Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) Political Leader, George Weah has complained President Joseph N. Boakai to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for what he called “unprovoked attack” on the headquarters of CDC. In his letter to ECOWAS, Weah said his political institution was attacked on Thursday, August 22, 2024 by Liberian security forces under the effect of a drug raid.
The former Liberian President claimed that the attacked oh his party’s headquarters was premeditated and a callous act of violence targeted at the country’s main opposition political party. Weah further complained that the latest is part of series of actions by the Boakai Administration to trample on political freedoms, disregard the laws of the land, undermine democracy and stoke tension in the country.
“Earlier this month, on August 5, 2024, the nation witnessed a similar police action, again targeted at the headquarters of the CDC – where they illegally breached the entry to the compound while heavily armed. As former leaders of the country, we know that these brazen acts of aggression are under the instruction of President Joseph Boakai himself – who has said that he intends to diminish the CDC’s ability to mount any political fight in the future,” Weah stressed.
Weah said during the Thursday’s attack, which was reminiscent of their troubled past, the police fired hundreds of lethal and non-lethal rounds at unarmed civilians – whose only “crime” it seems is remaining ardent supporters and sympathizers of the CDC.
According to him, various government security agencies involved in the raid have given conflicting accounts of why it was initiated. “This is happening while civil servants who are perceived to sympathize with the CDC are being harassed and purged out of the civil service,” Weah alleged.
“May we also draw your attention to other transgressions, including the excessive use of force against any semblance of dissent by unarmed civilians which has resulted in several deaths; the non-prosecution of election-related killings that occurred on camera; the total disregard for the tenure laws of the country even in the face of the Liberia Supreme Court’s rulings, political weaponization of prosecutorial powers and the broad-day violations of the procurement and other statutory laws of the country,” CDC Political Leader said.
He indicated that CDC has demonstrated its utmost regard for the maintenance of the hard-earned peace and respect for the rule of law, as was displayed recently through a peaceful transfer of power; “We refuse to sit idly by and watch these transgressions persist.”
He said following the ill-fated raid at their Headquarters, the government has detained scores of CDC partisans and other citizens at the Monrovia Central Prison on trumped up charges. “President Boakai and his team must be under the illusion that they have such an overwhelming mandate to lead at their whims and wishes. That notion is a terrible mistake as true power rests with the people and not any government bent on ruling outside the ambit of the law. All vested stakeholders with knowledge of the Liberian situation have lamented how deeply divided the country remains following the hard-fought presidential election. A well-meaning and supposedly “experienced” leader would make reconciling the nation his foremost priority,” Weah believes.
Weah indicated that as a longtime actor on the political landscape of the country, Boakai ought to be fully cognizant of the vices that brought Liberia on its knees and expect he would provide leadership that cautions against the abuse of power, erosion of democracy and rule of law.
“In view of this, ECOWAS must now engage in proactive diplomatic interventions in countries such as Liberia to ensure that our fledgling democracy is not sacrificed by the misuse of power by the current regime. May I iterate that in the wake of the statement by President Boakai to some legislators that he will erase the CDC from the political map of Liberia, we make it abundantly clear that the party is here to stay and will continue to remain a vibrant political force,” Weah maintains.
Weah averred that in the face of such grave threats from the President followed by multiple nefarious actions against our very God-given rights to exist, all can be assured that CDC will utilize every right guaranteed by the constitution to ensure that we are not erased.
