17 November 2017

LIBERIA MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

Falsehood! US ambassador lied on elections credibility, Source: New DEMOCRAT

US ambassador to Liberia, Christine Elder Wednesday issued a statement in which the US government praised Liberians for turning up to vote on October 10 and also said the elections were credible and that there was no need for a repeat of the polls. But the New Democrat reports that key political parties including the ruling Unity Party (UP) are contesting the integrity of the elections. The paper said all the observer missions that witnessed the elections, The Carter Center (TCC) and the National Democratic Institute (NDI) did not speak to the credibility of the polls and promised only to do so in 60 days.

Supreme Court Rules in UP’s Bill of Information Today, Source: The INQUIRER

This paper reports that the Supreme Court Thursday entertained argument in the ruling Unity Party (UP’s) Bill of Information filed, complaining about the National Elections Commission’s (NEC) delay in granting their evidence and have requested to prove their case at the NEC. UP lawyer Benedict Sannoh said they have filed a Bill of Information which is important for them to substantiate their case and are requesting the high court to mandate the electoral commission to rule within a reasonable time for their evidence to be at hand.

On the other hand, NEC’s Cllr. Musa Dean argued that the ruling UP has not been cooperative during the trial with its constant habit of filing multiple motions.

However, questions from members of the Supreme Court Bench indicated that the high court was not happy with the long time the NEC Board of Commissioners had reserved the ruling for Subpoena.

Meanwhile, Cllr. Dean informed the high court that the NEC Board of Commissioners affirmed the ruling of the NEC hearing officer, denying the request for all documents relating to polling places in the country, even though the UP legal arm was never around to take the ruling.

Predicated upon that, the high court has reserved ruling and is expected to give an opinion today Friday at 2:00 P.M.

UNMIL official calls for speedy adjudication of cases, Source: INSIGHT

Speaking to reporters at the opening of the 7th Judicial Circuit Court in Grand Gedeh County, Chifaras Meray Dube of the Rule of Law Division of the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) has called on judicial actors to speedily adjudicate cases arising from communities. Ms. Dube said much has been achieved in the judicial sector but there was still a need for more to be done in terms of coordination among judicial actors.

UNMIL peacekeepers conferred with UN medals, Source: INSIGHT

Military observers of the Nigerian contingent and 69 officers of the Pakistan Medical Contingent of the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) have been awarded UN medals by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General to Liberia (SRSG), Farid Zarif. The event took place at a joint program held at Camp Abuja in Monrovia. SRSG Zarif, in remark, said the UN peacekeepers have contributed towards strengthening and consolidating peace and stability in Liberia, saying they have brought pride and honor to their contingent and the UN.

LP, Others Allay Fears of Interim Gov’t … Assure Public of Democratic Transition, Source: The INQUIRER

The opposition Liberty Party (LP), the ruling Unity Party (UP), and the All Liberian Party (ALP) have allayed fear of an interim government as the National Elections Commission (NEC) hears complaints from political parties and independent candidates in the just-ended 10 October elections, this paper reports.

In a statement issued Thursday in Monrovia by the three aggrieved political parties, they noted that though they are committed to ensuring that the legal process is concluded long before 15 January 2018, if for any reason the continuous breaches by the NEC or otherwise the judicial process is not timely concluded, there will be no break in constitutional continuity in Liberia.

The parties said that the succession provision of the Liberian constitution is clear and unambiguous, the government will continue to function and Liberia will live on, stronger and healthier than ever.

P4DP Cautions Liberians to Recognize Democratic Tradeoff, Source: FrontPage Africa

A Liberian peacebuilding NGO, Platform for Dialogue (P4DP) is urging all Liberians to appreciate that there are tradeoffs associated with the 10 October 2017 elections, hence a need to refrain from activities that promote violence and pursue any grievance through the legal channel.

The P4DP said it is important that all claims forwarded to the National Elections Commission (NEC) be swiftly investigated especially with the scars and legacies of the 14 years brutal conflict still lingering on the minds of Liberians. The group further went to say that the recent developments emulating from the elections point to a number of challenges and gaps that need to be addressed in an effort to consolidate the country’s fledgling democratic process. Read More

Lewis Brown on designs to delay election, Source: The New Dawn

Liberia’s permanent representative to the UN says there are growing concerns about the possible employment of designs to delay the timely conclusion of the 2017 Presidential Elections.  Ambassador Lewis Brown made the assertion in a statement released on Thursday in Monrovia. Ambassador Brown says a delay in the conclusion of these elections within the timeframe envisaged by the Constitution has the unfortunate effect of spinning the nation out of constitutional orbit and thereby ushering the country outside the security of the Constitution.

At home and abroad, there are growing concerns about the possible employment of designs to delay the timely conclusion of the 2017 Presidential Elections. A delay in the conclusion of these elections within the timeframe envisaged by the Constitution has the unfortunate effect of spinning the nation out of constitutional orbit and thereby ushering us outside the security of the Constitution.

He continues that the mere possibility of risking ourselves outside the guaranteed protection of the Constitution ought to command collective rebuke and loud condemnation insofar as it seeks to undermine the country's peace and democracy. Read more

Circuit Court opens in Grand Gedeh, Source: INSIGHT

Reports say the 7th Judicial Circuit Court in Grand Gedeh County opened without the Resident Judge, George Wiles being present at the opening ceremony on Monday and that his charge was not delivered at the ceremony. The county attorney and public defender of the county did not also attend the event and that no reasons were given for the stay-away, according to the Insight.

EMOL warns against constitutional crisis in Liberia, Source: New DEMOCRAT

The Emancipation Movement of Liberia ((EMOL), a non-partisan and non-profit peacebuilding and advocacy organization based in the United States and Liberia is calling on the National Elections Commission (NEC) to adjudicate all electoral complaints speedily to prevent a constitutional crisis in the country. It also warned against the circumvention of the constitutional due process and against warmongering. In a release, the group warned that false alarms of war are tactics to keep voters away from participating in the runoff election.

Hopes for Liberia’s first diamond mine rise in election, Source: New DEMOCRAT

It is reported that this year’s discovery of two new diamond-bearing pipes that are satellites to an earlier discovered main diamond-bearing kimberlite pipe has boosted hopes for the establishment of the first diamond mine in Liberia where artisanal activity has been the mainstay of diamond recovery in Liberia since the 1930s. “If things really come together, it will be the first diamond mine in Liberia,” Florida International University distinguished research professor, Stephen Haggerty told Mining Weekly Online of the prospect, which he said is close to Liberia’s first gold mine.

Grand Gedeh youths get peacebuilding training, Source: INSIGHT

Youths in Grand Gedeh County have benefited from a peacebuilding training on non-electoral violence organized by the Institute for Research and Democratic Development (IREDD). According to IREDD project manager Venessa Togba, the training was meant to enhance youth participation in the 2017 presidential and legislative elections and also enable them to detect and report early signs of conflicts to the police.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA ON LIBERIA

UN awarded Peacekeeping Medals to Pak Medical Contingent in Liberia, Sources: GNN Liberia and Radio Pakistan

United Nations Mission in Liberia has awarded Peacekeeping Medals to sixty-nine officers of Pakistan Medical Contingent in acknowledgment of their contribution to peace and stability in the West African country. The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Liberia, Farid Zarif, pinned the medals on the recipients at a joint ceremony held at Camp Abuja in Monrovia. Speaking at the event, he praised the peacekeepers, saying they have brought pride and honor in supporting and maintaining peace around the world and helping other nations.

Liberia Civil Society Groups Takes US Embassy To Task, Source: News Public Trust

Civil society groups in Liberia have taken the United States to task for expressing “confidence in the integrity” October 10 elections that are being disputed and urging the two frontrunners “to prepare to compete in the runoff,” as the legal challenges of the results are still being heard.

The chairperson of the National Civil Society Council of Liberia (NACSCL), Frances Greaves told a forum on promoting democracy and preventing electoral violence through dialogue near Monrovia on Thursday, that the US Embassy’s statement undercuts ongoing legal process to get to the bottom of claims of massive fraud and irregularities in the October 10 polls. Greaves said what the US should be doing now is to buttress Liberia’s legal system by allowing the ongoing litigation to reach its logical conclusion.

For her part, the head of the Women’s Situation Room (WSR), Cllr. Yvette Chesson Wureh said the United States should wait and allow the rule of law to take place, as it is being done through a process laid out in the Liberian constitution for resolving election disputes.

Speaking at the panel discussion forum, Cllr. Wureh said, “this is the right of the Liberian people to go ahead and abide by the constitution and its relevant instruments…We have the Supreme Court and constitution and we will abide by it.”

Three other panelists, the head of the Federation of Liberian Youth (FLY), Augustine Tamba, the executive director of New Narrative Liberia, Tecee Boley, and an official of the National Movement for Transparent Elections (NAYMOTE), Aaron Weah-Weah also disagreed with the tone of the US statement. Read more

Liberia Celebrates World Prematurity Day, Sources: All Africa, The New Republic, and The NEWS

Liberia will today Friday join other nations around the world to commemorate World Prematurity Day. The day also known as "Born Too Soon" is observed on 17 November each year. The motto for 2017 is "Let them thrive" with sub-themes: Quality care for the smallest, Improving care for the smallest and Respectful care for the smallest. World Prematurity Day is a key moment to focus global attention on the leading cause of child deaths under age 5, complications from preterm birth, which according to the United Nations Children's Fund, account for nearly one million deaths each year. Read more

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.

 

 

Print Headlines