Africa-Press – Liberia. The opposition Liberty Party has expelled its chairman Musa Bility and Secretary General Martin Kollah.
The decision taken by a faction of the party led by Sen. Nybonblee Karnga-Lawrence came at the end of a convention in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County, during which the group found Bility and others blameworthy for sowing divisions and bringing the party into disrepute.
“Now, therefore, the Executive Council, consisting of majority of its Membership as contained in Article V Section 2 (j), by affixing our names and signatures below in order to save the party from further destruction but also to strengthen its position at the community and national levels, have resolved that Musa Hassan Bility and Martin Saye Kollah are hereby expelled from Liberty Party,” the Karnga-Lawrence faction said in a statement.
“As a testimony of our expressed commitment to this cause, we hereby affix our signatures to this resolution, thus paving the way for putting the Liberty Party back on its proper trajectory so that it regains its lost image,” the statement added. “And Executive Committee Members and County Chairpersons who continue to aid and abet the two named individuals in their actions against Liberty Party are hereby suspended, pending investigation of the suspended Chairpersons of the Counties, their Deputies or Secretary Generals will act.”
The move by the party, if it ever holds, paves the way for Sen. Karnga-Lawrence to show that the country’s fourth largest party is bigger and stronger than any individual, including a business tycoon like Bility and his band of collaborators.
But it is not yet a clear-cut victory for the political leader’s faction, as the National Election Commission continues to recognize Bility as the chair of the Liberty Party, as well as the constitution that brought him to that position. That is despite Bility’s chairmanship being nullified by the party’s political leader following an investigation, which claims that “the convention that brought the expelled chairman to power was fraudulently conducted.”
Prior to that, Bility suspended the political leader and Senator Dillon along with some partisans for not having paid their party dues.
However, the suspension was never carried out, nor was the nullification of Bility’s chairmanship since the electoral body continues to recognize Bility as chair and Sen. Karngar Lawrence as political leader.
And with Bility’s expulsion and a countermeasure expected, the wounds of division will continue deepening with either faction of the party trying to undo the other as it has been for the last 8 months, an issue that might not be resolved anytime soon.
But the real danger facing the Liberty Party is, going into the 2023 election is more divided than ever; thus making it difficult for the party to rally around someone as it did in the past with Charles Walker Brumskine, the party deceased founder.
With tensions at an all-time high and the possibility of reconciliation broken, it is yet to be seen how anyone can find a safe option to resolve the internal political quagmire that came out of the claims of tampering.
It is worth noting that Bility’s expulsion comes after Charlyne Brumskine began a fight to salvage the image of the Liberty Party, after trying unsuccessfully behind the scenes to resolve the impasse between the party’s chairman and political leader.
Charlyne, whose late father Cllr. Charles Walker Brumskine founded the Liberty Party, was aware how difficult her proposal was – something the party’s National Advisory Council (NAC) tried and failed.
And it is no secret that Bility and Sen. Karnga-Lawrence and their respective campaigns have shot down previous attempts to reconcile the party by individually dividing the party’s National Advisory Council (NAC), whose existence was originally intended to settle disputes and find solutions to internal conflict.
The Council, at present, is split between the two leaders with its secretary-general leading a campaign towards the Senator, while the party’s former Vice Standard Bearer from the 2017 election, Harrison Kanwea, is leaning towards Bility and is being reportedly tipped to head the party chair Liberty Party as a political leader.
The truth is, the internal crisis in the Liberty Party is deeply rooted in conflicting interests between Bility and the Karnga-Lawrence in terms of who to support externally – whether it means Joseph Boakai of the Unity Party, or Alexander B. Cummings, of the Alternative National Congress.
The LP political leader appears to be leaning towards Boakai, while Bility supports Cummings.
Meanwhile, the Karnga-Lawrence faction has authorized the National Executive Committee to, with immediate effect, withdraw Liberty Party’s Membership from the Collaborating Political Parties (CPP).
“The Executive Council hereby confirmed the nomination of the Political Leader for the position of Vice Chair for Legislative Affairs on the NEC and that the National Executive Committee is hereby directed to organize a Special National Convention in consultation with the Political Leader before the close of this year, in one of the cities of the Republic of Liberia on a date to be decided.”
The resolution as it is.
Resolution of the National Executive Council of the Liberty Party at its Special Session held at the County Headquarters of the Party in the Port City of Buchanan, Grand Bassa County from 28-29, January 2022
WHEREAS, from 28-29 January 2022 a Special Session of the National Executive
Council of the Liberty Party was convened in the City of Buchanan, Grand Bassa County to emphatically and unequivocally deliberate and resolve critical issues confronting the Party;
WHEREAS, the Political Leader of the Liberty Party cognizant of the intraparty issues, enjoined the National Executive Council to consider for deliberation and resolution, the following compelling issues within the Party: (1) Acts ultra vires by Mr. Musa Bility, former National Chairman, and accomplices of the National Executive Committee and some Chairpersons of the Counties (2) Authorization of the Political Leader to fill existing vacant positions on the National Executive Committee of the Party (3) Review the membership and participation of the Party within the Collaborating Political Parties (CPP) (4) Approval of the Party’s Financial Plan and (5) Approval for the convening of a Special National Convention;
WHEREAS, from 21-23 January 2021 a Special National Convention of the Liberty Party was held in the City of Gbarnga, Bong County to amend the constitution of the party and elect a new leadership team;
WHEREAS, as an outcome of the convention, the leadership team headed by former Chairman Musa Hassan Bility was elected with the mandate to reconcile the Party, rebrand its image in the aftermath of the 2017 Elections, and expand and strengthen the support base of the Party ahead of the 2023 Legislative and Presidential Elections;
WHEREAS, since the coming into being of the Musa Bility-led Executive Committee, the Liberty Party has been engulfed in series of confusion, in-house fights, undermining of the Office of the Political Leader, and altering the Constitution of the party;
WHEREAS, it has been established that Musa Bility and Martin Kollah, even when requested multiple times, refused to follow required procedures to present the 2021 Constitution and minutes of the convention to the convener of the convention for validation before submission to the National Elections Commission;
WHEREAS, Musa Bility and Martin Kollah intentionally kept the new constitution from the convener of the convention after the January 2021 convention;
WHEREAS, the convener of the 2021 Special National Convention of the Liberty Party, hearing that the constitution was submitted to the Elections Commission without her required review, requested and obtained the constitution from the National Elections Commission on the 11th Day of August 2021;
WHEREAS the then National Advisory Council (NAC) of the Liberty Party was asked to probe allegations of the alteration of the Liberty Party Constitution and that in order to commence said investigation, the Political Leader and former Chairman Bility were required to sign an MOU outlining the term of reference of the committee and commit themselves to the outcome of the investigation;
Whereas the NAC investigation confirmed the party’s constitution submitted to the National Elections Commission by both Musa Bility and Martin Kollah was altered from what was agreed upon and finalized at the convention in Gbarnga;
WHEREAS Musa Bility himself signed the Memorandum of Understanding, which resulted from the NAC’s investigation, in essence acknowledging that the Constitution he and Martin Kollah sent to the National Elections Commission did not reflect what was agreed upon at the 2021 Convention and acknowledging that language within the document needed to be changed to reflect exactly what was agreed upon at the convention;
WHEREAS based on recommendations from the Special Investigative Committee that investigated the alteration of the Constitution, coupled with investigation into the unconstitutionality of the 2021 Special National Convention of the Liberty Party based on complaint filed by Partisan Emmanuel Azango, the Political Leader on the
13 Day of December 2021 withdrew the said 2021 Constitution from the NEC and annulled announced the said Convention. These two actions combined effectively brought to an end the unconstitutional leadership of Mr. Musa Hassan Bility;
WHEREAS knowing full well that his leadership had been terminated by the outcomes of investigation into the alteration of the 2021 LP Constitution and its withdrawal from the National Elections Commission, and investigation into a complaint from Partisan Emmanuel Azango against the unconstitutionality of the said convention, Mr. Bility and Martin Kollah continued to carry themselves as Chairman and Secretary General of Liberty Party, respectively, despite several warnings to desist;
WHEREAS in total disrespect to the decision annulling the Convention which brought them to power, Mr. Bility and Martin Kollah continue to purport to be taking decisions in the name of the party, thereby exposing the party to public ridicule. Some of these decisions include unmerited public pronouncements and bogus suspensions of reputable Party Executives, including the Political Leader of the Party and convening a special convention and endorsing a candidate in the name of the party in stark violation of the Constitution as contained in Article V Sec I, Article 9 Sec 7 and Article 12 Sec 2;
WHEREAS, the aforementioned actions of Mr. Bility and Mr. Kollah are in blatant violation of the constitution of the Liberty Party and undermine the integrity and enviable reputation of the Liberty Party and legacy of Charles Walker Brumskine;
WHEREAS, Musa Hassan Bility and Martin Kollah remain unrepentant in their actions and continue to intensify the crisis in the party by running divisive set of actions against the Constitution and the interest of the party;
WHEREAS, in like manner, several members of the National Executive Committee and Chairpersons of some Counties (Grand Cape Mount, Gbarpolu, Bomi, Margibi, Rivercess, Sinoe, Nimba, Lofa and Bong) being in clear knowledge of the aforementioned actions of the two men and the decisions regarding those actions, as stated above, continue to aid and abet Messrs. Bility and Kollah in their reprehensible actions against the party;
WHEREAS, there are existing vacant positions within the National Executive Committee which are vital to the functioning of the Party and as such require to be occupied;
WHEREAS, the membership of the Party within the CPP has been rendered irrelevant due to the exiting contradictions with the CPP;
WHEREAS, there is an imperative need to finance the Party; and
WHEREAS, considering the need to strategically position the Party as the 2023 legislative and presidential elections approach;
NOW, therefore, the Executive Council, consisting of majority of its Membership as contained in Article V Section 2 (j), by affixing our names and signatures below in order to save the party from further destruction but also to strengthen its position at the community and national levels, have resolved as follows:
That Messrs. Musa Hassan Bility and Martin Saye Kollah are hereby expelled from Liberty Party;
That those Executive Committee Members and County Chairpersons who continue to aid and abet the two named individuals in their actions against Liberty Party are hereby suspended;
That pending investigation of the suspended Chairpersons of the Counties, their Deputies or Secretary Generals will act;
That the Executive Council hereby Confirmed the nomination of the Political Leader for the position of Vice Chair for Legislative Affairs on the NEC;
That the National Executive Committee is hereby authorized, with immediate effect, to withdraw Liberty Party’s Membership from the Collaborating Political Parties (CPP);
That the National Executive Committee is hereby directed to organize a Special National Convention in consultation with the Political Leader before the close of this year, in one of the cities of the Republic of Liberia on a date to be decided; and
That the Financial Plan presented by the National Executive Committee of the Party which was carefully deliberated, is hereby endorsed and thus takes effect beginning this January, 2022.
As a testimony of our expressed commitment to this cause, we hereby affix our signatures to this resolution, thus paving the way for putting the Liberty Party back on its proper trajectory so that it regains its lost image.
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