“While it is true that government cannot employ every partisan, Zawolo suggesting that supporters should settle for “singing and dancing” at party headquarters trivializes the legitimate economic aspirations of the public,” –an embittered partisan.
Noah Zawolo Gibson, a visually impaired Deputy Director for Operations at the National Transit Authority (NTA), has sparked intense public backlash with his ‘sing and dance’ command to partisans.
Gibson’s latest embarrassing comments followed a statement he made during a recent political rally the ruling Unity Party organized in Monrovia.
It is reported that his order for job seekers to ‘sing and dance’ have raised questions about the administration’s commitment to public service, and equitable economic opportunity.
While addressing a gathering of party loyalists, Gibson explicitly stated: “We will not give every Unity Partisan job in the government, and not everyone will work in the government, but we will make the party headquarters busy for you to come, and be there singing and dancing.
One bystander at the occasion remarked: “This statement reflects a concerning disconnect between public officials, and the everyday realities of citizens.”
While it is true that government cannot employ every partisan, suggesting that supporters should settle for “singing and dancing” at party headquarters trivializes the legitimate economic aspirations of the public.
Liberians who support political campaigns do so with the hope of seeing meaningful developments, job creations, and sustainable livelihoods, not public entertainments.
Furthermore, as NTA’s senior executive, Gibson’s primary focus should remain squarely on addressing the public transportation challenges, instead.
NTA is a public institution tasked with providing reliable, affordable transit to daily commuters, but an official to engage in rhetoric that minimizes the economic expectations of citizens damages public trust in the leadership of state institutions.
Critics are of the opinions that Gibson’s comments had sent a disappointing signal to citizens seeking real solutions to unemployment, and economic hardship.
