Liberia’s 2023 Presidential Elections 

The Perspective
Atlanta, Georgia
May 8, 2022

Davidetta Browne-Lansanah Arguably, the most conflicted & corrupt Chair of the NEC ever Presidential elections in Liberia are deeply consequential because they constitute the primary source of rice and palm oil for many in the winning party and an instant accumulation (corruptively) of wealth, affluence, and power by those in the highest echelon of power (e.g., the Sirleaf and Weah governments).  An election is an emotional and rational exercise of the individual’s constitutional right to freely choose a representative government in a democracy. I further argue that it is more emotional in less sophisticated countries (like Liberia); as a result, when the outcome is perceived to be shrouded in a stratocumulus cloud, chaos and anarchy ensue (e.g., Liberia’s 1986 election). The National Election Commission (NEC) is the nuclear nerve center of this delicate political drama, and for that, it is required to exhibit the ultimate integrity. Based on samplings from headlines and editorials in varied Liberian newspapers and conversations with ordinary Liberians, the current Liberian NEC seems to exhibit grave ineptitude. This is petrifying. As we move forward to the 2023 presidential elections, there are glaring symptoms of a grave omen looming over the Republic. To ward off the oncoming meteoritic bombardment, Liberians in the diasporas and at home must find the answer; we must not depend on the United States as the White Knight to save us. A case in point:  A detachment of 225 U.S. Marines swept into Liberia’s embattled capital of Monrovia early Sunday to evacuate Americans after a rebel leader threatened to arrest foreigners in an attempt to provoke international intervention in the nation’s civil war. But the Marines, who flew in from four U.S. ships that had been stationed offshore for months, were under orders not to actively intercede in the fighting among government forces loyal to President Samuel K. Doe and two separate rebel groups, according to U.S. officials in Washington (https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-08-06-mn-73-story.html).  Here are a few examples of the symptoms that suggest grave uncertainties that threaten the stability of the Republic: extreme economic hardship on the masses (the majority of daily telephone calls from Liberia to relatives in the US and elsewhere in the world is: “please send me anything to feed my family),  unsolved ritual killings and wonton murders, the unsafe landings of international flights at Roberts International Airport (for a Republic that is the oldest in Africa), the unrelenting economic hardship of the masses (while Weah and his coterie of sycophants live the gilded life), the endemic corruption alluded to by the United States Ambassador to Liberia, the Lofa County constitutional crisis, etc. These symptoms will continue to metastasize if serious and patriotic Liberians (students, professionals, retirees, old and young, men and women) everywhere act like ostriches burying their heads in the sand. WAKE UP, LIBERIANS! LIBERIA IS IN A SLOW MELTDOWN. J. Patrick Flomo Columbus, OH zamawood@gmail.com 614 707 3636