UP Chairman Differs With Orator Comment On U.S Gov’t

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The Chairman of the ruling Unity Party, Dr.  Luther Tarpeh, has expressed displeasure over accusations made by the orator of Liberia’s 177th Independence Day Celebration, contending that the orator’s comment is “embarrassing, offensive disrespectful and misleading.” “While your speech to national leaders and ordinary Liberians was convicting and created a sense of national consciousness and call to duty, your accusation against the United States of America for the backwardness of our country is simply embarrassing, offensive, distasteful and misleading,” Dr. Tarpeh wrote on his Facebook page. He argued that the national orator, Dr. Robtel Neajai Pailey’s claim against the US is not evidence-based, indicating that Liberia has been a sovereign country for 177 years and that the nation has managed its destiny as a people and as a country. On the contrary, Dr. Tarpeh emphasized that the US has given Liberia so much since 1862 but past Liberian government officials chose to put personal interests above national interest. “Your speech has embarrassed our President and the Unity Party.  Why should we blame someone for our economic condition at this age?” he asked. The UP Chairman then urged Liberians, including Dr. Pailey to take national responsibility to build the country instead of blaming America for Liberia’s economic and developmental woes. Liberia’s 177th Independence Day anniversary was engulfed by a moment of controversy after the US delegation led by Chargé d’Affaires, Catherine Rodriguez, walked out of the occasion in an apparent dissatisfaction with the orator’s statement towards the US. Earlier, Dr. Pailey, the national orator, charged Liberians to forge new strategic partnerships based on mutual benefit and disabuse themselves of the notion that they have a ‘special relationship’ with America. Subsequently, the orator bluntly cited, “this so-called ‘special relationship’ only exists in our imagination. Lest we forget, the United States was one of the last countries to recognize our independence. Lest we forget, the United States has taken more from us than it has given”. She added: “Lest we forget, the United States will always serve its own interests above all else. Once we accept these truths, we will appreciate that a re-imagined Liberia can never be anyone’s stepchild,” Dr. Pailey emphasized”. Amid the diplomatic mishap which has sparked-up public debate, the US Embassy near Monrovia has clarified that the decision of their Chargé d’Affaires to walk out of Liberia’s 177th Independence ceremony is as a result of the introduction of “divisive rhetoric and unfounded accusations” by the Independence Day Orator.However, the Embassy reaffirmed the US government’s unwavering support to Liberia. Source: LINA

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