New Democrat (Monrovia)
12 November 2009
The finale of an election now considered a referendum on the government will be a repeat of the 2005 contest between President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and football star George Weah, with both standing behind their candidates for the Montserrado County senatorial race.
The National Elections Commission's (NEC's) preliminary results released Wednesday put Unity Party's Clemenceau Urey in the lead with 1449 votes, amounting to 36.3%, while the CDC's Geraldine Doe Sherif took 1257, amounting to 31.5% . Coming in third place is the Alliance for Peace and Democracy (APD) candidate Wilson Tarpeh with 708 votes or 17.8%. In 4th place is the Liberty Party candidate Darius Dillon, with 247 votes, accounting for 6.2%. In 5th place is Mr. Alhaji Kromah, independent, with 191 votes, standing for 4.8%. Next is independent candidate Grace Kpan, who got 40 votes, accounting for 1.0%. The Rev. Jasper Ndarbolor of the Free Democratic Party received 33 votes, standing for 0.8%. Jackie Capehart, an independent, received 44 votes, accounting for 1.1%. Mr Daniel Johnson, an independent, received 13 votes, standing for 0.3%. Mr. Nathaniel Toe, Independent, received 5 votes, accounting for 0.1%.
The above represent votes counted from 280 precincts, representing 33 voting centers. The total votes cast is 4038. Out of this, 51 were declared invalid, while 3987 were valid. NEC had anticipated a huge turnout putting the number of registered voters at 473, 923.
The finale will be decided on many factors, amongst them the candidates' ability to woo voters that lined-up behind the other 8 candidates with voter apathy prevailing. Getting voters out to vote in the second round could prove decisive.
But even before the whistle can be blown for the race to commence, Mr. Weah is warning against cheating him. In 2005, he claimed he won 62% of the total votes but that he was cheated of victory. He however withdrew from an investigation into the claims before a decision could be made.
On his radio, Mr. Weah now is a different time and that he will not accept being cheated, implying his candidate must win for the elections to be fair.
"Liberia's democracy could be plunged into trouble if the election is not free, fair and transparent. The seat belongs to CDC and UP want to take it from us, but we will win it back.
So we want the NEC to play fair so we all can live in peace, the footballer said shortly after casting his ballot at the Kenedja Polling Center on the Roberts Field Highway in Paynesville.
Warning of "severe consequences" if the Montserrado Senatorial by-election is marred by flaws, Mr. Weah said the CDC takes the Senatorial by-election highly critical and would do all it can to maintain the seat it previously occupied in the Senate.
On Tuesday, the day of the senatorial by-elections NEC Chair Mr. James Flomayan informed police and UNMIL of threats on his life, including threats on family members from the CDC. He said CDC partisans threatened to burn down his home and kill him if the results are not in their favor. Armed police have already been deployed at Mr. Flomayan's home and security beefed up around the capital.
Speaking to this paper Wednesday, NEC Fromayan admitted that there were few irregularities but said that given the scale of the task on a scale of 100, NEC performance was 75%.
"There were election irregularity at some centers but if you look at it in totality, given the scale of the task and what we did on the scale of 100, we did about 75%," Mr. Fromayan said as he spoke of plans by the NEC to improve upon its performance for the pending run-off.
"We will have to ensure that voting materials and security personnel are deplored on the eve of the election to avoid some of these delays," Mr. Fromayan said.
He said the coding problem experienced on Tuesday will also be solved, adding that the problem came from the IT section.
"I think there were some lessons that we learned like in some cases where our IT people never consolidated the appropriate coding. We have taken the necessary steps.
We will make sure we put measures in place so that the irregularities that went on could not be repeated. There will be a post election evaluation. We will call our donor partners, political parties and see what lessons can be learnt from this." he said.
Commenting on his readiness for the 2011 elections judging from the commission's performance in the just ended county by-election, Mr. Fromayan said: "For National Elections I can tell you, it is non-issue, the momentum by itself." " 2011," he said, will be the entire country and we will have increased manpower with the green-light that we are getting from UNDP, USAID, that they are coming on board. Obviously we need to have technical assistance that we will need to be able to conduct the national elections."
Observers say many voters who refused to turnout Tuesday cited the poor performance of current members of the Legislators who they voted in 2005 general elections, saying they have done nothing to change their status-quo as reasons for not showing up.
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Liberians, we are far behind in everything and do not listen to anyone who will threaten people.We are already suffering and it will be unfair to us if we listen to those that are living their comfortable.Hannah Brent was a very peaceful person.Let her seat be given to the winner.We are tired running around the world and secondly everyone is getting too old to start moving from place to place.America that people used to run to has her own financial problem and the party leaders do not have space for us in their homes. .Peace Liberian peace is what we want not destruction.
Liberians, we are far behind in everything and do not listen to anyone who will threaten people.We are already suffering and it will be unfair to us if we listen to those that are living their comfortable.Hannah Brent was a very peaceful person.Let her seat be given to the winner.We are tired running around the world and secondly everyone is getting too old to start moving from place to place.America that people used to run to has her own financial problem and the party leaders do not have space for us in their homes. .Peace Liberian peace is what we want not destruction.
Liberians, we are far behind in everything and do not listen to anyone who will threaten people.We are already suffering and it will be unfair to us if we listen to those that are living their comfortable lives.Hannah Brent was a very peaceful person.Let her seat be given to the winner.We are tired running around the world and secondly everyone is getting too old to start moving from place to place.America that people used to run to has her own financial problem and the party leaders do not have space for us in their homes. .Peace Liberian peace is what we want not destruction.
I got the information yesterday and it sad. Weah is a idiot. How can such a man with high regard for been been such a wonderful footballer and role model threaten violence. The senatorial seat of montserrado county does not belong to CDC. They won in 2005 but since the senator die the seat is up for grap so why he and his party acting like fools... Read More.
Elections in Liberia are characterized by uncertainties, due to the possibility of election-related violence. Election cycles themselves are not root causes of conflict, they create space for political activity, and increase the stakes of political competition such that in unconsolidated democracies, existing tensions may find violent expression. The risk of violence is particularly high when inappropriate electoral systems are chosen, or when elections are poorly managed.
Low voters turn out in the montserrado senatorial election are evidences of the poor performance of current members of the Legislature (comprises mostly of CDC and UNity Party) who the people voted for in 2005 general elections. They have done nothing to change their status-quo as reasons for not showing up.The closer a non-ideal democracy comes to maximum democratic participation, the less likely it is to adopt the means to ideal democratic participation. Lower voter turnout sets the stage for better democracy.
you are a big fool and naive man Seltuesoccer. I hope that you really understood what actually Weah was saying.i am quite sure you want weah to be only bad person now in liberia, but iam here to let you know without fear that you and ur ellen are shit, i mean just groups wicked people with no vision for our home. If you were Weah, what will you say? i mean as regarding this issued? this man was broadly cheated during the 2005 election, and he accepted this in the name of peace or for peace sake. only to find out that you people are still carrying on nonsense in our home. went will ur ellen make the difference? as she said during her so call speeches in liberia. look we are very tired of hearing alot of sweet mouth from you people, we need a concern leader for our home as presence not ellen please. we want to come home and enjoyed our country as liberian not to be see our people dieing from hunger, and hard cause of surviveing. ellen promised the liberian people to carry them to goden hill, with her mouth. shame on you and ur ellen for ever. i believed that you are surviveing under her influence as i observed, this why you are looking at your brothers and sisters in stuggle. But i just want to let you know that ellen is one of the wicked president in liberia that the liberian people ever have as president.infact in my owned right observed as a vandal, i mean some one who carry on vandalism. SHAME ON HER WEAH MUST GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. IF YOU LIKE OR NOT. OMELL
You are a blind loyalist and I pity you for your ignorance. It naive and stupid to make threat during election and Weah been naive and uneducated did just that. I am not UP member but ADP member. I just give you an analysis of election violence and you still don't get the concept. What a ignorant fool.
I don't blame you for what you are saying. Your grammar here shows that you don't even have a good english skill like the candidate you claim to support. Your position is based on ignorance. Think about going to school too so that you can't bear the same weight..You sound so damn ignorant . Education is the key to success and don't be misled that we Liberians going to sit and make someone with no knowledge of leadership or technical or educational skills to lead us from the turmoil we find ourselves in. We Liberian need to value education if we want to development Liberia because without it we are doom to fail in developing Liberia. Weah is not the savior for Liberia. The man is limited and lack every necessary to lead a post-conflict society like our.
Why antagonize people that seek education or obtained education? It only people that fear to acquire educational and vocational skills that are afraid of people that had already been there and done it all.For your information in every society there are alway dishonest people or educated fools but to use that to allow someone with no knowledge of leadership or technical or educational skills to ascend to the highest office of the land tell me that we as people are indeed confuse and need to put education as first priority in developing our country. Liberian not putting education first is very dangerous for national economies, technical, social and infrastructural development in our country.
Let the NEC chairman know that is not 2005 is not 2009 or 20011 to come, they got some thing they call except the results, let him put his house in other to avoid election flaws, if this senatorial by - election is not free, fair & transprant,can we trust him with the 2011 election, i say a big NO..To Mr. Weah i say stay cool, we are montering the NEC,this election is just a test for them, Liberia will not go back to were it came from. threat we say no, but again, not because we say no to threat the NEC must go on & do things that are not right.
Liberians, we are far behind in everything and do not listen to anyone who will threaten people.We are already suffering and it will be unfair to us if we listen to those that are living their comfortable.Hannah Brent was a very peaceful person.Let her seat be given to the winner.We are tired running around the world and secondly everyone is getting too old to start moving from from place.America that people used to run to has her own financial problem and the party leaders do not have space for us in their h
omes.Peace Liberians we want peace and not destruction.