POST ELECTIONS BLUES & TRANSITION: Say it ain’t so George!

Please say that you are not standing your ground on this election fraud issue. Please say that you were not a part of your party’s Executive Committee’s decision to suspend Cole Bangalu, Chairman of the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC), for attending the announcement of the official result of the run-off election. It’s scary that the thought process coming out of the Weah camp is that it was impossible for him to lose to Ellen? It is one thing to think you were cheated but a whole different ball game to harbor the delusional thought that it is impossible to lose to another candidate. I am not sure what his advisors are telling him or whether this philosophy is emanating from the recesses of his brain, but elections (political or otherwise) is not only about popularity, it is also about campaign strategy, mobilization, reaching out to people, rapid reaction to negative propaganda & 11th hour allegations, campaign continuity, political astuteness, building the right coalition and alliances, identifying key team members that are acceptable across the spectrum of voters, and most of all being convincing in the delivery of your message. In my opinion, majority or all of the above were lacking in the Weah campaign for the run-off elections. I don’t know that Ellen really won the elections as opposed to Weah losing the momentum he had from the first round by resting on his laurels. Credit Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf with her strategy of campaigning via helicopter, allowing her access to numerous areas that would have otherwise been unreachable via motor vehicle within the time span the candidates had prior to the November 11 runoff and giving the populace the impression that she would go to the max to reach out to them.

It’s sad to say but what Manneh and his people assumed was the mandate of the people simply was not. A 28% “majority” of registered voters in the October elections is not a “majority” especially considering the high probability that the significant number of Liberians in the diaspora, for whatever number of reasons, would not have voted for him and they certainly utilized whatever influence they had to divert votes from him in the run-off elections. It is time for George to be graceful and dignified and concede to Ellen. He’s is on the precipice of losing any future political cachet if he continues to be influenced by his advisors, especially those whose only path to “making it” would have been his occupancy of the Executive Mansion. Realistically, if the powers that be really wanted to “deny” Weah the presidency, he would not have been in the field of twenty-two to begin with. It is no secret that Weah is a French citizen and that due diligence was not fully exercised on all constitutional fronts in vetting the candidates for the presidency. Weah has to recognize the magnitude of conspiracy that would have been necessary for his allegations of fraud to be true. He won lowly populated Southeastern Liberia (handily winning Grand Gedeh, Grand Kru, Sinoe, and River Gee and barely won Rivercess) but lost the heavily populated counties by close to 193,000 votes. But then again, when has it ever being fair when a Liberian loses. We seldom take full responsibility for our losses. It’s either the referee or somebody else’s fault.

What Manneh accomplished as a political neophyte is nothing short of amazing but he shouldn’t limit himself to these elections as the end all be all of his political career. Political careers typically have a tendency to be longer than most others (take a page out of Ellen’s script) so he should utilize his current stature and accomplishments in this election as a springboard for greater gains in 2012. If he is in the game to stay, he should start his campaign for 2012 now. He should begin to galvanize his party, set and pursue some personal goals regarding education and experience, identify quick hit targets that could enhance his legitimacy as a political force and solidify his reputation of giving, and surround himself with reliable and reputable advisors that will enhance rather than devalue his political currency. Focusing on the election fraud issue will only result in him losing credibility, losing his international goodwill, and losing the opportunity to ever approach the threshold of the presidency again. What is his ultimate redress here, take up arms and fight for the presidency? I don’t know him to be an advocate of violence, regardless of the rumors of “rebel financier and supporter” but if he keeps on backing himself into a corner, that option may be his only resort.

Contrary to the perception of a few of my readers who have emailed saying that I don’t respect the president elect by my tone or by calling her Ellen, I have the utmost respect for her as a female and mother, her enduring political career, and her professional accomplishments. I believe that with her entry into the history books, she has elevated herself to be classified amongst the one name icons of the world, including the Peles, Shaqs, Oppongs, Kobes, etc. Her journey and accomplishments make her a prime role model for the women of today, especially the African and Liberian females. However, she is not exempt from being suggested to or constructively criticized. We as Liberians must realize that the issues are not personal or relational but all about the good of the country. Only through escalation of the dialog, thorough discussions of the relevant issues rather than the use of force, and diversity of opinion will we be able to progress to a truly enriched and civilized society. Congratulations to Ellen! Now the work to rebuild, reconstruct, rehabilitate, reconcile, redevelop (or is it develop), and reprogram begins. Let no one think that a magic wand can be waved and things will be fine in a year or two.

Let’s segue into one of the most overused phrases in the current Liberian lexicon, “in the interest of peace.” This phrase is overused and is seen as the answer/response to every contra opinion or every request for the government to take action. The stumbling blocks to peace have to be removed. We cannot be paralyzed or held hostage by the threat of rebel activity or insurgency. We cannot continue the “transition government” mentality! The transition government was basically a concession to the warring parties. Liberians and the international community essentially said, we gave the rebels and remnants of Charles Taylor’s government a two year window to steal as much as they want to steal, prostitute, bastardize, corrupt, violate, etc. do whatever you want to do with the country. We can’t continue with that wild, wild west mentality that every head of a ministry, government corporation or bureau has his/her own fiefdom and can do whatever he/she pleases. I am of the opinion that sometimes preaching to the choir serves no purpose. In one of my last articles two years ago, I let you know that criticizing the corrupt Transition Government was going to be a useless exercise because there was absolutely no accountability of the various branches (inter and intra) of government to each other or the Liberian people. Each branch or sub-branch was an autocrat to itself (see the pillaging of government resources and the inability of GSA to recoup all the office equipment and automobiles stolen since the election), interacting with other branches only when that interaction was viable or beneficial to the deal of the moment. Hopefully with an incoming “elected” government whose leader postulates good governance, accountability will rule the day. I laud Ellen for immediately appointing a transition team to work with the Gyude Bryant government to potentially ensure some semblance of an orderly transition.

Ellen has to be firm and utilize the force of the law in order to clean out our act. She has to dispense with the typical “Liberian mother’s” qualities of patience and leniency. TRANSITION HOLIDAY is over! We have basically had anarchy in Liberia for the last 25-158 years depending on your perspective. It’s time that we begin the conversion to a civilized and democratic country. One in which the government and its officers are truly accountable to the people. In order to do that, we have to clean house. The elements of destruction must be removed, either through the ballet box or the weight of the law. We cannot continue to be held hostage to the warlords or their backers by the threat of violence or insurgency. Government must maximize the presence of the UN forces to implement law and order across the land. No region or area in Liberia should be exempt from enforcement of the law. We have to really focus on infrastructural development to ensure the accessibility of remote areas and enable a rapid government forces response to any indication of insurgency or unrest. Without prosecution, the threat of unrest will always be there (see Alhaji Kromah’s threat of cutlass mutilation to UP supporters celebrating Ellen’s victory.) National security is a premium. No threat or risk situation should be taken lightly if we are to make any progress. We have to move forward, therefore every aggression or threat must be met with the full force of the law rather than the lame statement “in the interest of peace.”

P.S. I like Ellen’s most recent response to questions about Charles Taylor’s future: “Sirleaf said on arrival in Cote d'Ivoire on Tuesday: "Allow me to have consultations with West African leaders, whom I am visiting, to take guidance from them before we take a position on that."” (see http://allafrica.com/stories/200511291319.html for the full article) Hopefully with more consultations, she will see things my way.