The Perspective
Atlanta, Georgia
February 3, 2019

Considering the chronic indiscipline now rooted in the Liberian society –especially among the students, youth – and which constitute a real menace to an already fragile nation, I thought we all should have first applauded the UL administration suspension of student political activities on the campuses of the university in accordance with the rules and regulations as inscribed in the UL Student Handbook. But not, instead, a barrage of criticisms has been lashed out against the government and the university administration on the “unconstitutionality” of the measure and its potential consequences. In the Liberian tradition I grew up, when there was a confusion between an elderly person and a youth, the guardians of wisdom would first pull the ears of the youth before summoning the elder under the palaver hut to tell his side of the history. This was the hierarchy of respect on which reposed social harmony, peace, and stability in the community.

From this backdrop, I would first express my greatest joy in knowing that UL has existent rules and regulations to control the activities of the student body within the confines of its walls, and which are perfectly applicable to instill discipline and law and order whenever necessary. I also hope the same exists in our schools and all other state institutions.

Second, I want to laud Madam President of the UL for her courage and the very timely action taken to avoid Liberia’s oldest and highest institution of learning to become a safe haven or a permanent playground for lawlessness and disrespect to authority. I have the strongest view that a straight adherence to the recognized and accepted internal rules and regulations of our institutions should not and must not be confused with violation of anyone’s constitutional right. Yes, if the rules and regulations in themselves contravened the constitution from the onset, or applied without any valid justification. And that is not my perception in the case at hand.

And thirdly, Madam President of UL, I ask your permission to call the attention of some my comrades who forgot the students and went on only to give you and the government an historical tutoring as if you are a newcomer on the scene. The case of young Calvin Cole, President of the UL student council in those last years of the Tubman regime as mentioned by John H.T. Stewart in his editorial requesting your administration to “rethink the ban” on the suspension (https://www.liberianobserver.com/opinion/editorials/the-ul-administration-must-rethink-its-ban-on-student-politics/) – you too were then a member of that famous UL student council and a witness to that audacious public attack of Cole on the ills and vices of Tubmanism. Well, not only the fact that Cole was expelled, detained and never heard off again, but also the entire membership of that student body (among whom was my good friend) were picked up one by one (with some exceptions depending on your family connections) at 2:00 a.m. by Tubman’s fearful security apparatus headed by C. Wellington Campbell and driven straight to the university campus before the President of the university, Dr. Rochefort L. Weeks. Here, they were forced to draft a statement disassociating themselves from their brave council President and his indictment of Tubman’s policies. By 7:00 a.m. the same morning, sleepless and frightened to death, they had a security escort from the campus to the executive mansion to meet with the President. And believe me, the Old Man received them with so much rage that were the floor to have opened they would have definitely gone through.  This pathetic show of power ended the Calvin Cole political adventure, but left student political activism definitively installed at UL.

My mean purpose of this narration is to demonstrate that the current President of UL, Dr. Ophelia Weeks, knows perfectly well the difference between a crude autocracy or dictatorship and the rules and regulations governing an institution. Further, this lady was nurtured in the very disciplined environment of the University of Liberia, and when it was among the best in Africa. Thus, it is totally unfounded to insinuate that she would need orders from the government or President Weah to apply the rules and regulations of her institution when necessary.

Frankly, wherein is this “democracy” when students can rain insults and denigrate a sitting President and government officials without an iota of restrain or respect. Or imagine, in which democratic country would a national student union leader give an ultimatum to the university administration to lift the ban on student political activities on campus or face the consequences. And whereas President Weah, democratically elected, has never shown any disdain for the people or organized the total destruction of the country for power and greed.  Oh yes, I guess the Weah government is not an Harvard made; so he must be totally ignorant of history and does merit no consideration, but only disrespect.

Why Are Student Political Parties Still Allowed Within the Confines of the UL In A Democratic Liberia?
While student political activism at the UL may have started in honest during and after the Ambassador Fahnbulleh trial of 1968, the actual political evolution started after mid-1971, when President Tolbert took power. And soon the UL was taken over by a contagious “progressive” fever, which would gradually spill over into the public. A new breed of young and outspoken professors had quickly found followers in the already politically active student body. For a decade the political space was opening, and political reforms being carried out, but the process was too slow to attaining the ultimate result: multiparty democracy. We all know the rest of the history thereafter.

Nonetheless, we finally got to the bridge and crossed it in 2005, when free and fair multiparty democratic elections were held. So then is this fundamental question: Why after almost 15 years of democracy in Liberia there are still student political parties disrupting the normal functioning of the university when, in effect, these students now have their constitutional right to register into any national political party of their choice or organize their own political parties outside the walls of the university?

I strongly believe the answer is due to the malfunctioning of the political parties – the real tragedy of our emerging democracy. Look, there were 22 political parties in 2005; 17 in 2011 and about 24 in 2017. Curiously, after each electoral cycle, most of the parties disappear instantly from the political scene, and the one or two survivors get into a deep financial depression or comma, coming out only to talk out of their heads like crazy. Knowing this weakness, our previous President bought all of them out to make them her “economic prisoners.” Unfortunately, the Pro-Poor government is broke and cannot afford to distribute the meager national coffers at will. Result: for once everybody is now feeling the pinch from a severe economic crisis that was long predicted. 

Thus to fill in the vacuum of the opposition the students are tactfully positioned in the frontline as the sacrificial lamb and at no expense. Of course, the problem is we are now in democracy, and the students cannot be allowed to be the substitute for the political parties. To put it more bluntly, our politicians need to wake up as responsible men and women and reanimate their parties in honest instead of only making opportunistic statements that could have the propensity to incite a poverty-stricken population into the streets. Make no mistake, our security situation is extremely fragile; these students, youth could become uncontrollable and susceptible to internal or foreign manipulation, and unknowingly as we were in our time. What is even worse, these young people already have no confidence in the politicians, national leaders, political parties, institutions, professors, teachers and the rest.

Of course, the main problem of our political parties to survive may be financial. Notwithstanding, were I any of those eminent political science professors today at UL, instead of only teaching “constitutional rights” I would also lecture on the nitty-gritty of a functional democracy. For example: How is a political party financed and managed? How come we who fought for democracy from the 70s have never maintained a winning party to date? What are the obligations of democracy?  Why President Weah who must have been only age 14 in 1980, and probably experienced April 14, 1979, and April 12, 1980 – (and not a Harvard graduate or a political science professor) – was able to maintain a functioning political party for more than 12 years, won legislative seats and later became President? Is it democratic or constitutional where legislature aspirants can transport their voters from Monrovia to their regions to vote for them? Is it constitutional, democratic, patriotic or subversive for a political leader or student group to deliver their grievances to some foreign powers or international organizations? Why are political parties in the West subsidized in accordance with their electoral gains?  Why some big democracies have only two or three political parties? Why all our politicians want to be “President”, and not Senator, Representative, Superintendent, etc?  And the list could continue to a book length. But, perhaps if our political science students were enlightened more on this more complex aspect of democracy, they could be the most prepared, organized and effective in the future than we are today.

That said, I know of no university in Europe where there are student political parties. Yes, there are regulated student unions equal to the labor unions to promote and seek the general welfare of the student community. And within the universities and schools are socio-cultural organizations or what used to be called at the Tubman High the “intramurals”: dramatic club, debate club, choir, sports and you name it – all activities that groom the mind of a youngster in intelligence, sociability, and discipline. I am wondering as to what is contained in the intramurals at the universities and schools today other than political science, politics and the student council.

My Perception of a Dictatorship
Some of us too have had our personal experiences under a dictatorship, and this gives me the right to refute the fake notion spreading that President Weah is on the path of a dictator. We must compare what is comparable or else the constant insinuations have the potential to confuse and pollute the minds of our jobless students and youth to not know the difference between a democracy and a dictatorship. Worse, it could also humanize and resurrect our past tyrants and dictators; that is one of the greatest dangers.

From whence my profound allergy to dictatorship and injustice in whatever form or shape? During the school year 1967 (11th-grade student at Laboratory High – UL campus), me and few other adventurer classmates were despatched - effective immediately- to one of Tubman’s infamous gulags – the military Post Stockade at the BTC (Barclay Training Center) – for a full day stay as a disciplinary measure. Crime: we were fed up and refused to turn out for the ritual Flag Day or Militia/Armed Forces military parade as a requirement of our ROTC class. Imagine, as poor students, we were to provide our own parade outfit (khaki suit). Anyway, what left on my mind of this prison as a teenager was the settings – a normal size square building with a center hall surrounded with individual cells. The military officer in charge ordered us to sit on the floor and behave accordingly or else… When the officer closed the prison gate and left, an elderly inmate standing before one of the cells greeted us and introduced himself; it turned out that this man was one of Tubman’s longtime serving political prisoners from the attempted coup d’état in 1955. We could see in the eyes of this man the sympathy of a father for the children we were; that the regime was so cruel to send innocent young students to jail for nothing. And yet, there was a good: it gave us courage, and also forged our character of independence, justice, and respect - not only for law and order but also toward others.
A year later -1968, the Laboratory High was transferred to a newly inaugurated modern campus- the William V.S. Tubman High School. I was democratically elected as its first President of the student council.  The school started with an acting principal, Mrs. Hazel B. Williamson -a soft-spoken, kindhearted Jamaican-Liberian. But somewhere during the academic year a new principal was appointed, Mr. A. Nanuh Manly – that real old time, no-nonsense disciplinarian. There were no known internal rules and regulations; he was the authority all in one – period.

On this day, principal Manley decided that I was fired - with immediate effect. Under the same breath, he appointed my successor, another popular senior student.  I called an urgent meeting for the council to declare the decision null and void or a protest. But the news quickly got to the principal, and the man came furious, warning that should he hear of any other meeting we will be thrown out of the school immediately. And to get that message through, he instructed our Yearbook editor (my best buddy) that the photo of his appointee should appear in the Yearbook as the legitimate President of the student council and not mine. No way, the editor made up a story that the Yearbook (The Trailblazers) had already been forwarded to the United States for printing. But Mr. Manley insisted that the change must take effect. But you know what?  We retreated, but the Yearbook came at end of the year with my photo and name as the President of the student council to his greatest disappointment. It was our way of revenge.

Then came the irony. I quickly escaped from the Liberian autocratic rule and found myself at a university in a country being ruled by one of Europe’s longest-serving dictators – General Francisco Franco (1936-1975) of Spain.  If you think the Tubman regime was the worst, that of Franco had no match. There was a component of his security network called the “serranos.” Each street, quarter, etc in a city had a troupe of “serranos” – civilian individuals who had the master-keys to each apartment building in their sectors, walking up and down at night until morning opening the gates to the apartment buildings for the occupants who came from out at night. Imagine, these men knew every occupant and the probable occupation. Oh yes, this was an absolute dictatorship that lasted for almost 40 years.

Back in Liberia – I witnessed April 14, 1979; I danced, drank plenty of Club Beer on April 12, 1980, but soon went into exile just few months later. I ventured back voluntarily in 1991, to help bring peace, but had to force my way on the infamous “Bulk Challenge” on May 6, 1996, from the onslaught on Monrovia by the warlords (some who are today Honorables of our Democratic Republic). 

And yet folks, I have never been a militant, a revolutionary or thrown a stone at anyone. Nonetheless, I have the acquired intuition to detect, small, feel and see a dictatorship from afar.  President Weah is an angel; we can accuse him of anything else (of course, with the proof), but not to cry wolf with “dictatorial traits.”  So, before we regret, the sooner we can get our act together to appreciate and respect our democratic government, the quicker we will reconcile and unite to sustain peace and stability in our country.

The world around us is fast changing and unpredictable.