PHOTO: Some of the victims of the weekend’s violence
Locals in Liberia’s western Grand Cape County are currently living in fear due to bloody clashes on Saturday and Sunday (September 12-13, 2020) between supporters of opposition ANC candidate Simon Taylor and the ruling CDC party candidate and incumbent Senator Victor Watson.
The weekend’s violence is just the latest in a series of political violence that have taken place around the country including the capital, Monrovia in recent times.This comes ahead of the scheduled December 8 Mid-term Senatorial elections which will see half of the country 30-member Senate seats being contested.
Previously allegations were made against Watson in 2019 when he won the Senatorial Bi-elections, a claimed he denied.
Sen. Watson is accused of trucking people from Sierra Leone to register in the ongoing voter roll update there, something that reportedly left three persons severely injured, Journalist Omaska Jallah of the News Newspaper.
The incident reportedly occurred at two separate locations. One in Jene Liberia, Tewor District #3 while the other occurred in Latin along the Robertsport high way in Commonwealth District.
The incident in Jene Liberia is said to have started when supporters believed to be the ANC candidate Simon B. Taylor blocked the road alleging that a popular business man known as Idrassa Mansaray always in the constant habit of input people from neighboring Sierra Leone to register and vote for whoever candidate that he supports in the county.
Others who suffered injuries including Journalist Omaska Jallah
Supporters of Mr. Taylor alleged that this is not the first time of this popular business man inputting Sierra Leonean to part take in all of the elections and was because this the CDC candidate won the Senatorial by-election in October last year.
The violent clashes started at 10am in Jene Liberia in Tewor District #3, which police were informed about the situation but there was no immediate intervention. The police rather responded at 9:30pm, after the entire town came to standstill.
Due to this violent incident, the Voter Roll update also came to a standstill for nearly three hours something that women and children to escape in bushes for their lives.
The situation was placed under control by the CSO group District Platform for Dialogue before arrived at the time mentioned above.
Two persons sustained injuries in Jene Liberia, while Journalist Omaska Jallah of the News Newspaper got injured in Latin Commonwealth District along the Robertsport highway.
Over the weekend, residents of VOA community witnessed a trucking of some residents by NTA busses to Bomi County by former Speaker Alex J. Taylor. And another report from Lofa County says that some politicians are also trucking people from both Sierra Leone and Guinea to vote to for them.
One political observer wondered why politicians are doing so when they have good record or they have done well when serving in said capacity or if you have good records in the county they are contesting.
Meanwhile, the National Election Commission has ever since remains tight lipped on the matter. Report by Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com