28 October 2009
The opposition Liberty Party (LP), declaring that "the die is cast...", has admonished Monrovia City's Acting Mayor, Madam Mary Broh, against tearing down its campaign posters lest she introduces tension into the Montserrado County Senatorial By-Elections.
The party also called on the National Elections Commission (NEC) to speed up the voters' registration card replacement process to ensure that the process does not fall in the hands of criminal-minded party activists who may use it to artificially influence the outcome of next month's senatorial by-election.
"The die is cast and nothing seems possible to stop the crossing of Rubicon," the party's national chairman and campaign manager, Mr. Israel Akinsanya, to a press conference yesterday.
Mr. Akinsanya did not say what he meant by 'crossing the Rubicon' - which connotes taking a particular course of action that cannot be avoided - but he told newsmen that the party had been silent in the face of serial provocations because it had committed itself to helping NEC minimize tension.
"We feel obliged in helping to minimize tension as we, together with the National Elections Commission, must ensure that the sanctity of this rehearsal exercise for 2011 is inviolate," the LP national chairman and campaign manager said, stopping short of revealing what lies ahead of "the crossing of the Rubicon".
But he said that commitment was about to be thrown asunder unless those working against the party's political interest and pushing its leaders to the wall realize the danger of their actions on the democratization and electoral processes and stop forthwith what they are doing.
Regarding the provocation, he said, his office has received numerous field reports that banners and flyers belonging to LP senatorial candidate, Dairus Dillon, were being systematically torn down and destroyed by Monrovia Acting City Mayor Mary Broh and her team.
He said flyers and banners were torn and destroyed by the Mayor and her team, shortly before he called the press conference, in the Vamoma House, ELWA Junction, and the Paynesville Red Light areas, amongst other areas. It is not clear whether it was only promotion flyers belonging to LP that were singled out for tearing down, but Mr. Akinsanya said the action was not isolated, describing it as a "campaign to destroy campaign materials of the party's candidate on exhibition at these various points".
He cited in incident last week in which he said Acting Mayor Broh tore down banners posted at the Monrovia City Hall by LP and other opposition party candidates but left the one belonging to Clemenceau Urey intact.
"Our message to President Sirleaf's yet- to- be confirmed appointee is clear: Stop these provocations, as Liberty Party shall not resign the outcome of its campaign to your like or dislike. Liberty party shall be as pragmatic as it can be in dealing with a repeat of this," he warned.
Next of concern to the LP, he said, was what he called the slow process of voters' registration card replacement exercise. He said not only was the process very slow and causing many potential voters to abandon the various centers designated for the replacement of lost cards, but that it also danger to the authenticity of the voters' rosters.
"We've been informed of at least two cases where some individuals went to replace their lost cards and were told that some other persons had already received replacement cards on their names," he said. These incidents of provocation may seem isolated and therefore written off as having little or no effect on polls results, but he said they were molds that could undermine the sanctity of the whole process.
"We urge the National Elections Commission to be very circumspect, especially in the face of mounting concern that individuals are going around the communities paying money for voters' registration cards, as well as inquiring of persons the political party affiliation," the LP National Chairman said.
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