MONROVIA: With an expectation from some people that he may be broken down and demoralized as the result of the recent sanction imposed on him by the US government, the Lord Mayor of Monrovia, Jefferson Tamba Koijee put up a stoic and defiant posture yesterday, Monday, December 11, 2023, when he appeared briefly at the Center for the Exchange of Intellectual Opinion(CEIO) where he told Partisans and supporters of the Coalition for Democratic Change(CDC) to remain calm and collective while the party and government make a determination on the sanction placed on him.
Koijee who was accompanied by hundreds of supporters on Carey Street and was received by another sizeable number of CDCians, told the mammoth crowd that what happened was “a grand conspiracy” and categorically denied any wrong doing to be sanctioned but he will not be broken down or despair. He said he decided to remain silent until CDC comes up with an official position on the matter.
“I know you want to hear from me about the biggest conspiracy, you want to hear about the sanction, but I belong to an institution. The President Dr. George Manneh Weah when he received the news of the sanction, he was devastated, he had to cut short his trip, he arrived back in the country yesterday evening, and officially the party will be stating its position, and the government will also state her position as well. .
“Remain calm on this issue of sanction, wait until the party speaks on the issue of the sanction. Please remain calm, wait until the party speak to you ; do not take any action that we will not approve, we can assure you that we are innocent of everything they said about us”, he said
Koijee told the surging crowd that while waiting for these positions it is was important to tell them that he was a victim of what he called “a sustained malicious propaganda that has consummated to our sanction” but sent out a caveat that if his detractors “think that it is a tactics of intimidation, if it was a tactics to break us down, we want to say try harder;. try harder, we have gotten reinvigorated , stimulated and prepared for whatever that may come but we shall not turn our back, we should not be going on our knees, we shall be prepared now than ever before”,
He praised the resilience of the people who have been calling him, showing concern since the imposition of the sanction, saying “I understand and I am humble to your kindness not to me but to this revolution, I want to say I am grateful to God, as a his servant, who will not betray you who will take the pain for the cause of the revolution to succeed”.
“If you think you can betray the cause of the people, you will choose to betray yourself first before you betray this cause. Every time when we are put on trial we are revived by our resolve. This is the moment we are in and this is the moment from where we will triumph”, he said.
He said he was used to these kinds of tactics intended to suppress the people and deter them from voicing out the thoughts about changing the society for the betterment of the common man and it will not be a strange thing to him if the similar tactics are repeated.
To the amazement of his listeners Koijee said defiantly that since the imposition of the sanction, “we have gotten spiritual than ever before, everywhere we go, he have been receiving encouragement across party lines, across divergent views all supporting the cause”
He said his strength lies with the fortress God has given him that has shielded him from his enemies and “the same God will see us through this other plan to suppress us because He has never failed us”
“I have met people who told me that though they do not support the CDC but they are people of conscience and for this struggle they are with us. That speaks volumes that what we seek is not for us but for everyone of us, the masses”, he said
The Secretary General of CDC said that his visit was just to inform the people that the customary way of the party identifying with CEIO will not change and that he had gone there to inform them so that preparations for the season’s celebration can be put in place.
He said he decided to go there with a low key, but as it turned out, many people who were concerned about the conspiracy to silent him through the sanction turned out but he will prefer not to turn the place into a political carnival.
At the end of the brief event, Koijee and the huge supporters marched out from the venue and headed towards the Monrovia City Hall.
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