{"id":439196,"date":"2011-06-10T07:52:57","date_gmt":"2011-06-10T07:52:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/"},"modified":"2011-06-10T07:52:57","modified_gmt":"2011-06-10T07:52:57","slug":"perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/","title":{"rendered":"Perceptions, Victory and Defeat – The UP Campaign Team"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n
\n

New Democrat<\/a> (Monrovia)<\/p>\n

7 June 2011<\/p>\n

\n

editorial<\/p>\n

The outcry from the opposition regarding the President’s campaign team, on which leading members of the cabinet and other officials in charge of the state coffers dominated, has been loud.<\/p>\n

Whatever the reasons for the President’s change of heart in rescinding her decision on the campaign team, we must congratulate her for this honorable position.<\/p>\n

The President’s decision demonstrates strength, not weakness, for a leader who listens to cries in the wilderness with compassion, possesses character. In the past, such protests would have been answered with the arrogance of power. This was not the case. We are getting somewhere.<\/p>\n

There were grounds for reconsideration. The opposition believes that naming cabinet members as campaigners represents conflict of interest. More than that, they contended that this is yet another example of misuse of public office since ministers, armed with state resources and other paraphernalia, will simply use them in the service of a party, which is a conglomeration of individuals in a private union organized to win state power.<\/p>\n

On the one hand, opposition parties must take blame because the Code of Conduct that the President sent to the Legislature for over three years and was rejected would have addressed this incongruity. If members of opposition parties in the Legislature with far greater majority had rallied to strengthen and pass the Code of Conduct, the battle lines would have been drawn and known. The rules of engagement would not have been in confusion.<\/p>\n

But because opposition legislators saw nothing ethically wrong with conflict of interest, a practice that is as old and entrenched as the Republic of Liberia, they rejected the Code of Conduct, just as they are now denouncing being audited on their properties to ensure tax payment as a prerequisite for contesting elections.<\/p>\n

That impunity reigns, and as in the past and authoritarian political parties would benefit from this sanctity of impunity should therefore be expected.<\/p>\n

Thus, there is no ugly one to single out here, even as the opposition was licking its wounds on the eve of the elections. The resistance against fundamental reforms to smoothen the political playing field has been deeper within the Legislature, where both the opposition legislators lined-up again the Threshold Bill. If the opposition, with its majority in the Legislature, had been against deforming the Constitution for short-term gains of individuals, the current mess in the electoral system would have been arrested.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, victory must be perceived to be fair and just. If the perceptions of unfairness prevail despite the contrary, such victory is left to be questioned and runs the risk of being tarnished with severe consequences as we have seen around Africa and elsewhere.<\/p>\n

That the cabinet ministers campaign team has been dismantled reflects the wish to be fair and to guard against dangerous perceptions.<\/p>\n

Thus that cabinet ministers and Managing Directors were recruited into the President’s campaign army, even if there is no law against this recruitment, sends a message of unfairness in the game. These government officials are being paid and rewarded via national resources, not party resources. To arm them into using state resources and time for campaigning purposes is ethically indefensible, even if this has been the practice since the origin of the Liberian state. Times have changed and policies must likewise change to accommodate the new realities.<\/p>\n

We believe that the elections must not only be fair, they should be perceived to be fair. Unleashing the cabinet, as a campaign machine was a false start leading to bad perceptions. Let the victory be transparent, leaving no doubts for trouble.<\/p>\n

It is more honorable to see a mistake and correct it than to pursue one with the arrogance of infallibility. This is strength, not weakness.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\nMore News on allAfrica.com<\/strong><\/legend>\n<\/fieldset>\n

AllAfrica – All the Time<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n

View original post here:
\nPerceptions, Victory and Defeat – The UP Campaign Team<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

New Democrat (Monrovia) 7 June 2011 editorial The outcry from the opposition regarding the President’s campaign team, on which leading members of the cabinet and other officials in charge of the state coffers dominated, has been loud. Whatever the reasons for the President’s change of heart in rescinding her decision on the campaign team, we must congratulate her for this honorable position. The President’s decision demonstrates strength, not weakness, for a leader who listens to cries in the wilderness with compassion, possesses character. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":439197,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-439196","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-local-news"},"yoast_head":"\nPerceptions, Victory and Defeat - The UP Campaign Team - Ghanamma.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Perceptions, Victory and Defeat - The UP Campaign Team - Ghanamma.com\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"New Democrat (Monrovia) 7 June 2011 editorial The outcry from the opposition regarding the President's campaign team, on which leading members of the cabinet and other officials in charge of the state coffers dominated, has been loud. Whatever the reasons for the President's change of heart in rescinding her decision on the campaign team, we must congratulate her for this honorable position. The President's decision demonstrates strength, not weakness, for a leader who listens to cries in the wilderness with compassion, possesses character.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ghanamma\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ghanamma\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"\",\"@id\":\"\"},\"headline\":\"Perceptions, Victory and Defeat – The UP Campaign Team\",\"datePublished\":\"2011-06-10T07:52:57+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/\"},\"wordCount\":658,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"\",\"articleSection\":[\"Local News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/\",\"name\":\"Perceptions, Victory and Defeat - The UP Campaign Team - Ghanamma.com\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"\",\"datePublished\":\"2011-06-10T07:52:57+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"\",\"contentUrl\":\"\"},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/\",\"name\":\"Ghanamma.com\",\"description\":\"News In Ghana - Latest Ghana News Headlines\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Perceptions, Victory and Defeat - The UP Campaign Team - Ghanamma.com","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"Perceptions, Victory and Defeat - The UP Campaign Team - Ghanamma.com","twitter_description":"New Democrat (Monrovia) 7 June 2011 editorial The outcry from the opposition regarding the President's campaign team, on which leading members of the cabinet and other officials in charge of the state coffers dominated, has been loud. Whatever the reasons for the President's change of heart in rescinding her decision on the campaign team, we must congratulate her for this honorable position. The President's decision demonstrates strength, not weakness, for a leader who listens to cries in the wilderness with compassion, possesses character.","twitter_creator":"@ghanamma","twitter_site":"@ghanamma","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/"},"author":{"name":"","@id":""},"headline":"Perceptions, Victory and Defeat – The UP Campaign Team","datePublished":"2011-06-10T07:52:57+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/"},"wordCount":658,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"","articleSection":["Local News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/","url":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/","name":"Perceptions, Victory and Defeat - The UP Campaign Team - Ghanamma.com","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"","datePublished":"2011-06-10T07:52:57+00:00","author":{"@id":""},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/10\/perceptions-victory-and-defeat-the-up-campaign-team\/#primaryimage","url":"","contentUrl":""},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/","name":"Ghanamma.com","description":"News In Ghana - Latest Ghana News Headlines","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=439196"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439196\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439197"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=439196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=439196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=439196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}