by
Togba-Nah Tipoteh
The findings of the Center for Democratic Governance (CDG) and Afrobarometer (FPA, 23/3/23) indicate that the people of Liberia prefer to have Confidence in the electoral system than to have an electoral system in a state of Decadence. These findings come from a study done by Afrobarometer in Liberia from October to December 2020.
This study involved a sample size of 1200 Liberian adults, statistically using a +/-3 margin of error and a 95 per cent level of confidence. Both measures appropriate for a population size of five million people, approximately the population size of Liberia at the time.
The findings of the CDG and Afrobarometer point to some definite points: 1. 80 per cent of the people of Liberia conclude that Liberia is headed in the wrong direction; 2. 83 per cent of the people prefer the system of democracy than any other State governance system, and 3. 90 per cent of the people prefer to have leaders elected through a FAIR electoral system. Essentially, this preference means that the people of Liberia have Confidence in the FAIR electoral system but not in the UNFAIR electoral system, as supervised by the National Elections Commission (NEC) of Liberia, which is in its prevailing Decadence.
The lack of Confidence in NEC is due to the following bad record of NEC: 1. non-determination of the nationality of candidates; 2. allowing foreigners to vote in Liberia; 3. allowing the illegal trucking of voters; 4. violations of the rulings of the Supreme Court of Liberia; 5. allowing the unilateral decision-making of the Chairperson of NEC; 6. allowing non-Liberian citizens to serve as NEC Commissioners; 7. non-vetting of NEC representatives at NEC voting centers; 8. allowing the buying of voters; 9. allowing the the buying of electoral magistrates; 10. preference for only voter cards; 11. ignoring the voter registration roll, and 12. engaging in nepotism.
This lack of confidence in NEC must be of great concern to all of the people of Liberia. This lack of confidence in the electoral system of Liberia is nothing new. Let us recall the 1928 election in Monrovia, Liberia. The government of Liberia recorded 15,000 registered voters but 243,000 people were announced to have voted by the Elections Commission. The people of Liberia sent their Representatives to the League of Nations to protest against the bad State management in Liberia.
How can this Decadence in the electoral system be changed to give us Confidence in the electoral system? This change will come through the continuation of the awareness raising to motivate people to work together to change the UNFAIR electoral system into the FAIR electoral system. It is only through this change, within the Rule of Law, that persons with good records can get elected to bring in the system of Justice, the indispensable ingredient for Peace and Progress, especially Saving Lives, in Liberia and in any other Country.
