Liberia: Charles Taylor Wants Loyalists Return to Base

Former Liberian presidentCharles Ghankay Taylor

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Monrovia — In a move, likely to shake the wavelengths off the newly-minted Coalition for Democratic Change, former Liberian President Charles Ghankay Taylor has instructed his supporters to return to their original base ahead of the 2017 presidential elections.

“So I am appealing to all of my friends to return to their base; the base? NPP grew out of the NPFL. Return to your base – and everything will be alright.”

FrontPageAfrica is in possession of a recording of a phone call placed to the NPP/NPFL base in which the former President can be heard telling his supporters not to be fooled by anyone into deserting the party which was formed out of his rebel movement.

“I am appealing to all of my friends to return to their base, the base? The NPP. The NPP grew out of the NPFL. Return to your base – and everything will be alright.”

The former President, who turned 69 last Saturday, assured his supporters that he never abandoned them despite being in prison.

A UN-backed court convicted him of war crimes over his support for rebels who committed atrocities in Sierra Leone.

Taylor was convicted on 11 charges including terrorism, rape, murder and the use of child soldiers by rebel groups in neighboring Sierra Leone during the 1991-2002 civil war, in which some 50,000 people died.

The former Liberian leader was found to have supplied weapons to the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels in exchange for so-called blood diamonds.




He is currently serving a 50-year sentence for war crimes in a British prison. An Act of Parliament was passed to allow for Taylor to serve his sentence in the UK, at the cost of the British government, following his conviction.

Taylor was sentenced in 2012 and has been serving his sentence in the UK, having unsuccessfully challenged the decision to be detained there.

Can Never Turn Back on NPP

On Saturday, Taylor sounded defiant as he rallied troops: “Whether you are a brother or sister, whether you are a friend or acquaintance, Charles Ghankay Taylor can never, ever turn his back on the NPP. The NPP group grew out of the NPFL; that’s my life, this revolution is my life; it will always be my life.”

Without naming names, former President Taylor suggested that some of his former aides betrayed him and are now trying to pry away his core supporters away from the NPP.

“And those that are saying oooh, come and join me, let me give you an example like during the war, the NPFL was fighting ULIMO, who leaves from the NPFL to join ULIMO, who leaves from the NPFL to go and join ULIMP and tell the people I join ULIMO to go and help the NPFL? It’s all tricks. These are people that are dishonest, they are disreputable and they have no heart.”

The NPP recently entered into a coalition with Senator George Weah’s Congress for Democratic Change, which officially became the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC).

Other parties former part of the merger are former Speaker Alex Tyler’s Liberia People Democratic Party (LPDP) and the National Destiny Party of former Ambassador Nathaniel Barnes, a former minister of Finance in the Taylor government.

Senator Weah recently handpicked Jewel Howard Taylor (NPP, Bong), the former first lady as his running mate, sealing the coalition ticket that will contest the 2017 presidential elections.

In January, Mr. Alan White, the former chief of investigation for the United Nations Special Court for Sierra Leone, revealed in a Voice of America interview that he had received information from credible sources that former President Taylor was interfering with the 2017 election in Liberia.

“He’s been in discussion with Senator George Weah who recently signed an agreement to join forces with Jewel Taylor – Taylor’s former wife – to support seeking the presidency and the vice presidency. George will be at the top of the ticket”, Mr. Weah predicted.

“The allegations and sourced information that I’m receiving is that Charles Taylor, the former President – indicted and convicted war criminal for his actions in Sierra Leone and the leader of the RUF – is interfering with the elections.

According to White, Weah has been having discussions with the former President on ensuring that there would never be a war crimes court established in Liberia and Sierra Leone.

“There are also other allegations that when he [Taylor] left, there were millions of dollars that were buried and left behind so whoever gets elected and they seek to get his sentenced reduced and to get him back in Liberia will be worth that while,” White added.

Referencing the 2008 Truth & Reconciliation Commission (TRC) recommendations which called for restorative and retributive justice,

White said – there have been only two people who have been publicly in support of retributive and restorative justice and that has been the current Vice President who is running for President and Benoni Urey. None of the others that I am aware have supported restorative and retributive justice.”

On Saturday, former President Taylor was unapologetic as he vented against those he said betrayed him after he left Liberia.

Said the former President: “And so for them to continue to lie and say that they are working for me or to say that what they are doing is the right thing, all I can say is that – the answer to them, the answer to them will be found and can be found in Ezekiel Chapter 25; verses 6 through 17 and Revelation Chapter 10 verses 9 to 11.

Hints in the Verses? ‘There Will be Consequences’

You better read those, you better read those very carefully because that will be the consequence.”

Ezekiel Chapter 25: 6-17 reads:

The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, set your face against the Ammonites and prophesy against them.

3 Say to them, ‘Hear the word of the Sovereign Lord. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you said “Aha!” over my sanctuary when it was desecrated and over the land of Israel when it was laid waste and over the people of Judah when they went into exile, 4 therefore I am going to give you to the people of the East as a possession. They will set up their camps and pitch their tents among you; they will eat your fruit and drink your milk.

5 I will turn Rabbah into a pasture for camels and Ammon into a resting place for sheep. Then you will know that I am the Lord. 6 For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet, rejoicing with all the malice of your heart against the land of Israel,

7 therefore I will stretch out my hand against you and give you as plunder to the nations. I will wipe you out from among the nations and exterminate you from the countries. I will destroy you, and you will know that I am the Lord.'”

8 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because Moab and Seir said, “Look, Judah has become like all the other nations,” 9 therefore I will expose the flank of Moab, beginning at its frontier towns–Beth Jeshimoth, Baal Meon and Kiriathaim–the glory of that land. 10 I will give Moab along with the Ammonites to the people of the East as a possession, so that the Ammonites will not be remembered among the nations; 11 and I will inflict punishment on Moab. Then they will know that I am the Lord.'”

12 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because Edom took revenge on Judah and became very guilty by doing so, 13 therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will stretch out my hand against Edom and kill both man and beast. I will lay it waste, and from Teman to Dedan they will fall by the sword.

14 I will take vengeance on Edom by the hand of my people Israel, and they will deal with Edom in accordance with my anger and my wrath; they will know my vengeance, declares the Sovereign Lord.'”

15 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because the Philistines acted in vengeance and took revenge with malice in their hearts, and with ancient hostility sought to destroy Judah, 16 therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am about to stretch out my hand against the Philistines, and I will wipe out the Kerethites and destroy those remaining along the coast. 17

The second passage the former President recommends to his supporters is Revelation 10:9-11

It reads:

9 So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. He said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but ‘in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.'[a” 10 I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. It tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour. 11 Then I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings.”

The Scorpion vs The Frog

Former President Taylor went into explaining indepth how he was betrayed.

Said Taylor: “I will give you another example, what has happened to my typically and I would outline these for all of our people to understand, my assertion is based on people that have connived with other people outside. When I sent them abroad to seek our interests they sought their own interests.”

The former President explained that when he was departing Liberia he left something for all of his closest supporters but someone did not deliver.

“I will give you a little typical Liberian saying, when I was leaving Liberia, I left a suitcase or what some people will call a valise or whatever, I’m speaking figuratively; what I left was to benefit all of you sitting here at the sound of my voice and others but an individual has taken it and he’s using it to his own benefit which is very, very evil – and this is unacceptable but this is what we know when we think about how people can be deceptive.”

The former President said he is reminded of the story of the frog and the scorpion and how the scorpion betrayed the frog.

“The frog and the scorpion went to the river; the scorpion cannot swim and could not cross. So the scorpion said to the frog you can swim, don’t leave me here, take me across the river, frog says Aaaah!

This is very dangerous, you scorpion you have a tail you can kill me. Scorpion says no, trust me, I’m you friend… take me across. But frog should have known better.

Frog put scorpion on his back and frog swam across the river, when they got to the other side, Scorpion put his tail into frog and kill frog.

I’m reminded of me being that frog and I took the scorpion across the river with me and what they are doing now, a few of them, they have now stung me with their tails.”

The former President then went on to appeal to his followers not to abandon the NPP as the scorpion did to the frog.

“I really want to say to all of you that have been discouraged and wanting to leave the NPP; NPFL. Return… Do not be like the scorpion that will let frog take you across the river and try to kill me frog. So, this is what is going on.”

The former President’s call mirrors similar ones expressed recently by Chief Cyril Allen who says he supports the idea of the NPP returning to power:

“Well they should bring the Taylor regime back to power – it’s nothing wrong with that. It is part of the political process and the political history of Liberia.




I don’t see nothing wrong with that – the NPP is a political party united under a coalition if there is victory don’t you think the NPP should be part of the governing process of Liberia?”

The Weah-Taylor political marriage has caught many by surprise. At the height of his popularity, Weah told The Independent newspaper that he was at odds with Taylor whom he declared as an enemy.

This followed a 1996 incident after Weah called for UN troops to be sent to Liberia and President Taylor sent militia to burn down Weah’s house in Monrovia and rape two of his cousins.

Fearing for his life, the paper reported that Weah did not set foot in Liberia again from 2002 until its president went into exile.

The return of peace, guaranteed by 15,000 “blue helmets”, encouraged Weah to announce his candidacy a year ago. His return was celebrated by thousands of Liberians.

‘I’m in a Cell; But Not in Prison’

The former President reminded his supporters to be mindful. “I tell you these stories for you to know the difficulties that affect me. I’m in a cell but I’m not in prison because my mind cannot be in prison and for the sake of the Liberian people, our motto is Above or Else for People and as I said to you before I left the country, I have no property, I have no money, I have nothing outside of Liberia. I did not rob the young men and women of that country.”

He continued: “You guys that are sitting there, some of your friends died in the rubber plantations, creeks, rivers, swamps all through the country. I did not benefit on your blood and you cannot trust anyone that will just say oooo follow me and they will be ok.

Because I tell you, I give you another example, a family will have a confusion and they will go to the house, one of the bigger brother jump on the father and beat the father up and hurt the father all kinds of way said the father hurt him all kinds of way. You, the smaller brother under there what do you think will happen to you?”

Added the former President: “If what is happening to me, if somebody can be so brave, they knew what they were doing to me after I lifted them from the ditch, and they will do worse to you.

Do not be persuaded by the scorpion that is telling the frog, take me across the river it will be ok, it will not be ok. So, I am appealing to all of my friends to return to their base, the base?

The NPP. The NPP grew out of the NPFL. Return to your base – and everything will be alright.”

The former President thanked his supporters for showing up to celebrate his birthday but also use the occasion to say he forgave President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf even though she was responsible for him being where he is today.

‘I forgive you, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’

“I want to tell everybody thank you for coming to celebrate my birthday. But before I leave there’s one last thing I want to congratulate everybody for coming. I was incarcerated by a letter written by Ellen.

That letter really is not material for me. Simply because I think Ellen came under a lot of pressure. I would have done it a different way but she did it her way and I have become the sacrificial lamb for the republic and I hope our people have benefited in whatever way they have but this, on my 69th birthday, I really want to say to everyone that if I did anything to you because today on my 69th birthday, I forgive you Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf for what all you have done to me. But I forgive you and I ask all those that love me to forgive her too. We all have our lives before us.

We are getting old now. There’s no point in having animosity and I say to Ellen she has sufficient time to straighten up all of the wrongful acts that she has perpetuated against me and that she’s still doing and I am forgiving her today and I hope that she will hear this and understand that Liberia is bigger than all of us combined.

God Bless everybody. I’m going to now say a very short prayer. The father David said we should bless the lord at all time. But I’m going to say it first in Hebrew and then I am going to interpret it to you.”



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Michael Onas
Africa - Online Founder & Senior Editor Africa - Online.Com was founded by Michael Onas in 1997, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in African news sector, with millions of readers around the world and followers on social media.