River Gee Representative Williams holds Special Meeting With Former Contestants

River Gee County District #3 Representative Johnson S.N. Williams has held a special meeting with his former contestants from the 2023 Legislative Elections with a plan to foster peace, reconciliation and promote development in the district and in the county at large.

The meeting that was held in the Speaker’s Conference Room at the Capitol Building brought several past contestants including Madam Clara D. McIntosh,

Alfred N. Collins, Uriah G. Kear, Isaac N. Johnson, Solo B. Teah, Sr., Augustine B. Cheah and other contestants along with stakeholders of the county.

Speaking during the special meeting, Representative Williams praised his fellow kinsmen for honoring his call and for the high level of tolerance they showcase during and after the district election.

The River Gee County District #3 Lawmaker stressed that the meeting is meant to have contestants in the 2023 Legislative election sit around the table to discuss issues that are important for the growth and development of the district.

“Basically, this meeting is for us (contestants) to come around the table and look in the eyes of each other, to shake hands and extend words of thanks and appreciation and friendship. We want to thank you for the way we conducted ourselves and the way the election ended peacefully. You brought a huge contribution to our democratic process. Your participation in the election was competitive. It was the first time for the winner's margin to be close. So, it tells you that the competition was hard,” Representative Williams said.  

He stated: “Secondly, I call you here to hear from you, all of us had our political campaign, we made promises, we had meetings with the elders, with the youth, with the women. Some of us had meetings with health workers, with teachers, with the students, we met with farmers, including the security people and we listened to their conversations. All of us had something on our minds and we felt that if we had the opportunity to serve, we would be looking into those things they were talking about.”

According to the lawmaker, the meeting with his former contestants despite being the first will continue more often. He furthers that his ears remain open to hear the call from his fellow kinsmen.

“We want to hear from you and assure you that our doors are open, and we are going to welcome you. Anytime you have any questions we will listen to you. We want to let you know that as we move along, whenever or wherever we have the opportunity, we are going to call you to put all our hands on the desk. We want to let you know through this official medium that we are going to be calling on you to get the job done. There is only one person that can win the election, but there is not one person that can do the job,” stressed.

He added: “The Unity Party government is forming; we are hearing names. I don't know how many of the River Gee people's names that you have heard, we need to consult with you. It is governance time now, the elections, the politics are over. So, we call you to hear from you what you think, since we are starting fresh, what you think the district needs and how we should proceed.”

In response, the former contestants in separate tones highlighted, road, education, healthcare security, and agriculture as some of the major issues affecting people in the district.

Madam Clara D. McIntosh, one of the past contestants in the 2023 Legislative Election in River Gee County District #3. Madam McIntosh with a boldface told Representative Williams to put more focus in the areas of road and education.

“There is no reason for a kid will leave school after third grade. We did not do what we were supposed to do. My brother (Representative Williams), I am going to sit on your head. Roads and education are very important. After we finish the road, what happens to the kids, we need to have a dialogue with the Ministry of Education to have our teachers go from “C-level” to “B-level” because the “C-level” certificate teachers cannot teach above six-grade, Madam McIntosh said.

Buttressing Madam McIntosh, the proxy of Uriah G. Kear, one of the past contestants in the 2023 Legislative Election in River Gee County District #3 said: “Bad Road prevents our farmers from bringing their products on the Liberian market.

Chris T. Wah is another former contestant in the 2023 Legislative Election in River Gee County District #3. He praised Representative Williams for bringing together stakeholders from his district to talk about issues affecting the constituents. He added that the road is paramount for the district.

“We were into competition. The competition and it is about time that we build our district. I received the letter, and somebody asked whether I would be in this meeting. I told the person that I will go because the time for politics is over, and it is time for nation building,” he said.

Mr. Wah added: “The issue of roads is challenging, especially toward the border lines. Road should be paramount because if you connect the district with pave road the rest will be done.”