Tuesday, February 16, 2021 would mark exactly forty-five (45) years since the Common Council of Monrovia in 1976 declared February 16 each year a holiday within the City of Monrovia to be known as “Monrovia Day” –an important day that has been lifeless as long as memory can recollect until the advent of youthful Jefferson Tamba Koijee as Mayor of the City. Ever since, sincere efforts are made each year since 2019 to observe the day; hence rekindling the status quo.
Already, the City Government of Monrovia under the administrative helm of the Monrovia City Corporation (MCC) has begun receiving high profile guests from the Mano River Union basin particularly Mayors of the Cities of Freetown, Sierra Leone, Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr Obe and Conakry, Guinea, Aminata Toure, the Director of Kenyan School of Law Patrick Loch Otieno Lumumba among others to grace the occasion.
Upon her arrival, the Mayor of Freetown Aki-Sawyerr Obe said she and her entourage were mulling, while on their way, what their visit to Liberia for the Monrovia Day events would mean for the two cities: Freetown and Monrovia in terms of how to make the relationship between Monrovia and Freetown stronger; how to build bridges so that the Ibrahim Babamasi Babangida Highway that links Liberia to Sierra Leone can be used often by commuters.
She stressed that the colourful welcome her team received from Mayor Koijee exudes the necessity of improving the relationship between their two cities.
“Today, the welcome I just received, has really reinforced in my mind the importance of the relationship between our two cities. I am looking forward to this trip as I spend this time with you as you celebrate Monrovia Day,” Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr Obe emphasized.
The visiting Freetown City Mayor made a stopover at the Blue Lake in Tubmanburg, Bomi County with the message that residents of the area and those in charge of overseeing the sanctity of the lake should play their part in maintaining it while waiting for Government’s intervention in terms of full utilization for tourism. She encouraged them to keep trashes away from the water in order to keep it safe and clean for visitors.
“This lake can change your life because it is breathtakingly beautiful. Before the government comes in, you guys can take the lead to manage and protect,” Mayor Aki-Sawyerr Obe indicated.
She was then handed the key of the City of Monrovia.
For Mayor Koijee, he holds strongly that the observance of Monrovia Day is not just for showmanship but to demonstrate that city governance goes beyond cleaning the street.
He has vowed his commitment to ignite a paradigm shift in local governance in Liberia that would leave an indelible mark that young people too can make a significant impact if given the chance like President George Weah did in 2018 when he appointed as Mayor of Africa’s oldest city with all of its attending complexities in overpopulation.
Mayor Jefferson Tamba Koijee is expected to deliver the State of the City Message that would outline progress made, challenges incurred and programs for the coming year.
