MONROVIA: Despite criticisms from a broad spectrum of the Liberian political landscape that incumbent President George Manneh Weah will get a free ride on his second term bid mainly because the opposition community that is expected to unseat him at the October polls is itself completely fragmented, the Vice Presidential candidate of the Collaborating Political Parties (CPP), Cllr. Charlyne Brumskine, says she is extremely confident that the opposition will pull through and rally around whichever party that makes it to the second round to defeat incumbent Weah if in fact he makes it to the second round.
Making the statement recently when she shared her thohts with the Voice of America (VOA) following a tour of the United States of America where the CPP held its Convention and Grand Fundraiser, Cllr. Brumskine urged people to disabuse themselves of the notion that the opposition camp cannot defeat incumbent Weah because it is splintered.
“We have heard folks say that the opposition is divided; it’s splintered, and so there’s no way that we can defeat the incumbent. First of all, I want to disabuse people of that notion. Because there is strength in the opposition. And when there is an incumbent who has not performed, the Liberian people will decide who they are going to pick. And if that person is not going to be the incumbent, then I believe they will rally around the opposition candidate that they feel is best suited to change the direction of this country.
“If the opposition isn’t going to rally around one candidate in the first round, I certainly think that there will be a united opposition in the second round. So, I don’t think we need to be so concerned about a splintered opposition; I think Liberians need to be more concerned about how we finally decide as a people that we want better, that we can do better, that we deserve better; and we stop looking at these small mechanisms of politics and say look, we must come together, and we must identify the candidate that finally get us back on track with the rest of region, the continent, and the globe,” she said.
On criticisms of inexperience, youthfulness
Speaking on the perceived notion that she comes to the job as running mate to the CPP Standard Bearer without much experience in governance and politics, and that she is young compared to other vice presidential candidates, Charlyne Brumskine confidently said as far as she is concerned, her experience surpasses most of those that are vying for the vice presidential slot.
“If you look at the presidential tickets right now, I certainly feel that particularly with those who are vying for the vice presidential slot, my experience surpasses most of their experiences.
“I have been fortunate as one of the few women in Liberia to lead a very reputable law firm to engage in legislative drafting to assist the government of Liberia in both administrations in providing my legal advice to drafting legislations, to drafting policies and regulations.
“I am an entrepreneur; an employer; an assistant professor of law, so, I think my experience far surpasses any other vice presidential candidate on the 2023 ballot. I think that those who are the naysayers or the opposition to the CPP will try to identify what they will call like low hanging attack fruits, as a way to attack me; and the only thing they can come up with is that I have inexperience, but when you actually compare on paper, my experience far surpasses their candidates,” Charlyne averred.
“I have taken a side…”
As a means of finally putting to rest the perennial argument that she took a side rather than unify a divided Liberty Party when she agreed to become the vice presidential candidate to Mr. Cummings, Cllr. Brumskine said she had to take the side of the rule of law and the institution which her father, the late Cllr. Charles Walker Brumskine founded, a position she said best served the ideals of the Liberty Party.
“Thank you for this question, because it’s something very personal to me. The Liberty Party certainly has been embroiled in a leadership crisis. It’s a crisis. And when my father was alive, because of his style of leadership, you never heard the Liberty Party involved in any of these antics that we see in other political parties in Liberia. So, I certainly want Liberians to know that I have taken a side, and I have taken a side of the institution; and I have taken the side of the rule of law. I have respected the Supreme Court’s ruling wherein the Supreme Court of Liberia was very clear that the administrative functions of the Liberty Party, as well as any other political party, vests in the Chairman of the Party and the Executive Committee. So, the Chairman of the party, whether any Liberian likes it or not, at this point in time is Musa Bility, and I took a side. I certainly was not going to be embroiled, continue to allow our party to be torn apart by a few who were very determined to support the Unity Party candidate.
There is no way that I, as Charlyne Brumskine, a member of Liberty Party, a counsellor at law in Liberia, and a daughter of the founding father of Liberty Party would relinquish, would give up my absolute obligation to support Liberty Party, so that I could support the Unity Party candidate. I was never going to do that,” the CPP Vice Standard Bearer intimated.
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