Monrovia, Liberia – Dr. Prof. Alaric K. Tokpa, the Acting Chairperson of the Governance Commission (GC), has urged the Liberian government to disarm those who do not legally possess firearms in order to maintain the nation’s peace and stability in accordance with the signed Accra Comprehensive Peace Agreement.
Dr. Tokpa recently stated in an interview that the prevalence of armed rubbery crimes and activities throughout the nation indicates that firearms remain in the wrong hands, which he characterized as a threat to the peace and stability of Liberia.
“I was requested to speak about demobilization at the Accra Comprehensive Peace Agreement Celebration ceremony in Monrovia the last time. I am aware of the connections between demobilization and rehabilitation and reintegration design. Liberia’s had previously been heavily demobilized. However, given the high rate of violence and the armed robbery we witnessed, it is necessary to confiscate some firearms from individuals who lack the legal authority to own them. He added that it is true that during the conflict, there was a significant movement of people from Liberia’s rural areas to the city.”
Since the signing of the Accra Comprehensive Peace Agreement, Liberia has made great strides toward maintaining peace and stability, according to the Acting Chairperson of the Governance Commission. He asserted that despite ongoing difficulties, Liberia’s peace and stability can be maintained by engaging all relevant parties, particularly local stakeholders, policymakers, and academic professionals in a thorough, collaborative, and complete manner.
Dr. Tokpah added that Liberia must pinpoint these issues, develop a cooperative peace process, and devise strategies to advance the nation. Many of the people who arrived in Monrovia, he explained, had no family or relatives in the communities where they assimilated, but they had informal connections to friends and coworkers who had fought the war alongside them.
According to Dr. Tokpah, some of them have started engaging in criminal activity as a method of surviving, especially in circumstances when there is an excess of people and rising unemployment, where criminal activity is always conceivable.
There have been attempts in the modern era. Efforts include decentralization, road construction, electrification, and water channelization to other rural areas. Dr. Tokpa said, “Those are significant steps, but I believe they will help reverse the migration trend from rural to urban Liberia when combined with Public Private Partnership or collaboration.”
He added that many Liberians turn to the government to create jobs because they have no other options. However, he cautioned that, in reality, the government is in charge of fostering an atmosphere that encourages the private sector to generate jobs for the populace.
“In order for other sectors of Liberian society to achieve social and economic progress, it is normal for the country’s young people to need to be capitalized and monetized. I’m referring to the agricultural sector, which also needs to be made profitable in order for Liberia to continue to experience greater peace and security. It is admirable that we have not returned to war after twenty years. We owe this to our local national leaders as well as the leaders of West Africa and the United Nations System.”
Speaking about the problems of widespread hunger in the nation, which might lead to warfare, Dr. Tokpa stated that demobilizing armed factions would force them to disintegrate since it would cut them off from their support network and control system.
Given that victims of specific circumstances may resort to criminal activity, he recommended that measures to strengthen agriculture, technical and vocational education, the formal education system, and promoting young people’s inclusion in the employment be given top priority.
“Those people turn to alternative means of survival if they are unable to support themselves. In this situation, I perceive this. Since young people rely on their families and communities to provide for them, they must essentially rely on themselves after the conflict. In Monrovia, for example, where unemployment is high and young people lack access to education and reorientation for rehabilitation, technically vocational education, it makes sense that some of them turned to crime as a means of subsistence,” Dr. Tokpah continued.
Reported by: Prince Saah
