Baccus Should Be Last to Talk About Instability - Says Dr. Fahnbulleh
Forum
Monrovia, Liberia
Distributed by
The Perspective
Atlanta, Georgia
Dr. Fahnbulleh counteracted Mr. Matthews’s claim when he (Matthews) accused the Unity Party Standard-bearer Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf along with him( Fahnbulleh) of being responsible for instability in the country.
Dr. Fahnbulleh disclosed that Mr. Matthews in 1979 used the Movement for Justice in Africa (MOJA) which he (Fahnbulleh) formed part of, to have infused the rice riot situation that set the stage for instability in Liberia. He said some members of MOJA including himself were arrested for the incident.
But differing with Dr. Fahnbulleh, Mr. Matthews who also served as Liberia’s Foreign Minister in Doe and IGNU governments said he did not instigate instability but conducted a peaceful demonstration that was misconstrued by the government of the day resorting to forceful use of arms.
“We must be careful how to label others as destabilizers-we all stand guilty of what happened in the past,” Fahnbulleh noted.
Dr. Fahnbulleh also observed contradiction in Matthews’ claim that he doesn’t support instability in the country, adding that he Matthews has been benefiting from the spoils of war.
According to him, Mr. Matthews who accused Madam Ellen Sirleaf for being responsible for instability never took assignment in former President Charles Taylor-led government but he (Matthews) accepted job from Taylor as a Public Relations Officer for Oriental Timber Company (OTC), a company that fueled the war in Liberia thus questioning Matthews’ principle of neutrality.
Mr. Fahnbulleh also accused Baccus Matthews of being one of the partisans of the party he described as: “Any Government in Power (AGIP)” to find jobs for themselves.
But Matthews sharply reacted by saying that he is a professional man who has lived in the country for the past 25 years and not one of those who frequently live in foreign countries looking for work.
The two former Foreign Ministers who appeared on special radio talk show-Sky 107 FM, were engaged to deliberate on the “Imperatives of Liberia’s Foreign Policy” by the next elected president to once more build the country’s image internationally.
For his part, Dr. Fahnbulleh pointed out that Liberia’s foreign policy will depend on our close contact with the Mano River Union countries by giving them the assurance of stability, interaction with ECOWAS, AU and the international Community like our traditional friends of America.
He said Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf-led Unity Party government will be accepted by MRU leaders like Presidents Tijan Kaba of Sierra Leone and Lasana Conte of Guinea to build regional stability.
Mr. Matthews who represented George Weah’s Congress for Democratic Change said Liberia’s foreign policy will depend on how well we run our domestic policy by firstly consolidating peace through reconciliation. According to him, he sees Mr. Weah as unifier of the country and has the ability to promote Liberia’s foreign policy.
