CONGO TOWN, Montserrado – Kla Edward Toomey, Liberty Party’s deputy secretary says a group of hooligans on Thursday, November 21 held the party’s headquarters hostage.

Toomey explained that after the decision of the party to remain neutral in the presidential runoff election between Unity Party and the Coalition for Democratic Change, a group of partisans decided to endorse Joseph N. Boakai, which did not do down well with others.

He said the individuals who decided to prevent a few Liberty Party members from endorsing Boakai were not members of Liberty Party.

“The hooligans were recruited by Cephas Flanzamaton, acting chair of the LP Youth Congress, from the streets and ghettos to besiege the party’s headquarters,” he added.

Kla Edward Toomey, Liberty Party’s deputy secretary. Photo: Zeze Ballah

Toomey said after those select Liberty Party members were prevented from using the party’s headquarters to endorse Boakai, they proceeded to Unity Party’s Congo Town headquarters to hold the program there instead.

He said Liberty Party would take action against the individuals who held the party’s headquarters hostage and prevented anyone from entering or exiting.

Daniel O. Sando, Liberty Party’s assistant secretary general, who arrived on the scene and entered into the compound to determine the motive of the agitators, told The Bush Chicken, said those disrupting the planned endorsement were not Liberty Party members. While they wore Liberty Party-branded t-shirts, Sando said those materials were likely stolen during a rally.

He said the individuals told him they were preventing a Unity Party endorsement at the headquarters because they too had been earlier prevented from using the premises to endorse the Coalition for Democratic Change’s George Weah.

Daniel O. Sando, Liberty Party’s assistant secretary general for press and publicity. Photo: Zeze Ballah

“I cannot validate their claim,” Sando said, adding that the actions by the individuals were embarrassing and that “the party will never be dragged into the mud.”

Darius Dillon, vice chair for political affairs, who later arrived and tried entering the premises found himself surrounded by the men, who prevented him from opening one of two entrances to the party’s headquarters.

Although Dillon is a prominent executive of Liberty Party, the men appeared unable to identify him.

The men blocking the entrance to the party headquarters argue with Darius Dillon. Photo: Zeze Ballah

Minutes after Dillon’s departure, Flanzamaton, the acting chair of Liberty Party’s youth wing, arrived and was heard saying that party members would “never vote Boakai as president of Liberia.”

Charles Walker Brumskine, the party’s standard bearer, recently announced at a press conference that the party would neither support the Unity Party nor the Coalition for Democratic Change in the runoff election slated for December 26. He added, “partisans of [Liberty Party] are free to support whoever they so desire.”

Before Brumskine’s statement, some senior executive members of Liberty Party, including vice standard bearer Harrison Karnwea, chairman Benjamin R. Sanvee, and campaign CEO Musa Bility controversially endorsed CDC and George Weah.

A few days later, Flanzamaton had also endorsed CDC.

Featured photo by Zeze Ballah