It is therefore no surprise that the Liberian protest leaders emphasized government corruption as a major concern of their movement. The tension has been further intensified by threats from ruling party activists and a presidential spokesman to arrest protest leaders; while the opposition activists remain defiant with their plans. It would be indeed, in the interest of the Liberian government to initiate dialogues with the protest leaders with the aim of understanding the specific concerns and determining the reasonable and lawful actions required in addressing them. Protest leaders must also see an olive branch from the government as an opportunity to present their petitions long before June 7 and support the government in identifying alternative ways of looking into the issues raised in the petition. Importantly, opposition leaders must make themselves available for these dialogues and leverage the availability of these two leaders as mediators in engaging with the government.

Source: Front Page Africa May 03, 2019 07:30 UTC