Liberia-Vice President Jeremiah Koung has revealed that the late Nimba County’s political godfather, Prince Y. Johnson predicted his own death while alive.
Making the disclosure over the weekend, Veep Koung said he is personally crestfallen because without Senator Johnson impacting his life, he wouldn’t be where he is today. VP Koung also disclosed how Senator Johnson predicted his own passing and how the public would subsequently react.
The Vice President said: “Some of us who were very close to Senator Johnson, he said to me that one day you will wake up and I will be dead. ‘But my death will spark a lot of debate. There will be people at my funeral that will be happy that I died; there will be people at my funeral that will be sad.’ And so, everything he said is happening. He knew everything happening today was going to happen. That’s why he said it to me, he said it to his wife, and certain people who were very close to him. So, it’s not strange.
“Nobody should respond to anybody on Facebook. People experienced Prince Johnson in different ways. It depends how you experienced him, how you will feel. Some of us who experienced him politically, to be here today, God first, if it wasn’t Prince Johnson, it would not happen. So, I have my own story.”
He continued, “The President was telling me yesterday that one of his daughters was pregnant during the war and she was around Senator Johnson’s base. It was Senator Johnson who gave that lady rice to eat. The little girl who she was pregnant came from America; she’s here. Because Senator Johnson gave the mother food, she survived that day. But the man whose rice was in the warehouse would not be happy; so that’s the kind of thing we find ourselves in. The woman who was pregnant with that baby, that could die with the child without food, today that woman is happy. Anywhere, you call Prince Johnson’s name, she will say, ‘let God bless him’. But the man who had the warehouse that the soldiers opened and gave a bag to the woman, that man will curse the person who took his rice, for God not to bless him. This is the kind of situation we are facing today. So, there is no need to respond. Let’s keep focused.”
According to Vice President Koung, the late Senator and President Joseph Boakai had the coziest of relationship, to the extent that President Boakai would often refer to Senator Johnson as “little brother”, and in reciprocating, Senator Johnson always addressed the president as “big brother”.
The presence of President Boakai at the Johnson residence immediately upon his return from Grand Bassa County over the weekend symbolized the close ties that existed between the two elderly statesmen, Koung opined.
“Mr. President, I want to say thank you, thank you ever so much for coming. I know how much you talked to me about Senator Johnson when the two of us are together. I know what you can say. There are some things that some people don’t know out here and there are some things we cannot say because we know what we know. But I want to say thank you for coming. Senator Johnson was your little brother; he always referred to you as big brother. Both of you always respected one another. Today he’s gone and you are here. We want to say thank you for elevating his burial to that level. We can assure you that the Nimba people will work with you to make sure we lay him to rest. Thank you, Mr. President.
“We want to say thank you to the elders for coming. Madam Superintendent, and the Caucus, we want to say thank you. Thanks to all of you, our mothers, the young people who left their busy schedules to come this morning. We are all here today because a big tree has fallen. Mr. President, yesterday the entire Nimba was shut down, no business anywhere. That’s how much this Senator means to us,” VP Koung stated stoically.
Speaking on behalf of the Nimba County local government administration, Superintendent Kou Meapeh Gono expressed gratitude to President Boakai for visiting the bereaved family. “We want to express our gratitude to His Excellency for being here today. His being here makes us proud. To the people of Nimba, we say thank you. Let us surround the bereaved family and take solace that he transitioned amid his wife and children. That is our deepest consolation,” she said.
Speaking further, the Nimba Superintendent thanked the Vice President and the Legislative Caucus. She said: “People may not understand us, but it is only a united people that can vote for one person overwhelmingly. No other candidate has ever done that. We will continue to support the Rescue Mission. We thank you for standing by Mrs. Johnson and the family. Your presence here is evidence of the love you have for the people of Nimba and the bond we share.”
An elder of the county expressed gratitude to President Boakai for assuring that Senator Johnson will be accorded a proper state funeral befitting a statesman who served his country. “We are happy that you are here to assure us that our son will be given a state burial. We the elders will remember Prince Johnson as a God-sent because our children were put in wells. He was our liberator,” he said. “On behalf of the family, we want to say it is a difficult time today. We lost a hero, a fighter, a soldier, a politician.”
Representing the House of Representatives, Nimba County District #5 Rep. Samuel Kogar regaled the fallen Senator as a warrior, a politician and a Christian leader whose funeral will be accorded all the traditional rites of Nimba County.
Taking the floor while chanting a bloodcurdling battle cry, Representative Kogar began by justifying the reasons for which Senator Johnson must leave earth through the performance of a traditional rite of passage.
“We always want to invoke the spirit of tradition. Senator Johnson was a warrior before he became a politician. And when you invoke that, wherever he is, the spirit will be happy. Before his burial, he will perform the traditional rite. He was a warrior, he was a politician, he was a Christian. He found himself in so many groupings but the foremost thing I want to say here is that even a child from one motherhood, tongue and teeth can bite. But one good thing you can’t forget, if you lost one, it is regrettable.
“When it comes to tradition, Senator Johnson is my son; he knows it and I know it. So, we want to say thank you for coming. Mr. President, thank you for the kind humanitarian gesture. You would have stayed home and told the family you would come whenever they were ready for the burial, but you took upon yourself to come.
“I also want to extend my thanks and appreciation to the elders of Nimba. It is about time that the death of Senator Johnson brings unity among us. “I want to encourage the youths that are always on social media. If you are a good Facebooker from Nimba, disengage. Let them say what they want to say. We thought Senator Johnson’s death would have brought sorrow to all Liberians, but there are negative currents that are going around. But that doesn’t matter. If you respond, then you get more negative responses. Let us rally around Senator Johnson’s family 24-7. The MDR youth, prepare yourselves to be here. And the church, as well as prominent citizens of Nimba County, so that we will be able to give a befitting burial to our brother, father, uncle, cousin,” Representative Kogar intoned.
No doubt, fallen Senator Prince Yormie Johnson was a huge magnate-the Maradona of contemporary Liberian politics-to whom every victorious presidential candidate in the last four post-conflict elections gravitated.
In his sudden death, his political beneficiaries feel emotionally and morally compelled to show concern and empathy, which is why since is demised a stream of VIPs, including President Boakai, former presidents Weah and Sirleaf, continue to troop their way to the home of the noted “kingmaker”. In fact, latest pronouncement from the VIPs’ visits is that, understandably, a lavish state funeral is underway for the Nimba County patriarch. The Analyst reports.
The passing of the Senator on Thursday, November 28, 2024, has not only sent chills in the spines of his Nimba kinsmen, something that led to businesses reportedly shutting down on that fateful day in the county but left the entire country dumbstruck.
The shock notwithstanding, there has an outpour of condolences from Liberians, both ordinary citizens and state actors, most of who have been paying the visit with the bereaved family at the Senator’s Duport Road residence in Paynesville.
Former presidents Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and George Manneh Weah were on Sunday visitors to the “mat”-home of the most believed-to console the fallen Senator’s wife and children.
It can also be recalled that on Saturday, the President of the nation, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, led an array of government officials, including Nimba County Superintendent Kou Meapeh-Gono, members of the National Legislature, as well as members of the Nimba Legislative Caucus and Vice President Jeremiah Koung who was present at Senator Johnson’s residence before the President arrival.
Amid the proffering of heartfelt condolences, President Boakai used the occasion to promise that the fallen Nimba County senator would be accorded a proper funeral befitting his status as a statesman. President Boakai who appeared immensely solemn at the jam-packed premises of the late Senator made brief remarks consoling the family.
“Today, we’re here to console the wife, children and the bereaved family. We know this is a bereavement that extends beyond the bereaved family. It affects everyone here and even in the Diaspora,” the President said. “So, this is an initial visit to express our condolences. I want to tell you that the late Senator was someone who stood in the cause of this country. We pray that God will console Mrs. Johnson and the family.”
