Africa-Press – Liberia. A list of three individuals have emerged as names that could possibly be the candidates on the ticket of the Unity Party to replace Brownie Samukai who has been convicted by the Supreme Court.
Names including former deputy minister Cole Bangalu, current Representative Clarence Massaquoi and former Superintendent Galakpai Kortumai are names making the short list of possible UP candidates to replace Samukai in the pending by-election.
The Supreme Court of Liberia ordered the incarceration of Lofa County Senator-elect Brownie J. Samukai and co-defendants for two years for their failure to comply with the mandate of the court that’s to pay 50% of the judgement sum in the tone of $ 537, 828, and 15 within the period of six months.
The former Minister of Defense had faced hurdle in taking his seat as Lofa County’s senator after the Supreme Court of Liberia halted his certification by the National Election Commission (NEC).
The nation’s highest court’s decision against Samukai, of the Collaborating Political Parties (CPP), was trigged by a Writ of Prohibition filed March 2, 2021, by O’Neil Passewe, chair of the Movement for Progressive Change.
In February, the National Elections Commission submitted to the Liberian Senate a budget in the amount of US$1,934,720.80 for the conduct of by-election in Lofa County, to fill a vacancy recently announced by President Protempore of the Senate Albert Tugbe Chie.
According to a NEC press statement dated February 25, 2022 and signed by Deputy Commissioner Prince Dunbar, the Commission’s decision follows the February 16, 2022 notification by Senate Protempore Chie to the NEC of the existence of a vacancy in the Liberian Senate for a seat for Lofa County.
In the statement released Friday, NEC also submitted its timeline for the conduct of the Senatorial By-election in Lofa County “in which Election Day is set for 10 May, 2022.”
Individually, FPA takes a look at the candidates and their possibilities of becoming the candidates that could sell easily to the people of Lofa County.
Cole Bangalu
Ups:
Bangalu is from the Gbandi tribe and a former CDC National Chairman turned UP partisan. He worked under the administration of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf as assistant and deputy Labour minister, former Deputy Director General Services Agency, National Vice Chair for inter-Party and National Elections Affairs UP, Sports Administrator Lofa County.
Odds
Currently, the former deputy minister is unable to pull the necessary resources to run an effective campaign that could lend him victory for the Unity Party. Locals on the ground say he doesn’t cut across the many tribes of the county.
Galakpai Kortumai
Ups:
Former Up Lofa County chair, former Superintendent of the county under the administration of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, a former deputy director at the General Service Agency, contested on the ticket of the current ruling CDC in 2014, Brownie Samukai campaign chair in 2020 election.
Odds:
LikeBangalu, Mr. Kortumai is not financially strong to raise the needed funding for a successful campaign to ensure victory for the Unity Party. The former Lofa County Superintendent has over the years kept his ambition secret. He lost his trust amongst the Lofa citizens when he in 2014 joined the CDC.
Clarence Massaquoi
Ups
: Clarence Massaquoi is a sitting lawmaker of Lofa County in the House of Representatives serving his second term as a UP lawmaker for district #3.
He is a member of the Liberia delegation to the ECOWAS parliament a defeated candidate for the position of deputy speaker. He has a history of working in the Unity Party over the years and his last position was UP 2016 convention election committee chairman.
Currently, he is the chairman on Investment and Concession in the House of Representatives. He is Gbandi by tribe. A district lawmaker he has projects across the county. He’s well known and respected by his peers.
Odds
He and Jallah may divide the Gbandi votes and may not get the open support of his long-time partner Marimu Fofana whose current loyalty is to the CDC. Mr. Alphanso Belleh, Chairman on elections and Campaign of the unity Party has not responded to inquiry from the FrontPageAfrica.
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