It was a sweltering sunny Saturday in the City of Sanniquellie on February 4, 2023 when Nimbaians swamped the streets of Northern Liberian County capital to welcome the National Secretary General of the Congress for Democratic (CDC), Jefferson Tamba Koijee who had gone in proxy on behalf of President George Manneh Weah to receive a petition. The vehicle could barely move more than 5km per hour as it trudged through mammoth crowd of predominately young people, traditional leaders, women, physically challenged and stakeholders of the county.
The immensity of the crowd came a fortnight after Nimba County Senator Prince Y. Johnson passed a decree to his kinsmen to boycott all activities of President Weah and his Coalition for Democratic Change in the county. The instruction frustratingly fell on deaf ears as the citizenry chanted slogans in their local lingo that meant “appreciate those who do good for you.”
According to them, the vastness of the CDC led government development initiatives in Nimba County are irresistible to allow a political advocacy underpinned by selfish interest to be heeded to.
“If supporting the second term of President Weah is wrong, we don’t want to be right,” they chanted to reverberating cheers.
Senator Johnson’s move is, however, being condemned by many ordinary Nimbaians in the county, who say the ex-Liberian warlord’s moves are often for self-benefit and not the benefit of the entire county.
“The only major development Sen. Johnson can boast of in this county is his university which he built in his own name,” Prince Dolo, a citizen told newsmen.
Solomon Duakpah, a resident of Gompa, told journalist, Senator Johnson is renowned for using his involvement in the civil war to threaten Nimbians to direct their directions during electioneering periods, cautioning his kinsmen to wise up ahead of the October presidential election.
“It’s time we (Nimbaians) shun Senator Johnson and make an independent decision, not to fall prey to his decisions in October. We have rewarded him as a county for his role played in defending our county during the civil war by voting him twice as a senator and supporting candidates, he has asked us to support in previous elections but he hasn’t rewarded us as a county.”
Saye Barlea, another native of Nimba County, said the Senator’s announcement calling for residents of the county to shun the pending petitioning program of the president is “late on arrival” as they (residents) are resolved to endorse President Weah. “We have understood Senator Johnson ‘s political gimmick and won’t cave into this any longer. We are prepared to endorse the president, and there is nothing that will stall this. Gone are the days Nimbaians rely on Senator Johnson for political direction. Our overwhelming turnout will send a clear message to Senator Johnson ahead of the October presidential election.”
A representative of the elders of the county indicated that Nimba County interpose no objection to President George Weah’s re-election bid and the county, according to him, is declared a no-go zone for other political parties.
In remarks, the National Secretary General of the CDC Koijee said the CDC is grateful that the many development initiatives in Nimba County are appreciated by the people. In inferred that one person’s anger cannot be interpreted as an entire county’s anger because when that person is satisfied, it is he and his family that would benefit not the people of the county. “I want to ask a question: how has the happiness of one man impacted the entire county positively? It is only he and his family that enjoy while the rest of the people continue to suffer. It is not just about Nimba County but all the other counties where people think they have successfully transformed counties into their personal properties. We need to change that narrative,” he pointed out to the crowd amid cheers and chanting of battlecry.
