evade the attackers by skillfully maneuvering through oncoming traffic,” the release said. “His tinted windows and quick thinking prevented what could have been a tragic outcome. The only damage sustained was to the front passenger door handle.”

THE PAYNESVILE JOE-BAR INCIDENT

Two days later, on Wednesday, May 7, around 12:30 PM, another attempt occurred. An unidentified sedan deliberately blocked Mr. Morlu’s vehicle in a narrow driveway near Joe Bar, Paynesville.

Recognizing the threat, he re-entered his vehicle advanced toward the smaller assailant vehicle, and forced it to retreat.

These are not isolated incidents, the “We the People” protesting group further narrated. “They appear to be deliberate, coordinated and state-sanctioned operations; and they have failed.”

AN EMERGING DICTATORSHIP THREATENS OUR DEMOCRACY

The group noted that as Liberians awaken and rise to confront this emerging dictatorship, these attempted crackdowns only reaffirm the urgent need for mass civic resistance.

“The growing threats underscore the danger to our democracy and reinforce the call to defend our republic from corruption, constitutional abuse, and autocracy,” the group said, adding: “WE THE PEOPLE remain undeterred. These cowardly attacks only strengthen our resolve. Hence, we are neither surprised nor shaken. Our counterintelligence units—embedded within the security apparatus—have long intercepted credible plans by government operatives to surveil, trail, and even eliminate key organizers of the WE THE PEOPLE movement, led by STAND and progressive revolutionary forces within the civil rights movements.”

The group asserted that such plans, allegedly coordinated by elements within the NSA and LNP Intelligence Unit, include illegal wiretapping, 24-hour surveillance, tailing of vehicles, infiltration of meetings, and even contracting criminal elements to carry out attacks against peaceful protest leaders.

OUR RESOLVE IS UNBREAKABLE

The group says as the regime grows more desperate, “our commitment grows stronger. No amount of surveillance, harassment, or assassination plots will deter us. These dark tactics only validate the righteousness of our cause. We remain unshaken, ready—even to the point of martyrdom—for the redemption of Liberia.”

“Let the corrupt cabal know: no bullet, no secret agent, and no criminal proxy can silence a movement whose time has come,” said the protest organizers. “This is not a plea but a call to courage; Liberia’s youth are encouraged to take heart. These unfolding attacks prove the regime does not defend democracy; it wages war against it.”

THE BOAKAI ADMINISTRATION HAS CROSSED A DANGEROUS RED LINE

The organizers also took bone with the Boakai administration, indicating that from defying Supreme Court rulings and illegally removing tenured officials to manipulating legislative processes the government has abandoned all democratic pretense.

“It has crossed a dangerous red line that cannot go unanswered,” they alarmed. “WE THE PEOPLE insist: when leaders attempt to crown themselves kings, the people must rise as revolutionaries. We will not compromise. We will not retreat. We will not be silenced.”

The group extended thanks to those it called brave patriots within the NSA and LNP who it says “continue to inform us of these plots in real time, even as their institutions (especially the NSA) are overrun by loyalists of the Vice President”.

“No matter how deeply institutions are weaponized against us, our stand for change in the motherland remains unshaken. If true transformation demands our blood, then let it flow for Liberia’s redemption. Let none fear—this revolution is not the will of man, but a movement ordained by history, justice, and the divine hand of God,” said We the People.

A FINAL WARNING

It provided waring to President Boakai, stating the government must now confront the voice of reason and abandon his reckless defiance of the Supreme Court.

“[Boakai] must immediately cease his interference in the legislative branch, restore the status quo ante as ordered by the Court, and return tenured positions wrongfully stripped from professionals and handed to loyalists. Lift the unjust restrictions on motorbike riders who depend on transport for survival.

“Raise civil servant salaries to a livable minimum of US$500 per worker. Revive our collapsing healthcare system. Prosecute the corrupt within your ranks. Amend the Constitution to reduce the overextended tenure of elected officials and introduce the people’s right to recall them. Above all, prioritize the economy—Liberians are starving, suffering, and dying under your neglect.”

WE THE PEOPLE delivered as warning to the “oppressors”, saying:  “You may kill 100 fathers, but 300 sons will rise in defiance.”