By Jamesetta D Williams
The Minister of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism, Jerolinmek Matthew Piah, has pleaded government’s innocence in having hands in the demolition of the Headquarters of Congress for Democratic Change (CDC).
The eviction and demolition of last week, according to Piah, was not an action carried out directly by the government, but rather a decision of the court, restating his boss, President Joseph Boakai’s comments in similar fashion.
While the development has generated heated political and public debate, it is important for Liberians to understand that the government only respected the rule of law, and that the action was not a political witch-hunt or a move to silence the CDC, Piah said.
According to him, the court issued the order in response to legal matters surrounding ownership of the property, and the authorities were simply implementing what the judiciary mandated.
He stressed that under President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s administration, there is no interest in using state power to intimidate or suppress opposition voices.
The Minister emphasized that the government remains committed to protecting democratic freedoms, and that political parties, including the CDC, are free to operate as long as they do so within the framework of the law.
His clarification comes amid strong criticism from CDC partisans and some members of the opposition community, accusing the government of masterminding the eviction to weaken their party; such claims which he insisted are unfounded and misleading.
