11 October 2017

LIBERIA MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

“I’ll not accept anything, but victory”, Source: The New Dawn

Presidential candidate George Weah of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) says he’ll not accept anything but to be declared the winner of the presidential elections, making claims that he is destined for victory in these elections.

After casting his ballot on Tuesday, 10 October at the Kendja Public School, Senator Weah told Prime FM that he’s of the strong conviction that victory is certain for the CDC in the 2017 presidential election and there’s nothing that will stop him.

When quizzed if he’ll accept the result if he is defeated, Weah insists that there’s no way he’ll lose the elections with huge and aggressive campaign carried out by the CDC. He says it is impossible for him to lost, citing deployment of poll workers that he says were trained for two months.

At the Rehab Community polling center, the ruling Unity Party (UP) presidential candidate, Vice President Joseph Boakai expressed high anticipation that he will win the election in the first round. Mr. Boakai says nothing can stop him from achieving victory.

ANC, CDC, ECOWAS Identify Flaws in Liberia's 2017 Electoral Process, Source: FrontPage Africa

FrontPage Africa reports that the elections have ended but several registered voters were left disenfranchised and some political parties including the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) and the Alternative National Congress (ANC) are unhappy with the electoral process.

Voters appeared to be eager to vote as they started trooping various polling centers as early as 4:00 AM Tuesday morning, hoping to be among some of the first cast their votes. But it turned out to be a rather disappointing situation – the names of some registered voters could not be found in the voters roll. This situation was the same at various polling centers across the country.

The ANC in an observation said it was made aware of voting irregularities throughout the country, preventing Liberians from exercising their right to vote. The ANC mentioned missing and incomplete presidential ballot books in Montserrado County, receiving presidential voting ballots after 3pm in Sinoe and Grand Gedeh Counties, voters with valid voter registration cards being turned away because of numerous reasons including names not being on the voters’ roll in Bong, Grand Bassa, Grand Gedeh, Margibi, Montserrado, and Sinoe Counties.

The CDC at a news confab raised a red flag on the electoral process. Party chairman, Nathaniel McGill said the process was mismanaged by the poll workers from the NEC, noting that they were not professional.

The CDC said there were forms of intimidation and many voters were denied their rights to vote by polling staffs. McGill, however, said the CDC is not troubled by the irregularities in the process. "We are not troubled by what is going on. We call on all of our partisans to be calm and keep observing the process," the CDC chairman said.

TThe head of the ECOWAS Elections Observers Mission to Liberia, former Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama said the elections were marred by several lapses mainly on the part of election workers.

Mr. Mahama who toured polling stations in several counties said the electoral process faced several challenges including the late start of polls, the late arrival of polling materials in remote areas of the country and several complaints from voters over the absence of their names from the voters’ roster.

He noted that the late training of presiding and electoral officers is one of the causes of the poor performance of poll workers, especially their inability to identify the names of voters on the roster.

The ECOWAS chief elections observer, however, praised the National Elections Commission (NEC) and the presiding officers for conducting the process and urged the NEC to learn from its mistakes.

NEC chairman, Cllr. Jerome Korkoya told a news confab Tuesday in Monrovia that there was nothing wrong with the voter register.

“Let me state there is nothing wrong with the voter register and there are a couple of reasons for these incidents. One of the issues was caused by voters joining the queue without consulting the queue controller and going straight to a polling place without checking they are in the right place in the polling precinct. A second issue was in cases where a voter is registered twice. These individuals are registered at the last place of registration in line with our policy. You will not be at the original place,” Cllr. Korkoya said.

Simeon Freeman rates election peaceful, Source: The New Dawn

Presidential candidate Simeon Freeman of the Movement for Progressive Change (MPC) says he did not encounter any problem when he went to cast his ballot in Tuesday’s elections. Mr. Freeman says he is very hopeful of victory because he has advocated for the Liberian people for a very long time, but concedes that no candidate will win the first round of polling, predicting a runoff, which he hopes to participate in. The MPC standard bearer, however, noted that if he lost the election, he would continue with his business.

“We Are Watching Liberia” –AU Erastus Mwencha, Source: Daily OBSERVER

The head of the AU elections monitoring group in Liberia, Erastus Mwencha, has re-emphasized the call for Liberians to ensure that the 2017 elections do not tear them apart and take the nation backward. “The AU in collaboration with ECOWAS and all other local and international partners are watching Liberia, the oldest independent African republic that set the agenda for continental independence from colonial rule. We are watching you as you people go through these elections,” Mwencha said.

Addressing journalists at the Julius Berrien School on Peace Island, Congo Town in Montserrado County Electoral District #10, the chief AU  elections observer said the international community believes that Liberians are mature enough to maintain the peace and that they should do all it takes to keep it very close to their hearts.

Polling Lapses in Montserrado County, Source: Daily OBSERVER

The conduct of the electoral polls in Montserrado County Districts #15, 16, 17 and some parts of 11 was marked by several lapses on the part of workers of the National Elections Commission (NEC). In these districts, the voting process was early faced with challenges including the late start of polls and complaints from voters over not finding their names on the voters’ roster. Furthermore, two voters were initially denied for over an hour from voting at the Caldwell Bethel Christian Community School because their names were not on the roster – although they had valid voter ID cards.

However, when this same situation occurred at the Maranatha, the names of the voters were recorded on a separate page on the voter roster, and they were subsequently allowed to vote. Also, when a similar situation occurred at other polling stations in Districts #15, 16, 17, and 11, the voters were not denied to vote. Their records were immediately jotted down, and they were allowed to vote.  

Presidential Candidate Cooper to Quit Politics, If She Loses Election, Source: FrontPage Africa

The standard bearer of the Liberia Restoration Party (LRP), Ms. MacDella Cooper says she would be done with politics if she does not win the presidency. “I don’t plan to make a political career out of running, running, running,” she said after casting a ballot at the Mason School on the Old Road in Monrovia. According to Ms. Cooper, she would rather support credible women and other viable candidates for various elected position in government.

“I plan to support those women and that will be my political career not to try to pursue or aim for a political seat; I think after this one I am done.”  Also, the LRP leader said: “Irrespective of who wins this election, we need peace in Liberia and we must sustain the peace. The transition from one democratically elected government to another is something that we all are yearning for. So, I am encouraging whoever the losers are because out of 20 candidates’ only one is going to win the presidency, but we can all work to build a better Liberia.”

Nimba Representative Candidate Arrested for ‘Purchasing Voter Cards’ on Election Day, Source: Daily OBSERVER

Police authorities assigned with the National Elections Commission (NEC) have arrested a representative candidate of Nimba County Electoral District #1 for allegedly posing as an agent looking to purchase voter registration cards from voters in a queue. Othello Deshield of the Liberia Restoration Party (LRP) was arrested at the Zokeseh polling center in Peace Community, Ganta while reportedly luring his voters with at least USD30 per card.

Police officers investigating Mr. Deshield at the Ganta Police Station told the Daily Observer that “the suspect was caught red-handed,” adding that the pieces of evidence gathered from eyewitnesses so far were good enough to prosecute him.

‘I Took Political Bullets for You’ – Prez. Sirleaf, Sources: Daily OBSERVER and The New Dawn

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on Monday delivered her farewell address during the opening of the October 2017 Term of the Supreme Court, saying that she allowed herself to take what she considered as “political bullets.”

Although she did not give further explanation about what she described as “political bullets”, the president informed her audience “I took the bullets for many of you in this room; and I did so, in the interest of peace.”

Besides, President Sirleaf cautioned the justices of the high court to do everything possible to make the country take pride in their opinions (judgments) whenever they are confronted with electoral related matters.

Witnesses Tell Stories of Jabbateh Torture, Rape, Murder, Cannibalism in Bopolu, Source: FrontPage Africa

The 11th U.S. government witness in the trial of accused war criminal Mohammed Jabbateh has shown jurors a gruesome legacy of Liberia’s civil war in day five of court proceedings. The victim, now in his 40s, showed a scar on the side of his head, where his left ear was sliced off, in an ordeal that was just one of the ordeals he endured in a remote village in the north-west of the country.

"Jungle Jabbah came and gave the order to amputate me," he said as he identified Mohammed Abate, aka Jungle Jabbah - the man U. S. authorities are prosecuting for lying on his immigration asylum application.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA ON LIBERIA

Liberia election peaceful so far – Mahama, Source: Citi FM Online

Former President John Mahama has said the election ongoing in Liberia has generally been peaceful. John Mahama, who is leading an ECOWAS Observer Mission to monitor the election in that country, told the media that although there were few hitches and late start of voting in some polling centers, the process has been “so far so good.”

“Of course, every electoral system has some glitches, but as the day goes on, they resolve the issue. In a few polling stations, they didn’t start on time, they started around 8:30am. In the places that we have visited, it looks like the process is ongoing now.”

Liberians vote to pick Johnson Sirleaf's successor, Source: Al Jazeera News

Liberians have voted to elect a new president and legislators in an election that will see the country's first transfer of power from one democratically elected leader to another in more than 70 years. Provincial results were expected within 48 hours, but the electoral body has until October 25 to issue its final confirmation of the results and to announce a runoff if necessary for the presidency.

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the continent's first female president, is leaving power after serving 12 years in office - the maximum allowed under the West African country's constitution.

Liberia's Presidential and Legislative Elections, Sources: Imperial Valley News and US Department of State

As a longstanding friend, the United States applauds the people of Liberia for exercising their democratic right to vote in the historic presidential and legislative elections. This is an important step toward achieving Liberia’s first peaceful transfer of power from one democratically-elected head of state to another in decades.

We salute Liberia’s success in holding free and fair elections in 2005, 2011, and 2014 and urge Liberians to build on that tradition by peacefully and patiently awaiting the official results from the National Elections Commission.

The United States stands by the people of Liberia in their efforts to continue building their country, its democracy, and its future. While challenges remain, we look forward to advancing our longstanding mutual interests in economic development, trade, security, health care, and the strengthening of democratic institutions.

Disclaimer
 

This media summary consists of selected local media articles for the information of UN personnel. The public distribution of this media summary is a courtesy service extended by UNMIL on the understanding that the choice of articles included is exclusive, and the contents do not represent anything other than a selection of articles likely to be of interest to a United Nations readership. The inclusion of articles in this summary does not imply endorsement by UNMIL.

 

 

 

 

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