NPP’s Celebration of Taylor’s Departure Ends Sour


By: Melissa Chea-Annan

 

The Inquirer
Monrovia, Liberia

Distributed by

The Perspective
Atlanta, Georgia

August 12, 2004

The gaiety that occasioned yesterday’s program organized to mark one-year since the departure of former president Taylor by the National Patriotic Party(NPP), which he led to victory in the 1997 elections, was short-lived as hell broke loose at the end.

Had it not been for the swift intervention of the UNMIL civilian police, the situation would have been worse.
At about 6:45 p.m, scores of partisans who had gathered at the Sinkor 5th Street headquarters of the NPP took to their heels when a group of ex-fighters calling themselves "Veterans" besieged the premises, and began taking away furniture especially the plastic chairs to their various homes.

The ex-fighters, according to bystanders, were demanding from the NPP officials their share of the cake which marks the one year departure of exiled president Charles G. Taylor.

The party’s security came head on with the "veterans" who were demanding a share of a reported US$1million which they claimed had been sent to NPP chairman Edwin Holder by ex-president Charles Taylor for the program.

However, the NPP Chairman Edwin Holder was not available to comment officially on the matter.

Interestingly, an eyewitness told The INQUIRER that those involved in the disturbances were the combined forces of ex-fighters from the various warring factions in the country.

However, this could not be independently confirmed that fighters of the various factions and militias were involved.
Some former fighters who talked with The INQUIRER following the intervention of UNMIL and CIVPOL said, "as long as the officials were not ready to address their plights, they(the veterans) would continue to create an awareness to the public by disrupting the party’s gatherings."

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