Cllr. Varney Sherman, upbeat by his preferment to serve as Liberia's 166th Independence Day orator, pulled out his contemplations, using rich legal and personal persuasiveness, about the events that bedeviled Liberia, the unsavory and slippery paths Liberia had to cruise and what the government led by the Party he heads has to do to reset the button.

A very lengthy speech that lasted for close to two hours and mirrored Liberia's longstanding nightmares ranging from the endeavors of the American Colonization Society (ACS), the externalities of the Commonwealth undertakings, the hurdles that marred the declaration of independence, the bitter effects of the period of pugilism, the national orator endeavored to remind the President of the tenacity, vision and courage of the founding fathers of the land. While commending President Sirleaf, who happens to be the standard-beater of the Unity Party of which the Orator is a chairman, for adequately rebranding Liberia's image internationally and undertaking series of development programs, he equally put forth varieties of propositions which in his view if implemented could facilitate and smoothen the path that leads to national healing, peace, reconciliation and transformation.

Of the hills and valleys before such as the fight against corruption, addressing the issue of poverty and unfair distribution of the national wealth, he said the president could only overcome those only when she becomes more visionary, much more courageous and bold.

"On this 166th Anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Liberia I commend you, Madam President, very highly for the achievements and accomplishments of your administration; and to you Mr. Vice President and Honorable Members of the leadership of our country, we thank you for collaborating with our President for these achievements and accomplishments. But I submit that all of these achievements and accomplishments, including the many others which I have not mentioned, are not enough as a foundation to transform our country," the national orator who is being criticized as being part of the problem said.

His call on the president to be more visionary and much more courageous hinged on his belief that that some of those things which made it possible for us to go to war against one another are still simmering.

Reminiscing the horribleness of the war that ravaged the country, he was quick to remind the President and Liberians at large to examine themselves and every aspect of the country, asking whether enough of the fundamental differences and long-standing problems which caused our civil war were addressed during the previous year and we should evaluate the extent to which our success or failure in addressing those differences and long-standing problems may have enhanced or affected our country's progress.

He said: "Simply stated, as much as you have done and accomplished, Madam President, your Government, like our founders during the years of 1845 to 1847, has a singular responsibility and obligation to be just as visionary as they were or even more visionary than they were, to be just as bold and courageous as they were or to be even bolder and more courageous than they to tackle head-on our fundamental problems and differences so that genuine peace may be used as the foundation to restore our country to its pre-war status and genuine reconciliation may be the fulcrum for its transformation."

Salient as these proposals seem to be, analysts do not think the orator has done justice to the country by waiting this long before advancing them.

Not many Liberians, may be including the national orator, that the president has the temerity and political will to tackle head-on issues that continue to dampen the image of her government and even impugn on her legacy.

Like Cllr. Sherman known officials of the Unity Party have indicated their disagreements with the President's style of leadership, her lack of vision to transform Liberia in spite the hugely overwhelming international support.

Though the president had promised over and again her government's determination to correct the mistakes that lubricated the decimating conflict, yet critics continue to argue those promises are shrouded in trickery, tomfoolery and labiality.

The issue of nepotism for which the president is criticized by all including her own political insiders still hunts her, as she is yet to act by removing the stints of nepotism which is a serious constitutional problem.

The orator is afraid that Liberia could return to war because there still exists cleavages of war.

"Today, after nearly ten years since the last gun was fired, we celebrate Independence Day with the theme "Consolidating Peace and Reconciliation for Transformation". But my fellow Liberians, peace and reconciliation in Liberia can never be fully achieved if we ignore what caused our civil war and if we don't resolve to remove those causes and change ourselves and our country around for the better," the learned Counselor said.

In the face of the seeming existence of the cleavages of war, he said there should be no merry-making because the semblance of peace Liberians enjoy should not be equated to the absence of war.

The issue of the accolades the President received and the attending low flow of information to the general public did not elude the claws of his oration, saying that Liberians were not adequately informed about the achievements and the benefits thereof.

"I am however concerned that enough information about these achievements and accomplishments has not flowed to the Liberian public at large and too many people, even within Monrovia and its immediate environs don't know enough about these achievements and accomplishments," Cllr. Sherman noted in a way that derided the ministry of information and press office at the Executive Mansion.

"The absence of information to the Liberian people about these achievements and accomplishments is a serious deficiency that must be remedied immediately," the orator said.

Saying also that these accomplishments and achievements can contribute to peace and reconciliation in our country, he said "I therefore recommend very strongly that the information dissemination structure and process of this Government be revamped and adequately supported to provide all information about the accomplishments and achievements of this Government; a dissemination of information in a way that it permeates every sector of our country."