The leadership of Concerned Widows and Children of the Armed Forces of Liberia has given President Joseph Nyuma Boakai on or before March 15, 2024 to address their lingering concerns or they will sit and cook in the streets of Monrovia in their numbers.
These women, whose husbands died during the Liberian civil crisis in defense of their country, have since been engaging a series of governments for their benefits. Some of them unfortunately met their untimely death in the struggle.
Addressing a team of journalists Monday, February 19, 2024 at their Star Base office on the Bushrod Island, the Chairperson of the Concerned Widows and Children of the AFL, Mary Allison, recounted that former President George Manneh Weah had spent at least 10 days in office in 2018 when he arranged a meeting with their leadership.
She added that this engagement was arranged through former Monrovia City Mayor, Jefferson T. Koijee, adding that the ex-Liberian leader tried his possible best to settle each of the over 2,000 children in late December 2023 with L$20,000, and promised to pay the widows their benefits if he won the 2023 presidential election, which was not successful but saw the ushering in of the presidency of Ambassador Joseph Boakai.
Allison indicated that each of the widows is to receive US$1,000, adding that the it was negotiated with former President Weah the amount, US$1,500, be reduced to US$1,000 due to the financial constraints the Coalition for Democratic Change administration was faced with.
The widows’ chief spokesperson pleaded with President Boakai to create space for them by providing their benefits, which will enable them to get involved with agricultural and other commercial activities across the country to be self-dependent and help their families.
She urged Vice President Jeremiah Kpan Koung and Senate Pro-tempore Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence to meet with the Liberian Chief Executive around the table and discuss the way to pay their benefits in order to lay the matter to rest.
“Please, I’m appealing again from now till next month the 15th, please call us to a roundtable to see how best to settle the AFL widows, from now till March 15, please. I’m appealing to your office, President Boakai. Call your cabinet. Y’all go meet to see how best to settle the AFL widows. Let this thing finish so we can go into agriculture. I want you to put us into agriculture, Mr. Boakai, and see whether we will not produce,” she maintained.
Allison further called on the President to cater to the widows and not pay ear to rumor about them from outside, noting that their total membership is 2,500 excluding the children who have already been settled by former President Weah.
“Weah already put the children out, we are talking about living widows on earth because he [Weah] settled the 2,200 children, while the 2,500 widows left for you to handle them,” she averred.
According to her, despite the Liberian government owing each of them US$1,000, the President can meet with their leadership, use his own discretion and make something available for them to do something productive for themselves.
However, Mary Allison threatened to mobilize all of the 2,500 widows to troop into Monrovia with their cook pots and sit and cook in the principal streets in demand of their benefits.
“Even if he does not have the time to see us, he should send his Vice President or whoever. We just want to see him, but if we don’t see him we will only have the last press conference, and the next one I will call all my women [widows] from all over the country. Then we will all sit down in the streets and cook palm butter there now,” she stated.