CDC's Threat to Disrupt 2011 Presidential and General Elections a Fatal Political Mistakeistake       1             1940 - 11112008f- Two- Soccer Legends

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

    By Tewroh-Wehtoe Sungbeh

     The last time I ever heard anything new and profoundly negative about George Weah’s Congress for Democratic Change political party was in 2008, when members of that beleaguered organization fought a public battle for the chairmanship of a political institution that is yet to find a credible voice and a clear direction as to where it wants to take the country.

     It was an unfortunate and down-spiraling odyssey that pitted one group – the Joshua Sackie faction against the Geraldine Doe Sheriff’s faction for the national chairmanship, with the famous so-called “first partisan” and “Ambassador” George Manneh Weah missing in action for a long period amid the embarrassing public feud in the political party he founded to aid his first run for the presidency in 2005, and also the same party he’s hiding behind to guide his second bid for the Liberian presidency in 2011.

     Unfortunately for the Congress for Democratic Change, nothing has changed in 2009, in terms of a clear vision and a sense of where George Weah wants to take the country he wants to lead other than his obsession with the presidency to satisfy a bruised ego, since he failed to win the presidency the last time he had a chance to do so.

                                                      George Weah                                                       

     What hasn’t changed either in the Congress for Democratic Change is the intellectual emptiness in the ranks of the political party, the obvious lack of a visionary leader, and a political party constantly being driven by autopilot due to the absentee and remote- controlled leadership style of party founder, George Weah, who lives overseas reportedly going to school and is expected to be a full time politician once he acquires that elusive and coveted college education.

      However, in the wake of all the distractions, the Congress for Democratic Change did not do itself a favor when deputy secretary general, Acarius Gray made a shocking comment recently promising that the CDC will disrupt the 2011 presidential and general elections unless a non-partisan is brought onboard to oversee the upcoming elections, which is not the way to run a national political party that wants to be seen as a serious party and a serious alternative to the current leadership in Liberia.

     “Unless a non-partisan is brought onboard, the party will create an ugly situation that will disrupt the 2011 elections,” Gray said. According to Star Radio and other major news web sites, the Congress for Democratic Change even called for the dissolution of the NEC before the 2011 elections, as if the National Elections Commission works for the CDC.

     As far as I am concerned, Acarius Gray’s comments are as childish as he is; and as silly as Acarius Gray is and did not help him, did not help the Congress for Democratic Change, it damages George Weah’s already battered political image and challenges the seriousness of the entire leadership of the political party whose members refused to grow up and contribute positively to national development, but dwells on whining, threats and internal infighting to remain relevant.

      Certainly, this is not the message a political party that wants to lead and be taken seriously would send to the citizenry after coming out of a national convention meant to spell out its programs, platform, put its internal house in order and win the hearts of the Liberian people.

      Even though “Preparing for the Challenges of Future Governance” was the theme of the January 4-7, 2009 second national convention, which supposed to have discussed “the problem of inflation, responsibility and the danger of electoral fraud in an involving democracy,” the Weahyites seemed to have also been too obsessed with NEC’s Chairman James Fromoyan, and did not address those nagging national issues that continues to plague the nation.

     And if they did, that attempt was a “jaw-bone” exercise intended to fired up their die-hard supporters and those who live their lives believing in finger-pointing and conspiracy political theories like the ones uttered by deputy party secretary general Acarius Gray, who described James Fromoyan of the National Elections Commission “as a partisan of the ruling party.”

     Mr. Gray also hinted in a position statement these words: “It is now clear that the election outfit has become not only an agent of the ruling Unity Party, but was fueling disunity within major opposition parties with the view of weakening them, so as to increase the chances of the ruling party in the forthcoming elections.” Gray also said: “We categorically condemn, challenge and reject NEC’s politically evil and illegal agenda and action to destabilize the CDC.”

      Now who’s destabilizing the CDC? From what I now know about this political party, I want to believe members of the CDC are the ones destroying the CDC. If members of that political party wants to point fingers, those fingers must be pointed directly at them for being mere followers and appearing thuggish, unprofessional, politically inept, politically challenged, and politically unsavvy, because political parties don’t often point fingers and make threats after a major national convention is held.

     Political parties often strives to win elections by putting forth common sense ideas and by projecting confidence, and once they loose an election will regroup and attempt to re-invent their platforms and policies, put smart and well-intentioned people in the right place in leadership, and will set the tone and agenda of their party to make believers out of a skeptical nation by working hard to win national elections.

     Where is the Congress for Democratic Change political party’s position statement about the economy and inflation, anyway? If there is one, I would like to read it, because I want to know how CDC will tackle the inflationary problem facing the nation, and how the party will put Liberians back to work? The party was quick, however, to remind the public and the press about the perceived electoral problem it has with the National Elections Commission (NEC), which reminds me of a group so obsessed with winning the presidency is unqualified to make a convincing case as to why their candidate should be the nation’s next president.

     With President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf falling asleep at the wheels in areas such as jobs, rampant corruption and crimes, coupled with incompetence, opportunism, cronyism, favoritism and nepotism that overwhelmed her administration, one would think the Congress for Democratic Change January 4-7, 2009, “Preparing for the Challenges of Future Governance” convention in Monrovia would have set the tone to be a formidable challenger in 2011.

      However, George Weah failed miserably to show he is ready to be that leader who knows and understands the issues, and also failed to step up to the plate and make his presence felt on the national stage by contrasting the current administration from a future George Weah administration. As a result, the Liberian people hardly knows where Weah, who lives overseas stands on key policy issues, and what he wants to do for the nation and its struggling people when he is elected president of that troubled nation.    

     The Congress for Democratic Change (CDC), which bills itself as a serious political party, and its “first partisan” George Weah, who is slated to once again be its presidential candidate in 2011, needs to do a better job than what he is doing today.