Ahead of the 2023 presidential and legislative elections in Liberia, the Movement for Democracy and Reconstruction (MDR) seems to be divided over second-term support to President George Weah as the Vice Chair for Governmental Affairs, Wilfred N. Bangura, openly defaulted with the political godfather and Standard Bearer of the party, Senators Prince Y. Johnson and Jeremiah Koung, on decision to withhold the party’s support to the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) government. MDR supported President Weah during the 2017 election, which resulted into CDC’s victory over Unity Party (UP).
On Monday, January 23, 2023 the Deputy Minister for Administration, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and Vice Chair for Governmental Affairs Bangura held a press conference and directly attacked Senators Johnson and Koung for what he called their unilateral decision to withdraw the party’s support from the CDC-led government in the absence of an Executive Committee decision. Minister Bangura said he stands with President Weah for his reelection bid in the ensuring elections. According to him, attack on the President is unnecessary, and as an Executive Committee member he is not in the know of any decision made by the Executive Committee of the party not to support CDC.
A day after the statement made by Minister Bangura expressing his disagreement with Senators Johnson and Koung, MDR Vice Chair for Press and Public Affairs and the Youth Chair, Kelvin Maltadi and Czar M. Palay, in separate press conferences debunked Bangura’s recent assertion against the party’s Standard Bearer and political godfather.
Youth Chair Palay emphasized that the statement coming from the party’s acting Chairman is a mere bluff and is intended to justify his job at the detriment of the suffering Liberians. He urged Minister Bangura to either choose his job or leave the party because his statement is contrary to the party’s position.
For his part, MDR Vice Chair for Press and Public Affairs, Mataldi, intoned that since the Ganta convention where Bangura was denied the party’s chairman position he has distanced himself from the party’s activities, thus making such statements against the interest of the party. He reaffirmed the party’s early decision in Ganta during the convention to contest for the presidency in the up-coming general and presidential elections.