Diaspora Students Tell Politicians to Put Liberia First

Liberian Students Association of Ghana and their counterparts at the University of Ibadan and Awolowo University in Nigeria, have called on Liberian politicians to put the country first.

The students said in a press release yesterday that for over a month now, "we have monitored the post-election effect in Liberia and things seem not to be improving as many persons and some political parties yield for legal battle."

They said the prolonged legal action is endangering "our fledgling democracy. We want to re-echo what President Sirleaf said and concur with the statement of the US Embassy in Liberia." They added that the current electoral predicament remains a "threat to our democracy and a springboard for political instability, and a recipe for sociopolitical division."

It may be recalled that the US Embassy near Monrovia in its statement on the elections said "it was inspired by 1.5 million Liberians who expressed their commitment to and faith in democracy by voting in the October 10 elections," and urged the two leading parties, UP and CDC, to "focus on constructively engaging each other and voters as they prepare to compete in the runoff."

The Liberian student communities in Ghana and Nigeria said they are very concerned about the inconvenient socio-political situation in Liberia that has kept "our country's economic activities static for some time. This stagnant nature of our economy is also felt by us - students, since many students here rely on sponsoring organizations and their parents or relatives to survive."

Also, they said the painful thing about the current situation is that, "so-called politicians and their families are not feeling the consequences of their actions rather it is the ordinary Liberians - the masses who they claimed to be liberating from societal ills to prosperity.

"We are using this medium to call on embassies in Liberia to deny politicians and their family members visas in case of any attempt to leave the country until the current situation is duly resolved."

They said no amount of greed and self-interest should reverse the gains that "we made over the years. We have intentionally chosen peace over war, nonviolence over violence, patriotism over disloyalty and commitment over self-satisfaction."

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