Information Minister Jerolinmek Matthew Piah, has blasted Counselor Tiawan Saye Gongloe for differing with President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s recent travel with a huge delegation.
Piah questioned the political integrity of Gongloe, enquiring: “Is this the man who wanted to be a President in Liberia?”
He rhetorically enquired of Cllr. Gongloe, political leader of the opposition Liberian People’s Party (LPP) shot at Mr. Boakai.
Piah’s disagreement followed Cllr. Gongloe’s sharp criticism of Pres. Boakai’s recent international travels, and the role of the Information Ministry.
Gongloe, a former cabinet minister himself, slammed the government for “legalized theft,” and accused the Information Ministry of defending “failures, instead of educating the public.”
He urged a return to the style of the late Dr. Edward Kesselly, who he said, used the Information Ministry to connect with citizens through “powerful, clear messaging during the 1970s.”
But Piah wasn’t having it at ease, rather with estrange anger.
“For a man who served in government before… to suggest that the President should skip TICAD 9 to meet a U.S. congressman? That confuses me,” Piah said. “What did he learn when he was a cabinet minister? What country was he preparing to run?”
Piah went further to accuse Gongloe of letting “politics to cloud his judgment.”
“He is supposed to be a top lawyer, but now is he walking around with a broom playing politics,” Piah added, referencing Gongloe’s campaign symbol. “This man wanted to be president, and now he wants to make the current president look petty.”
The war of words marks a growing rift between the Boakai administration and members of the opposition, as debates over priorities, communication, and leadership style take center stage. Source: Wroinbee Elton Tiah/ Ablee-Jay TV