Monrovia, Liberia – President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr. has by proclamation designated Wednesday, March 13, 2024, as “Decoration Day.” This national holiday is to be commemorated across the country.
The Proclamation is in accordance with an Act of the Legislature that was issued on October 24, 1916, designating the Second Wednesday in March of each year as a National Holiday to be honored as a “Decoration Day.”
The celebration honors the nation’s historical heroes and heroines who gave their lives for their country, according to a statement from the Foreign Ministry.
The Proclamation says that significant moments in the country’s history ought to serve as a continual reminder to citizens and young people, encouraging them to take up greater acts of patriotism and duty.
In keeping with their love and hope, which unite people, families, and inhabitants of their country, the Proclamation also states that it is appropriate to set aside a day to honor the memories of those who have passed away.
Aware of the day, the Ministry of Education consents to commemorate it with specially organized events aimed at increasing public awareness of the contributions and deeds of great men and women and their loved ones. These events will include a parade by students, government representatives, and Ministry of Education personnel to the tombs of the late President William V.S. Tubman, the state cenotaph of pioneers and an educator, at the Centennial Memorial Pavilion on Ashmun Street; additionally, there will be a procession to Warren Street to the late President Daniel B. Warner’s tomb, followed by a procession to the Palm Grove Cemetery on Center Street to the tombs of the late Presidents Joseph Jenkins Roberts and Williams R. Tolbert.
The Proclamation also announces that the Providence Baptist Church on Broad and Ashmun Streets would host an inside program to honor the day, starting at ten o’clock ante meridian.
Following the inside event, there will be a march and wreath-laying ceremony to the graves of the chosen former presidents and educators.
The Ministry of Education is tasked with planning and implementing suitable programs to give the day significance, and the Presidential Proclamation invites all ministries, agencies, regional and global organizations, and the general public to collaborate with them.
The National Ensign shall fly at half staff from all official buildings, military camps, and private residences between the hours of six o’clock ante meridian and six o’clock post meridian, per President Boakai’s directive.
