By Varney Sackey
Considering everything that the COUNTRY PEOPLE are doing to Liberia today, I must admit that we the Country People owe the Congo People an open apology for what we did to them in 1980.
Honestly speaking, if we decide to investigate and execute people for CORRUPTION in Government today, I can guarantee that we will need thousands of poles to execute many Country People on.
After killing 13 Congo People for CORRUPTION in 1980, we have a Country People Government in power today suffering the Country People. As I stated, we the Country People need to publicly apologize to the family members of Congo People we killed.
As a Country Man, I want to publicly apologize to all the Congo People for what we did to them. We can never bring your family members back but please forgive us. We the Country People have given birth to triplets of everything we executed your family members for.
For example, when it comes to STEALING from Liberia, we the Country People steal without remorse. Imagine we the Country People have agreed that as long as you STEAL from Liberia and use what you stole from Liberia for yourself in Liberia, your STEALING is a good stealing.
My fellow Liberians, in order to heal the wounds and promote unity, we must be willing to speak the undiluted truth. May God bless you and preserve our beloved country Liberia.
Only well educated people will realize that if you don’t know how to do something you better ask somebody.
If you want to prosecute and extend apologies for all atrocities you must look at Liberian history first, remember we are all Liberian.
“The evil that these military men did lives after them.”
The evil that some Liberians do will always live after them: regardless of who commits the evil. However, no matter whatever our ethnic differences may be, let’s not fail to realize that we are all bound together by the inescapable link of our unique national identity. We are all join together as Liberians whether we like it or not.
Therefore, let’s not look at our fellow Liberians through the antiquated lens of “Native/Congua Liberian” but look at our fellow Liberians through the progressive interconnected national lens that we are all Liberians.
Remember, the evil committed by some Liberians in the past, or present will surely live after them. Liberia is now reaping what some evil Liberians sowed. This is the great law of cause and effect or simply, Liberia’s Karma.
The article was clearly written by a person with an inferiority complex. That this website will dignify such trash speaks to their own mindset. Do we really want to open a pandora’s box on so called apologies owed, I think not.
We are all Liberians. All those men that were executed were born Liberians. Therefore, an apology at this time should be extended to all Liberians, because every Liberian has been affected since 1980. We Liberians have turned against each other since 1980. We should start thinking about how we can reunite as Liberians first, rather than referring to each other as congo-people or country-people. Apologies upon apologies have been extended and accepted but, yet we still continue to kill up each other. It is now time to unite and move on. I am a Liberian First and that’s what we should all be thinking about.
The article is “ insulting “! Many families executed were of mixed origins, they were Liberians official who served their government! Politics being what is allows one to takes sides, violence is unexceptionable..under no circumstances tolerated!
We, Liberians, are of mixed origins! Insulting article which propagates further divisions instead of the unity we seek!!
It was a horrific act of MURDER that occurred that day! TODAY the NATION is suffering from the ACTIONS of those MURDERERS!!
Mr. Sackey,
I’m troubled by your broad brush generalization at the center of your well meaning apology. Don’t forget that children from both sides of the big ethnic divide went to school together and coexisted peacefully for many years although at the time, unchecked wholesale economic and socio-political marginalization of the majority population was the order of the day. This period marked by “so say one, so say all” minority mentality was nothing short of economic terrorism and political suppression against the governed majority. That said, the excesses that occurred as the Nation embarked on a painful “course correction” were inexcusable, inhumane, and contrary to the teaching of the Holy Bible and must be repeatedly condemned. We must do so to learn from historical mistakes and avoid repeating them.
Simply pretending to be an apologist from either side short circuits the difficult conversation that must take place in order to sow the seeds of a wholesome, all inclusive, functioning society.
A Truth and Reconciliation Commission may still have value in our quest to heal as ONE NATION UNDER GOD!!
It’s time to move beyond the “Country-Congo” mentality and focus on a unified Liberia. Liberia is a land of settlers with the indigenous tribes arriving earlier from the various kingdoms in central and western Africa and the others (former enslaved) arriving from North America and the Caribbean. it’s time to focus on making Liberia “a home of glorious liberty by God’s command.” Some of us who had parents from both sides, may be confused. My indigenous mother and my settler father showed what it’s like to be a blended family. However, apology accepted, now let’s reconcile.
Mr. Sackey,
I like your thought process on the matter of a public apology to the families of those killed on those poles for “corruption.” Indeed, we will need thousands of poles for corrupt officials since the takeover of 1980; however, I think those who committed the crime should bear the burden of apology. Good news is that some of the perpetrators are still alive and it is not too late to have a reconciliation conference between the perpetrators and the families of the victims. This is important because neither the constitution at the time of the coup nor the 1985 amended constitution levy a death penalty for corruption therefore, the perpetrators were outright wrong for the gruesome killings of President Tolbert and those officials.
I personally think the brutal event of 1980 casted a dark cloud over Liberia up to this day and it is important that the perpetrators display a genuine act of apology and pursue reconciliation in all honesty.
Why bring up “Country” vs “Congo” when both of those words are undefined words?? In other words, who are the “country” people and who are the “Congo” people??? Does a 15 syllabi indigenous sounding name make you a “country” man or woman??? If so, why should people with indigenous sounding names apologize to anyone when we all know that it was Samuel Kanyon Doe and his bunch of illiterate thugs that ordered the execution of 13 former government officials for “rampant corruption” ???
Remember “Country Woman BORN Solider, Congau Woman BORN Rogue”?
There is a stark division between those 2 groups of Liberians. Unless there is an acknowledgement of wrongdoings and a healing process for all, Liberia will remain dysfunctional, backward and in the Dark Ages to say the least.
The mentality of blaming the “Congo” people for the plight of Liberia is not only misguided but misplaced. The 13 men were killed because of corruption; however those in power since 1980 have blatantly ignored the development of Liberia and have actually perpetuated the corruption that they themselves condemned, to the point where Liberia has regressed to primitive living.
When campaigning, Liberian politicians have used this division to promote themselves and manipulate the masses to get elected giving the population the impression that they will save them from the trauma they suffered from their predecessors.
I do believe that the killing of those 13 men is the root cause of Liberia sinking into the abyss she now finds herself; the greedy and corrupt politicians have manipulated the masses over the decades into believing that they are actually working in their best interest when in reality, it is very much to the contrary. It seems as if Liberians are in a trance, which is both sad and will continue to cause issues within our society.
It’s nowhere near over!