Gabriel Baccus Matthews is now in his final resting abode but his political presages and prophetic conclusion remained unchanged today.

	• J. Milton Teahjay

During his life, the Liberia political Maradona, as he was referred to, verbalized on many occasions that weak opposition political parties were a threat to democracy, and his friends and followers are still believe he was right then and right today.

One of his mentors, J. Milton Teahjay is even expanding on the late progressive prophesies, saying the country is resting on a time bomb that could explode in a matter of time, and that most of what he (Baccus) said are happening.

The Analyst looks at the statement vis-à-vis present political realities obtaining in Liberia’s infant democracy.

“Baccus's political conclusion in the late 1990s is rapidly becoming a reality in a Sirleaf Liberia,” says J. Milton Teahjay, one of the radical “Progressive” politicians who shares the ideas and philosophy of the man said to be the father of multipartyism in Liberia, the late Gabriel Baccus Matthews.

Baccus was an icon of political agitation who embraces peaceful change, and Teahjay says the prophetic words of Baccus still echoes today and that they suit the political reality of the day.

Milton Teahjay notes that in one of his prophetic statements, Baccus Matthews had concluded that weak opposition political parties were a threat to democracy.

He said what’s obtaining today is not different from Baccus’ assertion: “In Liberia today, majority of the national political leaders are busy with how they can secure job placements from the ruling party and have consequently ameliorated their positions on critical national issues so as not undermine their chances of securing jobs.”

Recounting semblances of the things the late Baccus pointed out, the Executive of the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) and one of founding members of the United People’s Party said, “Under the Unity Party leadership, elections results in Liberia are predetermined in favor of the ruling party before those elections are even conducted, a practice which is enhanced by an election commission, saturated with political cronies of the president.”

Teahjay who many say shares the philosophy of his mentor indicated “As regards the independence of the judiciary, Liberia's judicial system has regrettably and arguably returned to what appears to be pre-1980 judiciary in which judicial officials were consistently manipulated and made extensions of the Executive branch of government.”

“Under Mrs. Sirleaf, reference is hereby made specifically to an Associate Justice who was made a bag-boy on a non judiciary related presidential foreign trip to the disgust of other justices of the Bench.

Secondly, with judicial approbation, the constitutionally assigned power of the Liberian people to democratically elect, provincial leaders has been taken away from them and given to Mrs. Sirleaf to appoint individuals who should otherwise be elected.

In a nutshell, under the Unity Party, Liberia's constitution is subjected to repeated slaughter and continuous butchery by executive arrogance,” Mr. Teahjay said.

Under the Sirleaf presidency, he believes, the Liberian National Legislature has been irreparably destabilized and sufficiently damaged through presidential manipulations bordering illegality.

“There is stone-walling currently taking place, allegedly backed by the executive, to conceal the facts about executive­ financed bribery of legislators which resulted in 'the removal of a sitting Speaker and consummated in the enthroning of a presidential protégé and confidant as Speaker.”

Mr. Teahjay presaged that Liberia, under Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, has become a political time-bomb awaiting explosion, noting that the security forces are busy allegedly orchestrating lists of opposition politicians as to how they can be implicated in bogus coup plots and subsequently charged with treason.

Recently, an accused former AFL Officer Dorbor sent panic through out the country when he publicly revealed in court the names of prominent politicians who Security Forces had wanted him to falsely implicate in fake coup plot against Mrs. Sirleaf.

“Liberia, under the Unity Party,” he said, “has degenerated into gangsters' paradise where only Mrs. Sirleaf and her immediate family members are safe at night and everyone else becomes community vigilante to ensure personal security.

"The entire nation is split along political, sectional, and tribal lines manifested in the issuance of a presidential pardon of an accused without trial while others are languishing in prison cells.”

According to the former Deputy Minister of Information, only those who belong to the ruling aristocracy have access to three meals daily with everyone else left to ration between real rice and bulgur wheat to have daily meals, adding that members of the governing elites are making no effort to share the benefits of the country with others.

On the issue of education, he ruled out that education under the Sirleaf administration has achieved anything significant.

“Educationally, while university, college, and high school students are clamoring for school busses, modem libraries, increase in instructors' pay, and other modem educational facilities, Mrs. Sirleaf is recklessly investing about $783,000 USD in the construction of a concrete fence around a cemetery.”

However, Mr. Teahjay’s prognosis is that the un-official government policy of political alienation and economic strangulation must be immediately reversed. He says, “This will guarantee our collective security and nurture our buoyant democracy.

"Opposition political leaders must engage the Sirleaf administration with deliberate speed so as to safe the country from drifting into chaos and anarchy because, Mrs. Sirleaf, left alone and all by herself, does not have the capacity and the political will to reconcile the country toward genuine and demonstrable progress.”

“Gabriel Baccus Matthews, though in his final resting place, would have commented no different from these political observations being advanced to the Sirleaf administration.”

This is the first time Teahjay has commented on the present political equation since the death of Gabriel Baccus Matthews, the man whom most Liberians still missed.

His statement comes barely a day to the day Liberians will throng cemeteries around the city their lost mothers, fathers, uncles, aunties and other loved ones. Among those to be remembered tomorrow is G. Baccsus Matthews who is about 6 months old in his resting place.
 
Pointers: - J. Milton Teahjay

Baccus's political conclusion in the late 1990s is rapidly becoming a reality in a Sirleaf Liberia. In one of his prophetic statements, Baccus had concluded that weak opposition political parties were a threat to democracy.

In Liberia today, majority of the national political leaders are busy with how they can secure job placements from the ruling party and have consequently ameliorated their positions on critical national issues so as not "undermine their chances of securing jobs.

Under the Unity Party leadership, elections results in Liberia are predetermined in favor of the ruling party before those elections are even conducted, a practice which is enhanced by an election commission, saturated with political cronies of the president.

As regards the independence of the judiciary, Liberia's judicial system has regrettably and arguably returned to what appears to be pre-1980 judiciary in which judicial officials were consistently manipulated and made extensions of the Executive branch of government.

Under Mrs. Sirleaf, reference is hereby made specifically to an Associate Justice who was made a bag-boy on a non judiciary related presidential foreign trip to the disgust of other justices of the bench.

Secondly, with judicial approbation, the constitutionally assigned power of the Liberian people to democratically elect, provincial leaders has been taken away from them and given to Mrs. Sirleaf to appoint individuals who should otherwise be elected. In a nutshell, under the Unity Party, Liberia's constitution is subjected to repeated slaughter and continuous butchery by executive arrogance.
 
Under Mrs. Sirleaf's presidency, the Liberian National Legislature has been irreparably destabilized and sufficiently damaged through presidential manipulations bordering illegality.

There is stone-walling currently taking place, allegedly backed by the executive, to conceal the facts about executive­ financed bribery of legislators which resulted in 'the removal of a sitting Speaker and consummated in the enthroning of a presidential protégé and confidant as Speaker.

Liberia, under Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, has become a political time-bomb awaiting explosion. The security forces are busy allegedly orchestrating lists of opposition politicians as to how they can be implicated in bogus coup plots and subsequently charged with treason.

Recently, an accused former AFL Officer Dorbor sent panic through out the country when he publicly revealed in court the names of prominent politicians who Security Forces had wanted him to falsely implicate in fake coup plot against Mrs. Sirleaf.

The entire nation is split along political, sectional, and tribal lines manifested in the issuance of a presidential pardon of an accused without trial while others are languishing in prison cells.

Only those who belong to the ruling aristocracy -at. have access to three meals daily with everyone else left to ration between real rice and bulgur wheat to have daily meals. Members of the governing elites are making no effort to share the benefits of the country with others.

Educationally, while university, college, and high school students are clamoring for school busses, modem libraries, increase in instructors' pay, and other modem educational facilities, Mrs. Sirleaf is recklessly investing about $783,000 USD in the construction of a concrete fence around a cemetery.
Comments and Prognosis:

The un-official government policy of political alienation and economic strangulation must be immediately reversed. This will guarantee our collective security and nurture our buoyant democracy.

Opposition political leaders must engage the Sirleaf administration with deliberate speed so as to safe the country from drifting into chaos and anarchy because, Mrs. Sirleaf, left alone and all by herself, does not have the capacity and the political will to reconcile the country toward genuine and demonstrable progress.

Gabriel Baccus Matthews, though in his final resting place, would have commented no different from these political observations being advanced to the Sirleaf administration.