Monday, January 10, 2011

Ivory Coast unity cabinet possible, says UN ambassador

Youssoufou Bamba: A unity government can work

Source: BBC


Ivory Coast's ambassador to the UN says a unity government could be possible if incumbent Laurent Gbagbo drops his claim to the presidency.

Youssoufou Bamba told the BBC that Alassane Ouattara was prepared to work with Mr Gbagbo's followers in the wake of November's disputed election.

Mr Bamba was appointed by Mr Ouattara, whom the international community recognises as the winner of the vote.

Mr Gbagbo has resisted pressure to acknowledge defeat.

Speaking to the BBC's Hardtalk programme, Mr Bamba said the only thing that could not be negotiated was the result of the election.

Mr Gbagbo "has been defeated," he said. "He has to admit that, he has to step down and... the rest is negotiated."

"Mr Gbagbo is not alone," he added. "He has followers, he has competent people in his party. Those people, we are prepared to work with them. In the framework of wide composite cabinet."

Mr Bamba repeated opposition claims that Mr Gbagbo's supporters had carried out "a massive violation of human rights".

"But you know in politics, life goes on," he said. "You have to, at some point, envisage how you are, because you are condemned to live together."

The UN says some 200 people have been killed or have disappeared in the past month - mostly supporters of Mr Ouattara. It says security forces loyal to Mr Gbagbo have twice blocked peacekeepers from visiting the site of an alleged mass grave.

The Gbagbo government has repeatedly denied the existence of any mass graves.

The BBC's John James says the idea of a unity cabinet had already been hinted at when Mr Ouattara named a small cabinet in December, filling only the essential posts and leaving others vacant.

He says that even before the election Mr Ouattara said his cabinet would be open to all talents - an admission of the reality that there are a large number of Ivorians who find the idea of him as president hard to swallow.

Mr Ouattara remains behind a blockade at a hotel in the main city Abidjan, protected by UN peacekeepers and New Forces former rebels who control the north of the country.

November's election was intended to reunify the country, which has been divided since a 2002 conflict.

Mr Ouattara was initially proclaimed the winner by the country's election commission - a verdict backed by the UN, which helped organise the poll.

But the country's Constitutional Council, headed by an ally of Mr Gbagbo, later ruled that he had won, citing voting irregularities in the north.

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Inside Liberia with Bernard Gbayee Goah

Everyone is a genius

Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. – A Einstein

Drawing the line in Liberia

Crimes sponsored, committed, or masterminded by handful of individuals cannot be blamed upon an entire nationality. In this case, Liberians! The need for post-war justice is a step toward lasting peace, stability and prosperity for Liberia. Liberia needs a war crimes tribunal or some credible legal forum that is capable of dealing with atrocities perpetrated against defenseless men, women and children during the country's brutal war. Without justice, peace shall remain elusive and investment in Liberia will not produce the intended results. - Bernard Gbayee Goah



Men with unhealthy characters should not champion any noble cause

They pretend to advocate the cause of the people when their deeds in the dark mirror nothing else but EVIL!!
When evil and corrupt men try to champion a cause that is so noble … such cause, how noble it may be, becomes meaningless in the eyes of the people - Bernard Gbayee Goah.

If Liberia must move forward ...

If Liberia must move forward in order to claim its place as a civilized nation amongst world community of nations, come 2017 elections, Liberians must critically review the events of the past with honesty and objectivity. They must make a new commitment to seek lasting solutions. The track records of those who are presenting themselves as candidates for the position of "President of the Republic of Liberia" must be well examined. Liberians must be fair to themselves because results from the 2011 elections will determine the future of Liberia’s unborn generations to come - Bernard Gbayee Goah

Liberia's greatest problem!

While it is true that an individual may be held responsible for corruption and mismanagement of funds in government, the lack of proper system to work with may as well impede the process of ethical, managerial, and financial accountability - Bernard Gbayee Goah

What do I think should be done?

The situation in Liberia is Compound Complex and cannot be fixed unless the entire system of government is reinvented.
Liberia needs a workable but uncompromising system that will make the country an asylum free from abuse, and other forms of corruption.
Any attempt to institute the system mentioned above in the absence of rule of law is meaningless, and more detrimental to Liberia as a whole - Bernard Gbayee Goah

Liberia's Natural Resources
Besides land water and few other resources, most of Liberia’s dependable natural resources are not infinite, they are finite and therefore can be depleted.
Liberia’s gold, diamond, and other natural resources will not always be an available source of revenue generation for its people and its government. The need to invent a system in government that focuses on an alternative income generation method cannot be over emphasized at this point - Bernard Gbayee Goah

Liberia needs a proper system
If Liberians refuse to erect a proper system in place that promotes the minimization of corruption and mismanagement of public funds by government institutions, and individuals, there will come a time when the value of the entire country will be seen as a large valueless land suited on the west coast of Africa with some polluted bodies of waters and nothing else. To have no system in place in any country is to have no respect for rule of law. To have no respect for rule of law is to believe in lawlessness. And where there is lawlessness, there is always corruption - Bernard Gbayee Goah

Solving problems in the absence of war talks

As political instability continues to increase in Africa, it has become abundantly clear that military intervention as a primary remedy to peace is not a durable solution. Such intervention only increases insecurity and massive economic hardship. An existing example which could be a valuable lesson for Liberia is Great Britain, and the US war on terror for the purpose of global security. The use of arms whether in peace keeping, occupation, or invasion as a primary means of solving problem has yield only little results. Military intervention by any country as the only solution to problem solving will result into massive military spending, economic hardship, more fear, and animosity as well as increase insecurity. The alternative is learning how to solve problems in the absence of war talks. The objective of such alternative must be to provide real sustainable human security which cannot be achieved through military arm intervention, or aggression. In order to achieve results that will make the peaceful coexistence of all mankind possible, there must be a common ground for the stories of all sides to be heard. I believe there are always three sides to every story: Their side of the story, Our side of the story, and The truthBernard Gbayee Goah

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