MONROVIA – The Government of Liberia in an official statement accused Bomi County Senator Edwin Melvin Snowe of attempts to undermine and destabilize the country. The Boakai administration, through its public relations machinery, the Ministry of Information, has put ECOWAS and the rest of the international community on alert about Snowe’s alleged maneuvers, and seeking actions against him. But the tough-talking Liberian lawmaker is not stomaching the allegations kindly. In an official statement, he powerfully rebuffs the Government’s accusations, terming them politically motivated, entirely baseless, malicious, and categorically rejecting them. The Analyst reports.
Liberia opposition politician Edwin Melvin Snowe says he is deeply concerned and profound disappointed by to an official statement issued by the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Liberia, which falsely attributed to him “inflammatory and irresponsible remarks intended to undermine and destabilize the Government of Liberia”.
This statement by the government was issued while the Boma County lawmaker was on official assignment in the Kingdom of Sweden as part of a mission of the ECOWAS Parliament.
He views the timing and content of the accusation against him not only inappropriate, but also reflective of a disturbing and deliberate attempt to damage his reputation and cast aspersions on his integrity as a statesman, representative of the Liberian people and a responsible member of the opposition.
“Let me state, unequivocally and for the record: I categorically reject and condemn these allegations as entirely baseless, malicious, and politically motivated. I wish to state, for the record, that at no point have I made any statement that could be interpreted as inciting panic, promoting instability, or threatening the democratic order of our country, neither have I leveraged my networks in ECOWAS’ internal institutions or other international organizations to orchestrate destabilization of the Liberian Government,” he said rather pointedly.
Continuing, Snowe said the “irresponsible and reckless statement issued by the Government of Liberia amounts to nothing less than an implicit accusation of treason, one of the gravest charges under our Constitution that I do not take lightly.”
Such an accusation is not only wholly unfounded and defamatory but also constitutes a serious affront to the principles of democracy, the rule of law, and the constitutional safeguards that protect all citizens of our Republic, he noted, indicating that the act by Government “further sets a dangerous and unacceptable precedent – one that threatens the very fabric of our democracy and the fundamental rights of every Liberian, particularly those who exercise their legitimate right to speak truth to power”.
He noted that it is increasingly evident that this development forms part of a calculated and malicious smear campaign, designed to discredit, intimidate, and silence me and other critical voices of the opposition in the national discourse.
Snowe said in view of the “regrettable development, I have taken the difficult decision to terminate my participation in the ECOWAS Parliament mission and return home. I have formally communicated this matter to the Honorable Liberian Senate, registering my grave concerns over the implications of such unfounded accusations against my person and calling for a full-scale immediate, independent, and comprehensive investigation into this matter.”
He called upon the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union (AU), the United Nations (UN), the European Union (EU) and all of Liberia’s bilateral and multilateral partners to closely monitor this development and what appears to be an emerging pattern of political intimidation and persecution.
“I remain resolute in my commitment to the values of democracy, good governance, accountability, and the inalienable right of every Liberian to express themselves freely and without fear of retribution,” he said in the statement, concluding with a religious call for “God continue to bless the Republic of Liberia.”
Comments are closed.