Explaining Her Blueprint for Better Margibi -Representative Hopeful Toe Speaks from the Heart

MONROVIA: As the race for the national legislature heats up in the various counties, a representative hopeful in District #1, Margibi County, Madam D. Faith Tarlor Toe is calling on the people of the county to choose leaders with the ability, capability, capacity and right network to pull the county from the state of backwardness it finds itself at the hands of bad leaders who emerged in leadership positions due to the wrong choices from the people. She vowed to leverage on the extensive external connections at her disposal to fast track development in District #1 in particular and the county as a whole.

Presenting her manifesto in a heated debate organized by a local civil society organization, Leading By Integrity (LBI), held at the Schiefflin Township Hall on Thursday, August 24, 2023 in the presence of hundreds of citizens who had thronged the venue of the program, Madam Toe said after many years of existence with its abundant resources and business establishments and strategic location being closer to Monrovia with its huge opportunities, it is sad that the county and its people continue to wallow in abject poverty instead of advancing.

“I stand here to look back and reflect on how we got here in the first place. Unlike other counties, Margibi has some unique features that should have propelled it to a prosperous county and the citizens should be enjoying it. We have the largest rubber plantation that existed and operated in our county for almost one hundred years.

“The only international airport in the country, the Roberts International Airport (RIA) is located right in Margibi. We have other big companies operating in this county and you would think that the dividends of having these major institutions in your county would have been visible to change their lives but unfortunately our people are yet to see the tangibles because of bad representation.

“My fellow citizens, I just hope that having seen and experienced what bad leadership can produce, we will approach these elections in October, 2023 to make the necessary corrections and adjustments in the way we have thought in the past that led us nowhere. Remember, the elections will be held in a day but the decisions we make will impact us positively or negatively for the next 6 years. The choice is clear, just do the right thing by voting for us and together we will change our county for the better”, Madam Toe said.

Asked what is extra she is bringing to the table that others before or who are contesting the election along with her do not have, Madam Toe who operates businesses successfully in Australia and Liberia, said given the challenges the national government has being experiencing to fund the various sectors for national development, it was expedient that Liberians with external connections and network like her should be encouraged to be stakeholders in the development agenda of the country without being wrongly tagged as “foreigners”, noting that whether it is accepted or not, the diaspora component of the citizens have a lot of opportunities available to them which could be brought in to fill in the development gaps in the country.

“To the glory of God, I want to see myself counted as one of the blessed Liberians who has been fortunate to travel to a developed country like Australia where I have been making full use of the opportunities that exist for one to excel and I have been able to leverage on that to give back to my country and its people, particularly in Margibi.

“I have come across some good willed people, some of whom have been passionate to help me make some meaningful impact here through some charity works in education, community development, women and youth empowerment and other interventions.

“But there is a limit I can go to support my people and that is why I have decided to go into government to represent you at the national legislature so as to have a higher platform to attract the attention of high-profile individuals and institutions who prioritize initiatives with government’s involvement. I cannot be a private citizen to push this agenda.

“It will be easier to arrange such opportunities like creating sister city relationships between Kakata City or major towns in Margibi and another city, like Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne.

“We can link the Harbel Community College to other university or universities in Australia to promote scholarship, faculty exchange or upgrading facilities in our college to enhance the academic standard there; we can bring in humanitarians in the health sector to reconstruct the CH Rennie Hospital as well as installing some of the best medical equipment, drugs and accessories there.

“We stand to benefit immensely to change the lives of our people by bringing on board our citizens who have these networks out there. They have to be on the table of decision making like the national legislature to make these things happen. That is why I am offering my services and just hope that our people will see reasons to support our candidature in the pending general election”, she said.

She said her major focus in her first 100 days in office will be to reconcile and unite the people of Margibi “because definitely these elections have already started to create bad feelings among our people based on their political affiliations and by the end of the process no doubt a lot of people will not be able to speak to others on the other side of the divide”.

“Besides the cardinal responsibilities of lawmaking, representation and oversight, I will have to step up initiatives to reconcile and unite our people. We will not achieve anything if we have a divided people and the good thing is all the contestants in the race for the position that we are contesting are all from Margibi county. We are all connected one way or the other and I don’t see reasons why we should be divided”, Madam Toe said.

She said women empowerment will be key to her agenda and it will place emphasis on making women entrepreneur beyond seeing them as mere table market sellers and will follow it up with a proposal for the enactment of a law that will create a special support fund for women in businesses in the tone of USD10m annually from the national budget.

“I will elevate the cause of women at the national legislature by proposing a bill for the enactment of a law that will make sure that a USD10m support fund to women to own and operate the businesses beyond mere table sellers. They deserve better.

“We will also provide opportunities for practical training in disciplines such as tailoring, catering, soap making, computer studies, and any other income generating skills to support them because we believe that women being the pillars of the homes, if they are empowered with skills, they will be able to manage a successful home in addition to what their husbands can provide”, she said.

She lamented the toll drug abuse has taken on the young people of the county, stressing that it is not only dangerous to their health but it is a threat to the security and survival of the county. She said when elected, she said will work with the relevant government institutions to find workable solutions to drug abuse.

“We cannot sit down supinely to see our young people going down the drain. We have an appreciable understanding of where the problem is and we equally have some of the solutions to the problem. We will work with the relevant government institutions to provide the solutions such as establishing rehabilitation centers for the victims and following it with training to acquire skills that they could go into right after their rehabilitation process.

“We will also propose adequate support to the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency from the national budget in order to overcome some of the challenges they face. We will also seek support for the judiciary system so that drug dealers and their agents will be prosecuted when caught and serve the penalties allowed under our laws”, she concluded.

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