Molding A New Future For Liberia

The evil that man does lives after him. To the supporters of President Samuel Kanyon Doe, he did no evil, we heard no evil, and he introduced milti-party democracy into Liberia! I strongly disagree:

The Presidential Election of 1985 in Liberia was rigged. History recorded that. We can crunch the numbers, glorify the moment, whatever. Military governments are usually forced to have elections in order for their countries to continue getting international recognition and benefits. Military leaders appease those calling for civility by faking the democratic process. This is what Mr Samuel Doe did. This is what Mugabe has done in Zimbabwe. A showcase of such demagoguery can be seen world wide.

So, I find it indeed crazy for some to be celebrating today the nightmare of 1985. I find it unthinkable for some to espouse the notion that what went on in Liberia from 1980-1990 is cause for celebration. What is the essence of introducing a multi-party system that resulted in chaos...a chaotic and suppressive situation which later led to the destruction of a country?

We all have the right to see things differently to satisfy whatever we think we are trying to satisfy. But to say that President Samuel Doe, by himself, willingly introduce multi-party democracy into Liberia in 1985 is a farce. If Mr Doe really wanted his country to prosper, he would have sat back and let the democratic process work. Unfortunately, the gravy seekers were not yet satisfied. Their elbows were still dry after five years.

We are all losers in this cat and mouse game. The good thing is that Liberia is still there. Let's tell the darn truth without pussyfooting and move on. Like the Bible says: All men have sinned and come short of the glory of God. All past leaders of Liberia, I might add, have done our country and people injustice. They did things that would eventually take our country back to 1821. The vision was absent; 200,000 plus of Liberia's people perished; the skeleton of a nation remains.

Let those who survived...those who lived to tell the story of this holocaust..this brutality against haumanity...let those who are well-meaning in their hearts, begin to mold a new mindset and a new vision that will take Liberia into the future...a future that our children and grand children can give some positive meaning to. Let's work toward that end.