Former president returns to lead resistance, charging that the government is using the war on drugs to silence political opponents and trample constitutional rights
BY: JOHN KAMARA TAYLOR
MONROVIA — Liberia’s fragile democratic transition has plunged into fresh turmoil after former President George Weah accused President Joseph Boakai of ruling as a “tyrant” and unlawfully detaining former Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor at the airport, in a striking escalation of the country’s political crisis.
In a hard-hitting statement released on August 19, Weah the political leader of the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) alleged that Boakai’s administration had become increasingly authoritarian, using extrajudicial powers to target Liberians who hold opposing views.
“Today, without any prior notice, the former Vice President was unlawfully prevented from traveling, in violation of her constitutional right to free movement, and was subsequently harassed and detained,” Weah declared.
The former president said he had spoken directly to Taylor, who “vehemently, strenuously and categorically” denied all allegations against her, which he dismissed as politically motivated.
The detention comes against the backdrop of two major cocaine discoveries valued at nearly half a billion dollars seizures which, according to the statement, officials themselves admitted were smuggled into Liberia only after the peaceful handover of power to the Boakai administration.
Weah accused the government of neglecting the investigation to score political points, while claiming the Justice Minister read out “blanket accusations” without offering supporting explanation. Rather than pursue diligence, he argued, officials had sought to “fabricate and concoct connections” to the previous CDC administration while giving a “slap on the wrist” to their own named government and security officials.
“Despite a peaceful democratic transition, President Boakai seeks to rule as a tyrant. This we must all resist,” Weah said.
While affirming support for legal and judicious efforts to combat the drug epidemic, the former president warned that using the crisis for political gains posed a grave danger to Liberia’s peace and security.
Weah said he has engaged several regional and continental leaders to highlight the systematic undermining of the rule of law, and announced his intention to return to Liberia to rally the CDC and all well-meaning Liberians to resist the “tyrannical attempt” through all constitutional political and legal means.
“God Bless Liberia,” the statement concluded.