Liberia: ‘CDC to Lose 2023 If… ‘ – VP Jewel Howard Taylor

Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor has predicted that the government of President George Weah might find it difficult to retain state power in 2023 if sound and robust decisions are not taken quickly to improve the livelihoods of the people.

VP Taylor’s statement comes just days after some stalwarts of the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) came out to speak against the government on how it is handling the economy.

Most importantly, the statement from the VP, the second high ranking official of the government, is a clear an indication that the 2023 general and presidential election might not be an easy ride for the party as expected.

According to VP Howard-Taylor, the ruling party’s massive defeat during the just ended December 8, 2020 senatorial elections signified that the party has failed to improve the lives of the people as promised in 2017, and it is highly predictable that it might struggle to retain state power in 2023.

“2020 was a very strategic year,” VP Howard-Taylor said. “The people went out expressing their message of frustration through the ballot box. Democracy is about engagement and interaction with the people. I hope everyone has heard that message,” VP Taylor said.

“I hope we have gotten a clear message that the people have sent to us… I hope we can look at where we have fallen short and catch up to see how we can change the trajectory; the Chinese people say if you do not change where you are going, you will end up where you are headed; I hope this is a loud and clear message to us that we must get everyone on board,” said VP Howard-Taylor in an interview with Spoon TV.

However, the Liberian Vice President repeatedly warned that any more failure from the ruling party not to live up to the people’s expectations; the next election result could be a repeat of the just-ended election.

But she said that such a situation could be avoided if the ruling party puts itself together, reassesses its priorities as well as reenergize the hope and aspirations of the people so that they can once again believe in what the government is doing.

“As leaders, you must believe that people are able to look at their future and take the proper decision that they must take,” added VP Howard Taylor. “Maybe it was time to sit back and see how things will end up… though I was not in my best mood considering what had happened to me.”

VP Howard-Taylor’s admission of the need for change in the style of governance is similar to recent statements made by some members of the ruling party including Representative Acarous Gray of Montserrado County District #8 and Deputy Information Minister for Press and Public Affairs Eugene Fahngon that urgent change is needed to enable the party to retain power in 2023.

They two officials and stalwarts of the CDC-led government indicated that the county’s current economic situations put the CDC in a bad position for 2023 if some improvements are not made quickly.

Meanwhile, VP Howard Taylor has publicly acknowledged that there’s a lot of hopelessness and disappointments across the country and within the ruling establishment to the extent that some stalwarts of the CDC are now expressing their frustrations.

According to the Vice President, before last year’s defeat, she told a higher ranking official of the party that the ruling coalition was going to lose seats in the special senatorial election for bad internal governance.

That internal issue, the VP said, resulted from a situation where everyone within the Coalition was not on board during the just ended elections including her, as she was not active and felt disrespected.

“Government is elected to make its people happy, so the message coming out of 2020 says the people are not happy,” she said. “We must reassess and see what we can do to make the people happy.”

She furthered expressed disappointment that the agreement that brought about the establishment of the Coalition for Democratic Change is no longer respected.

The Vice President claimed that she and the NPP have been sidelined in many decisions arising from the governing CDC, including some of her functions that are clearly spelt out in the Constitution of Liberia.

It can be recalled that during the just-ended election, the CDC-led Government was defeated in Bong, Bomi, Grand Cape Mount, River Gee, Lofa, Margibi, Rivercess, Grand Bassa, and Montserrado counties, while results from Nimba and Gbarpolu are still pending.

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