Amidst lack of unity among opposition political leaders opting to oust President George M. Weah and the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) government from power in October 2023, six political parties have decided to join ranks with the CDC, which puts the ruling party a few steps closer to retaining power.
The six political parties are People’s Liberation Party (PLP), headed by Tapple E. Doe; Movement for Economic Empowerment (MOVEE), headed by Ambassador Dee-Maxwell Saah Kemayah, Sr.; Union of Liberian Democrats (ULD), headed by Jonathan Mason; United People’s Party (UPP), headed by Dr. Da Monynson Tarr; Change Democratic Action (CDA), headed by Ambassador Wendell McIntosh; and Redemption Democratic Congress (RDC), headed by Victor S.N. Saylee, Sr.
Before the coming of these parties, the CDC was made up of three parties: Congress for Democratic Change (CDC), headed by President George M. Weah; National Patriot Party (NPP), headed by Vice President Jewel Howard-Taylor; and Liberian People Democratic Party (LPDP), headed by former Speaker, J. Alex Tyler.
This brings to nine (9) the number of political parties joining ranks to retain power in the upcoming general and presidential elections.
The event, held at the headquarters of MOVEE, Paynesville, brought together the political leaders, chairmen and partisans of the various parties, with MOVEE’s Standard Bearer, Ambassador Kemayah, making remarks on behalf of the six political parties.
According to Kameyah, the parties’ decision is in confirmation of the overwhelming development cut across the length and breadth of the country. He said it was an unanimous judgment by members of the six political parties to tie up the re-election quest of the CDC, which he said illustrates an authentic adoration of Liberia.
“It is our ardent prayer and commitment to the leadership of President Weah to do everything humanly possible to retrain his second term bid,” Ambassador Kemayah noted.
Welcoming the parties to the CDC, President Weah said, “I am honored to grace this historic ceremony today, which is intended to admit six new political parties into the fold of the mighty Coalition for Democratic Change. This will mark a significant enlargement of the CDC into a broad-based political movement that incorporates a multiplicity of diverse and various actors in the Liberian society into a single unified political organization.
“It is my pleasing duty, therefore, on behalf of the leadership of the CDC, and in my capacity as its Standard Bearer, to welcome all of you to our Coalition. Let me stress how happy I am that you have placed your trust in the CDC, which signifies that you believe that our vision for this nation aligns with yours.”
President Weah brought to the attention of the parties that the CDC is the party of the masses, and that it has always been so from the time of its founding. “It is a grass-roots movement that embodies the hope of ordinary people. For more than a decade after the formation of the party, while in opposition, we championed the cause of the downtrodden. Now, as a ruling party, we have tailored policies and development programs to specifically focus on improving the lives of the poor,” he underscored.
The Hot Pepper is informed that all the parties involved have completed the paperwork required for the consummation of the “grand coalition”. However, the paper could not ascertain whether or not the grand coalition will maintain or modify the name “CDC”, as effort to reach the Chairman and Secretary General of the CDC proved futile.
Even though the “grand coalition” makes the CDC stronger, other political parties are still considered strong based on the political geography of the country. For instance, the Unity Party (UP) arguably holds Lofa County as stronghold, the Movement for Democracy and Reconstruction (MDR) holds Nimba County and Liberty Party (LP) Grand Bassa. The Alternative National Congress (ANC) holds the support of majority of diaspora Liberians, in addition to the underground work of its Political Leader, Alexander B. Cummings, since the 2017 general and presidential elections.
If the UP, LP, MDR, ANC and the ALP can join ranks, according to a political pundit, they could wheel more support than the CDC “grand coalition”, but expressed skepticism if the opposition will not miss on this critical step.
