CDC Reacts to Deputy Speaker’s Defection -Lays Blame on Unity Party; Vows to Monitor Situation

MONROVIA – House Deputy Speaker Thomas Fallah’s defection or “political apostasy”, as others term it, has angered his Coalition for Democratic Change party which in a swift reaction deplored his action in no uncertain terms.

In a release issued Thursday, a few hours after Fallah announced his jump-on-board with House colleagues plotting the overthrow of his boss, Speaker Jonathan Fonati Koffa, CDC’s acting chairperson Janga Kowo indicated that the National Executive Committee was strongly condemning Deputy Speaker Thomas Fallah and other CDC lawmakers who have disobeyed the party’s National Executive Committee and His Excellency President George Manneh Weah to go against Speaker J. Fonati Koffa.

Kowo then took immediate aim at the chief rival of his party, the ruling Unity Party which, according him, has been orchestrating the destabilization of the CDC including funding the ouster of Speaker Koffa from office.

He said “these clearly are influenced by the Joseph Boakai government and intended to destabilize the CDC”.

The schemes will fail and the CDC will emerge stronger after all this, the CDC acting Chairperson said and added: “We are closely monitoring the situation. These developments speak to the wider threat to Liberian democracy where an overbearing executive can interfere with the function of the other two branches, thereby undermining checks and balances.”

Kowa claimed that the evidence is clear that the UP government is undemocratic and has gone against every facet of the rule of law as evidenced by disrespecting Supreme Court rulings, violations of Human Rights, arbitrary dismissals of civil servants, ill treatment of Liberian diplomats deployed during the CDC government, and many more violations.

He asserted: “We are all aware that under Liberian democratic practices, political parties have limited control over their members elected to the National Legislature as suspensions or expulsion have no bearing on their seat at National Legislature. We need a national conversation on strengthening political parties’ powers over their elected members at the National Legislature.”

He vowed the CDC will be considering its next steps and called call on all his partisans to remain calm as the party in consultation with stakeholders was considering the next steps.

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