By Jovinah N. Kollie

MONROVIA-The former executive member of the  Liberia People Democratic Party(LPDP) and onetime staunch supporter of the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change, Dr.  Togar  Gayewea Mcintosh has gone to the Alternative National Congress-ANC because according to him, Mr. Alexander Cummings, the head of the party,  was the right person to lead the country due to his financial strength coupled with other attributes.

He made the statement on Thursday when he appeared on OK FM morning show.

Dr. Toga Gayewea Mcintosh, a seasoned diplomat and one time Liberia’s  Foreign Minister said he looked at various layers and analyzed all the presidential candidates.

“Layer one you must win the election,  layer two, after you have won, you must lead. If I am analyzing all the candidates, the incumbent has won the election, yes. Yes, he is leading the process.

Then he dropped it: “To win, whether high school elections, any election,  for that matter, you need something in your pocket call money. You need something called constituency to rally around you. If you look at the candidates, because  I am doing an analysis of candidates,  then I will say already,  that this person has money to win. To fight the incumbent, anybody for that matter.

He continued: “To fight the elections process in the World, Africa, it keeps going higher, higher. There was a time when you needed only 50,000 to run. Even to be a senator, today,  you cannot come around here, running around with 50,000 dollars.  When you take all the candidates and peg that, Mr.  Cummings has little edge, not much.  Mr. Cassell has a little edge if I took them against the others.  The president of course, is the incumbent, he has his edge. Two, you must have a constituency base. JNB(Joseph N. Boakai-former vice president under madam Ellen Johnson Sirleaf) has good followers and constituency. Gongloe has his space. Cummings was least, maybe Cassell, in terms of the constituency. In my own analysis”.

Dr. Mcintosh is the second top official of the LPDP to cross over to ANC in recent times. The first was Menipakei Dumoe who left due to what he called personal reasons.

But the Secretary General of  The Liberia People Democratic Party-PLPD, of which Dr.  McIntosh was an executive,  Secretary General D Eric Kpyea said the National Executive Council, which is the highest decision-making body of the party would hold a meeting to come out with a decision. He did not elaborate.

He said: “If you think you can take action then expect us to sit idly, you’re mistaken,” he told this paper on Thursday in a telephone interview.

He continued:  “the institution is not affected by the departure of Dr. Mcintosh. There are other political institutions coming to join the Coalition; he’s just an individual who chose to rebel against the status quo, therefore; the necessary action will be taken”

“The action against Dr.  Mcintosh is going to be in conformity with our party’s constitution.”

“I ask our partisans to remain calm until the people clothed with the authority to decide, engage in decision making. There absolutely exists no individual above the party. The party  remains supreme.”

The Liberia People Democratic Party feels betrayed and vows to take further action against Dr. Toga Gayewea Mcintosh, as he is a principal representative of the Liberia People Democratic Party(LPDP) on the CDC’s governing council.

_“I ask Weah’s partisans to remain calm until the people clothed with the authority to decide to engage in decision making. There absolutely exists no individual above the party; it remains supreme, if you think you can take action, and expect us to idly sit, you’re mistaken.”_

Dr.  Mcintosh has endorsed the presidential bid of the presidential aspirant and political leader of the Alternative National Party, Alexander B. Cummings.

Dr. Mcintosh in his endorsement statement at noon on Wednesday, August 3, 2022, noted that Liberia is taking a misdirected path, and that leaves him in a state of deep concern and disturbance.

He also urged that his appointment from the Governing Council of the CDC be withdrawn by LPDP, replacing him with another partisan.

Ex-Foreign minister, Dr. Mcintosh says Liberia needs to be saved out of the doldrums of the woes and depression its citizens are experiencing under the Weah-led government.

“My assessment of the presidential candidates shows that Mr. Alexander Cummings has most of all that it takes to serve adequately as captain of a well-prepared team to save our dear country, Liberia, out of the doldrums of the woes and depression we are experiencing today”.

“It is against this conviction that I, Toga Mcintosh do hereby, through this platform, publicly endorse the presidential bid of candidate Alexander B. Cummings of the Alternative National Congress(ANC) and pledge my support in the ABC Real Change Revolution.”

Weah’s partisans expressed their rage against the betrayal of Dr.  Mcintosh, but General Eric Kpayea, in a phone call interview with the New Republic Newspaper said that the political institution is not in any way harmed or affected by the departure of Dr. Mcintosh, further stating that there are other political institutions due to join the Coalition For Democratic Change, terming Dr. Mcintosh as “just an individual”.

“The institution is not affected by the departure of Dr. Mcintosh; there are other political institutions coming to join the Coalition, he’s just an individual who chose to rebel against the status quo, therefore; the necessary action will be taken”

Meanwhile, Dr. Mcintosh has not left the LPDP, but The National Executive Committee is to meet to determine the fate of Dr. Mcintosh as it is the highest decision-making body.

He noted that there are only two sides, ‘for or against, and the party remains blunt to members mingling with its oppositions. In his opinion, the action of Dr.  Mcintosh is not in conformity with the institution’s best practice, so therefore he is convicted that those clothed with the authority to decide the fate of Dr.  Mcintosh will decide rightly.

New Republic Liberia

Alphonso Toweh

Has been in the profession for over twenty years. He has worked for many international media outlets  including: West Africa Magazine, Africa Week Magazine, African Observer and  did occasional reporting for CNN, BBC World Service, Sunday Times, NPR, Radio Deutchewells, Radio Netherlands. He is the current correspondent for Reuters 
 He holds first  MA with honors in International  Relations and a  candidate for second master in International Peace studies and Conflict  Resolution from the University of Liberia.