By: Rufus S. Berry II, MBA
A political & an Anti-corruption activist..
The past few months and the recent Senatorial Election in Lofa have been particularly difficult for the Opposition parties. It exposed mistrust and deep divisions, especially going back to Benoni Urey’s lawsuit against Alexander B. Cummings Jr. This was a period of ugly rhetoric and angry, sometimes powerful , exchanges among the opposition family. It was clearly “enemies within” and it resulted into just plain cruelty headlined news stories and became trending topics across social media, especially Facebook. It’s pretty natural that the ruling party would have been excited to see members of the opposition self-destruct.
One would be wise to conclude that while the members of the opposition were in court trying to destroy themselves, Cllr. Jallah was quietly connecting with the good people of Lofa county and it has paid-off – according to the official NEC reports, he’s now the Senator-elect of Lofa County.
Now is the time for healing and genuine reconciliation. This post-election period offers the perfect opportunity for the opposition to put aside their egos and admit that there’s a serious problem and immediately find the solution to the problem. This certainly isn’t unique to the Liberian opposition, but they might have to take inspiration from some divided societies and fragile democracies around the world.
The opposition urgently needs to reconcile their differences by creating a respectful environment for engaging themselves. In doing so, they will be one of their primary functions of upholding the best interest of the Liberian people. What better way of upholding the people’s best interest than questioning the government and holding them accountable to the public, to help fix the mistakes of the Ruling Party. The Liberian people are depending on the opposition to be United and Firmed.
As part of the healing process, members of the opposition political parties must have the ability to say, “Enough is Enough.” Ongoing exposure to hatred and social media fighting and separation by identity are toxic. This means civil behavior, kindness, respect, not saying or doing whatever we want because we can. Now, is the time to put the nation first.
Finally, in our relationships, our respective families, at our church churches and mosques, places of work , the hypothesis has long been established that all relationships suffer ruptures. However, what’s more important is the quality of repair. Now is the time for the opposition to come together in the midst of their differences for some serious negotiation and compromise as part of the healing process.
In union strong success is sure
We cannot fail!
With God above
Our rights to prove
We will o’er all prevail..