MONROVIA – Days after he discounted President George Manneh Weah’s State of the Nation Address and stewardship, the Standard Bearer of the Collaborating Political Parties (CPP), Mr. Alexander B. Cummings has further challenged the capacity depth of the President, claiming that he (Cummings) is “intellectually taller than Weah”, an expression that he is eminently qualified and endowed with leadership quality, an assertion directed to spite the president for the mischaracterization of Cummings height.
Speaking on the Sky FM 50-50 talk show yesterday, Thursday, February 2, 2023, Mr. Cummings maintained his earlier position that the SONA substance in content and did not speak of what the Liberian people wanted to hear from President Weah who has been in the saddle of affairs for five years. He said what could be said of the annual address is that it left out the reality of the poverty, untold suffering and frustration the Liberian people have been experiencing.
“The President took 3 hours and 20 minutes to actually say nothing. But what I will want for us to make of it is the suffering of our people. We are poorer today, worse off today than we were five years ago or longer.
“The President in his speech talked about increasing the salaries of civil servants. It took him five years to realize that when they were cutting salaries in the name of harmonization; they were bringing hardship on the Liberian people”, Cummings said.
Cummings said amidst the deplorable living conditions, the President wickedly cut the salaries of civil servants and after five years only to realize and admit that over 15,000 were being paid below government minimum wage. That a government is paying its employees below its own wage standards speaks to how disconnected the president is from the suffering majority of our destitute population.
He described the President’s acknowledgement of civil servants salary cuts as an act of deception and hoped that his promises to return their money will be speedily executed to relieve them of the extreme suffering and poverty.
He noted there is the usual extra burden every breadwinner suffers in the country because for every one employed there is a tendency of 2, 3, 4 or more persons depending on them and the situation is even worse in Liberia because of the abject poverty the country has been plunged into. “So in the election year, they are putting back the salaries they cut from the people. The President made five state of the nation addresses; this is the last one and because he has failed the Liberian people, he will not be re-elected. The people will vote him out.
Asked why he appears to be harsh anytime he takes up issues with the President, Cummings said he was bound to be harsh because the harshness is the truth.
“We cannot pretend that the people are not suffering. President Weah came in with a lot of hope for the Liberian people. They believe in him that he would have made their lives better but rather made it worse.
If you go around the world, people are making a laughing stock of us. They are asking how we do this to ourselves. President Weah does not represent us well and it is not surprising because even when he was in the Senate he did nothing”, he said
The businessman turned politician described the harmonization policy of the government as a “wicked enterprise” since it drove the citizens who are employed in public service into untold human suffering and mystery. He said the policy showed how the government was clueless about governance such that instead of thinking to increase revenue which will also lead to increase in the salaries and purchasing power of the citizens, the government being “wicked” enough decided to punish them with unjust salary deductions.
He reiterated his resolve to instill accountability in public service and not going after any individual which could be misconstrued as witch hunting but his government when elected will ensure to follow up the outcome of every probe or audit conducted so as to fight corruption and avoid waste in government.
“To change Liberia, there has to be consequences. There has to be consequences for doing the wrong thing to serve as deterrent to others and there should be a reward system for doing a good thing so as to encourage others to emulate the good deals.
“We are not going to witch hunt but we are going to follow where the evidence is going to lead us. We are going to fund our integrity institutions, give them the resources and leave them to do their job”, Cummings said.
When asked to comment on the electoral process thus far if everything was on course, he said the electoral process after some hitches have started but it should claim the attention of all the opposition political parties not have a divided voice but come together. He said the timetable, having been adjusted, cannot afford to be changed or adjusted anymore because doing so is going to affect the whole calendar.
He warned that the outcome of the October 10, 2023 General and Presidential elections is at risk, requiring timely interventions by all stakeholders to ensure it is free, fair and transparent.
The CPP leader said besides ensuring the new elections timetable are strictly adhered to, the Census debacle, the newly introduced biometric system of voting, and the issue of adequate funding to the electoral process should claim the concerns of stakeholders including opposition Political leaders and international partners.
He asserted that these challenges and inadequate funding to the electoral process are causes for concerns and must be satisfactorily addressed to guarantee that the outcomes of the elections truly reflect the will and aspirations of the Liberian people.
He further said the urgent and timely resolution of these issues which are critical to the conduct and outcome of the October 10 elections will certainly avert any eventuality of court litigation.
He pleaded with opposition politicians and political parties for unity in purpose to address these challenges, which if ignored, have the potential to undermine the credibility of the October 10 elections and put the country’s democracy at risk.
The CPP Standard Bearer also pleaded with Liberia’s international partners and stakeholders including ECOWAS as well as the Liberian Government to ensure timely and adequate funding of the electoral process that will guarantee free, fair and transparent conduct of the October 10 General and Presidential elections.
On the general outlook and economic wellbeing of the Liberian people and nation, Cummings spoke of the unbearable hardship and suffering endured by the vast majority and the insensitivity of the President and few public officials living extravagant lifestyles.
Cummings said as Liberians move to elections, there are reports that the Weah’s administration is using public resources to appease voters for his reelection.
He however urged Liberians to take and eat their money because it’s their own money after all, but must exercise great judgment and reject them at the ballot box, come October 10, 2023.
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