Beltsville, Maryland, USA
(301) 931-3292
(240) 354-6844
PRESS RELEASE
Former UN Official Winston Tubman Manipulates to Subvert the Democratic Process in Liberia
The purpose of this instrument is to inform the people of Liberia and the international community about the manipulation and deception Counselor Winston Tubman along with executives of the National Democratic Party of Liberia (NDPL) employed on June 24, 2005 to subvert the democratic process at the Unity Conference Center where the NDPL is holding its convention to select a standard bearer.
Yesterday, June 24, 2005, set aside for registration and accreditation of delegates from the various counties showcased more than what NDPL partisans expected: deception of the highest order. Our senior campaign official who is also a delegate from Nimba County visited the convention center, registered, and received his name tag. Rather than go home, he decided to hang around the convention center to chat with delegates from other counties. As our campaign official surveyed the convention center, he discovered that there were no brochures, guidelines, or program of any sort printed for the convention.
In the meantime, at about 6:30 P.M. Liberian time, Counselor Winston Tubman arrived at the Unity Conference Center, the site of the party convention. NDPL party executives and others greeted and escorted him to the conference hall. Immediately after Mr. Tubman’s arrival, an electric generator which had not been running was switched on.
Shortly thereafter, our senior campaign official heard someone called out to all delegates to go to the conference hall. At the time the call was made, our campaign official saw Counselor Winston Tubman in the company of NDPL party executives including party chairman, Mr. Sieh, and party member, Mr. Jackson E. Doe.
Moments later, someone called out again for all delegates to go and take their seats in the conference hall because the party “standard bearer” wanted to speak to them. When our senior campaign official heard this, he went over and asked the party chairman, Mr. Sieh, to explain what was happening but Mr. Sieh indicated that he did not know what was happening.
Soon after Mr. Sieh’s denial that he knew nothing about what was going on, someone was asked to come out and introduce the “standard bearer,” Counselor Winston Tubman, to present his platform. This step was announced without presentation of the six other candidates vying for the position of party standard bearer or any form of balloting. No one knew by what means Mr. Tubman assumed the title of standard bearer and why he was being asked to present his platform when the other six candidates had not been accorded the same opportunity.
At that juncture, our senior campaign official launched a very loud verbal protest in which he indicated to party chairman, Mr. Sieh, and other party executives that if Counselor Winston Tubman were allowed to utter a word, there would be no NDPL convention. At that point, NDPL party executives took Counselor Winston Tubman away and all other delegates left the convention center.
We believe it is in the interest of all including Liberians and our international friends who have invested tremendous resources and risked their reputations to help Liberians secure peace and build a democratic society governed by the rule of law to pay close attention to the political process unfolding in Liberia.
We also believe that the total disregard for process and rule of law that Mr. Tubman and NDPL executives demonstrated yesterday flies in the face of the basic conditions of fairness and transparency Liberians and the international community expect in our political process and in building a stable and peaceful society governed by laws.
In this respect, we call on the government of the United States, the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the government of Great Britain, the government of Ghana, the United Nations, the European Union, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union, and the International Contact Group (ICG) to pay close attention to the political process unfolding in Liberia to expose those who cloak themselves with the good names of international organizations such as the United Nations, yet engage in acts that frustrate the democratic process which such organizations support as key to the rule of law.
