Liberia History & Information

Ben Davies

Patrick Tuon, Interim LCA President of the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area

Mr. Ruel Dempster, a former board member of the Washington, DC chapter, submitted, for scrutiny by the Cole-led team, a 44-page “dossier of information” on the confusion which is said to have left the community divided. Dempster described the actions of the Lloyd adminisration and that of Garnett as “unfortunate, manipulative and corrupt,” and has appealed for ULAA’s intervention to “help salvage the situation, specifically the election irregularities and probable fraud that need to be probed.”

Mr. Ben Davies, one-time general secretary of the Lloyd administration, was the second witness at the hearing. He corroborated Mr. Dempster’s assertions and also submitted documents for the team’s perusal.

Henry Glay

Mr. Henry Glay, one of last year’s presidential contenders, also presented his arguments against the “so-called LCA elections of October 28, 2001,” adding that the election results do not, in any way, deserve recognition by ULAA, the broad membership of the LCA, or any person who believes in fairplay and democracy.

Scheduled to appear at 8 p.m. was John Lloyd’s successor, Mr. Dave Garnett. Up to press time, there was no reason given for Garnett’s absence.

It has been reported that community activities in the embattled zone were ordered stayed pending a resolution of the quagmire, but the Garnett administration reportedly ignored ULAA’s request by inaugurating Dave Garnett and his corps of officers.

“At that event, Dave Garnett was installed by his mother, and the guest speaker was his uncle, John Dennis, former Liberian ambassador to the United States,” says J. Milton Teahjay. “What is even more appalling is that our envoy, His Excellency William Bull, who could have sought peace in the community, did attend Garnett’s swearing in,” Teahjay continues.

ULAA’s fact-finding commission submits its recommendations to the Union next week. Mr. Cole, who heads the commission, reported that the Union next week in Baltimore, MD, will decide on what is obtaining in Washington, DC to restore peace, dignity, integrity and unity once again in the community.