“Defense Minister” and “Senator” Jucontee Thomas Woewiyu
-An Irrational and Conscienceless foot soldier or a rational collaborator? A few questions.

The garrulous Tomas Woewiyu is a very interesting character who has not missed an opportunity to poke a finger at his alleged “master” Ellen Johnson Sirleaf since she became president of Liberia.  But Mr. Woewiyu who, in his open letter and all subsequent “interviews,” has labored tirelessly to pass the blame by claiming he and his other master, Charles McArthur Taylor were mere foot soldiers of Mrs. Sirleaf, has made no effort in acknowledging his own culpability in the carnage he helped planned and actively participated in at the highest level--- and he has made no plead for mercy either. What he has done consistently though, is pressed President Sirleaf to admit to spending more than the $10,000 she has already admitted to spending in the formative stages of the NPFL. In essence, he is pressing her to take on more responsibility than she already has.

To his credit, Mr. Woewiyu, revealed his true motive for writing his open letter to Mrs. Sirleaf when he stated “I said, to her, Ellen, if my intention was to stop you from being elected, which it was, it did not work.” Well, we know the motive for the first open letter which did not work, but what exactly is the motive for the sustained assault on President Sirleaf’s credibility? It is a different matter to question public policies. Perhaps in one of his blabbing interviews or letters sometime in the future, he will spill the beans. It shouldn’t really be difficult to decipher though, considering his admitted first motive.  But let me ask Mr. Woewiyu the same question he asked President Sirleaf  ” Does Mr. Woewiyu naively believes that his part in our national tragedy will remain hidden by focusing the spot light on Mrs. Sirleaf in his sustained assault?”

Which that opening question, let me ask a few more questions of Mr. Woewiyu  and provide him yet another opportunity to come clean or blab on about his master in an attempt to dodge these simple and direct questions.  

1.     Is Mr. Woewiyu’s argument that he and his buddy Charles Taylor were foot solders of Mrs. Sirleaf intended to absolve them of the responsibility of presiding over the death of over 300,000 Liberians and the total destruction of our dear country? If not, what measure of responsibility is he willing to accept and what will he do to make up for the recklessness they exercised with lives and properties in Liberia during their bloody campaign?

2.    When Mr. Woewiyu stated, that “He was sent on a mission which was accomplished. Clearly, the ills of the mission caused a devastation of the total infrastructure of the nation and snuffed the lives out of 300,000 Liberians.  Exactly what was the mission and at what time was it accomplished since it was Prince Johnson of the breakaway INPFL who captured and Killed President Doe on September 9, 1990 and that did not end the killing and destruction? Also, Is Mr. Woewiyu acknowledging that the “ills of the mission” was not part of the original plan Mrs. Sirleaf sent them on --- in that case, would they accept sole responsibility for the “ills of the mission”?

3.    Does Mr. Woewiyu want us to believe that he personally had nothing against Mr. Doe’s government and would not have advocated for a regime change by any means necessary had his “master” Mrs. Sirleaf not issued a scathing condemnation of the regime and sent them on a mission --- if so, why did he choose to stay out of the NPFL I since by his own admission, he had problem with the presidency of Mr. Doe at that time, and not NPFL II, when it was clearly his choice to do so? Was he coerced and compelled?

4.    Mr. Woewiyu also said that there was a conversation for Mrs. Sirleaf to “accept responsibility for the political phase and Charles Taylor being responsible for the military phase of what eventually became the 1989 uprising against the Samuel Doe Regime.” If this is the correct account of the conversation, why then is Mr. Woewiyu holding Mrs. Sirleaf responsible for both the political and military phase of the carnage--- what responsibility do he and his buddy Charles Taylor bear for the military phase since he was the “Defense Minister, particularly during their deadly 1992 “Operation Octopus” assault on the city of Monrovia which had over a million residents at that time? If by his own account, Mrs. Sirleaf had abandoned the “killer train” by that time, does he still hold her responsible for the indiscriminate shelling of Monrovia and the killing that resulted there from and other killings that took place going forward after she disembarked?

5.    Mr. Woewiyu insist that Mrs. Sirleaf’s contribution to the NPFL amounted to half a million dollar. Clearly, the war effort of the notorious NPFL cost several millions. How much did he personally contribute and who are the others who contributed the other millions to finance the killings of our people?

6.    Mr. Woewiyu said he admonished Liberians at different points that Doe, Taylor and Mrs. Sirleaf were the wrong people to govern Liberia. Did he also believe that Mr. Taylor was the wrong person to lead a military destruction of Liberia – if so, why did he collaborate with him – was Taylor good enough to do the military work in the bush but not good enough to lead – did he tell Mr. Taylor that and when? And when exactly did he write his open letter or grant an interview warning Liberians about the possible presidency of Charles Taylor -- where is that letter or transcript of the interview?

7.    Mr. Woewiyu was a chief architect of the ill-conceived Central Revolutionary Council (CRC), along with Dokie, Supuwood and others. Their ill-fated campaign to wrest control of Gbarnga from Mr. Taylor and by extension, control of NPFL, caused massive lost of lives and destruction of properties in Gbarnga and its environs, including Phebe Hospital. Does Mr. Woewiyu also hold Mrs. Sirleaf responsible for this irresponsible adventure – if not, who else does he want to hold responsible for his personal killing mission? I understand that as a long time buddy of Taylor, he was able to reconcile with his pal, but Mr. Dokie and his family weren’t so lucky; and Supuwood was never forgiven by Taylor. Does he feel sorry that he did not help to reconcile his buddies?

8.    Mr. Woewiyu, as part of his rage against past governments, condemned the treatment of workers (laborers) at the Firestone Plantation. Later, his company or one he had controlling interest in, was contracted to upgrade the living quarters of the poor workers.  Exactly what did his company accomplish, -- were the living quarters upgraded -- having been an avid critics of Firestone as Labor Minister and before getting the contract?

9.    Mr. Woewiyu said, “for the benefit of us Liberian do not know, that Mrs. Sirleaf worked in the International Community, especially the United States to stop any form of aid to the Liberia people in the name of corruption.” But during those 20 years, what exactly was Mr. Woewiyu doing – working in the United States to source and deliver aid to Liberians or what – would such good deeds include being a foots soldier in the planning and execution of the destruction of Liberia? Did he ever work to stop aid from the Liberian people?

10.    Mr. Woewiyu, considered corruption under Mrs. Sirleaf’s administration “as part of a divine curse and as God’s way of showing Mrs. Sirleaf that absolutely no sin goes unpunished. He further that God was telling Mrs. Sirleaf to do the right thing or quit the leadership while she can.” Looking back, does Mr. Woewiyu see a parallel between Mrs. Sirleaf’s tenure and that of he and his buddy Charles Taylor --- considering the LDF and the unnecessary killing of Mr. François Massaquoi; the advent of INPFL, ULIMO, LPC and later, LURD and MODEL. How about the early death of some close Taylor family members and buddies like Mr. Doupu and Emmet Glee Johnson(sp)? Was God also telling you guys that no sin goes unpunished and to do the right thing or quit while you could?

11.    Mr. Woewiyu also lamented that Mrs. Sirleaf’s government was the most corrupt of all government during the 20 years combined. Interesting, isn’t it? Just how does Mr. Woewiyu know this – did he participate in corruption and what level of corruption existed in the Taylor government since he is quite capable of comparing corruption level in different regimes without conducting comparative audits --- what did he do to curtail corruption as “Labor Minister” and “Senator of Grand Bassa --- and before, what did he do to stop the looting of Liberia as “Defense Minister of NPP”?

12.    Mr. Woewiyu predicted that things were going to get harder and harder because of the lawlessness of Liberia and he decried the cancellation of concession agreements, particularly FDA concession. Well, will Mr. Woewiyu agree that things were getting harder and harder under the lawless and abusive regime he, Taylor and others presided over --- and was OTC, which imported majority of its employees, (Cyril Allen statement that Liberians were not qualified to operate yellow machines comes to mind) to engage in indiscriminate logging, one of such contract not worth cancelling if it was determined that the concession was against the interest of the Liberian state?

13    Mr. Woewiyu also said that “if the Liberian people want to continue on the path of electing those who committed the most atrocities against them, I think General Buck Nicked should be in line for the Presidency in 2011.  Was that the same reason why, he, Taylor and others accused killers were elected as representatives, senators and president – could they have just refrained from contesting, knowing their tract record, just to spare the Liberia people the agony of voting them into office out of fear and coercion – does Mr. Woewiyu regret becoming a Senator since he fits his own description of one of those who should not be elected?

14    Mr. Woewiyu described corruption as an “invisible AK-47 which kills faster than the physical AK.” Is this an admission by Mr. Woewiyu that Liberians were facing a double whammy since they were being killed by both the physical AK-47 and the invincible one – corruption, which was rampant under the Taylor regime when he served as Labor Minister and Senator--- what did he do to spare Liberians from the double edged sow?

15     Mr. Woewiyu also predicted that “Given the poor financial condition prevailing in the World today, it will be near impossible for Madam Sirleaf to attract a reputable institution to invest in Liberia with confidence.” Would that mean that he does not consider Mattel Steel in  Nimba, the Chinese Company in Bong Mines and the power generating company in Margibi, among others,  “reputable institution” investing in Liberia – and exactly which reputable companies can he point to as having invested in Liberia while they presided over the pillaging of the country? I believe that does not include “Nicko Sheffer’s Greater Diamond. Mr. Woewiyu knows exactly why Greater Diamond came to Liberia, how their government benefited and what happened to greater Diamond short and frustrating escapade in Liberia. Maybe he can just tell is a little bit about this. While he’s at it, can he tell us whether his predication is also hinged on his plan to follow in Mrs. Sirleaf alleged  footsteps by living in the United States and working hard to discourage all reputable companies from investing in Liberia under the Sirleaf’s regime? Would he also tell his buddy Benoni Urey to close shop and take his investment elsewhere if at all he can manage to leave the country?

16    During the time Mr. Woewiyu and his buddies presided over Liberia, Mr. George Haddad had the right to import of 75 percent of the rice coming into the country. That right was given to Mr. Haddad during the regime of Senator Woewiyu and President Taylor. Did the former Defense and Labor Minister find any problem with such an arrangement that enabled Mr. Haddad to manipulate the price of rice at will – and did he ever criticize the arrangement like he is doing with the “Browns and Sinkor Trading Company” – did Mr. Woewiyu ever address the constant harassment of the K&K Enterprise, the only other rice importer at the time – if so when and where is this evidence of his advocacy in this instance? Like he said of Mr. Brown, was Mr. Haddad also being compensated by Defense Minister and Senator Woewiyu and his buddy Taylor for services he rendered the NPFL and NPP when he was allowed to control the stomach of Liberians by determining the qualify of  rice they ate and the price they paid to do so?

17    Mr. Woewiyu can also educate us about his alleged involvement in a robbery incident that took place at the Ducor International Hotel while he was associated with the entity many years before the war and just how his new found concern for the Liberian people squares up with other previous allegations of indiscretions by him.

18    Regarding his lawsuit, it will be a personal matter between Mrs. Taylor and Mr. Woewiyu when she’s no longer president of Liberia – and it appears that it will be a little while yet so I do not see why Mr. Woewiyu who continues to slam Mrs. Sirleaf is having heart palpation this early. I have no interest in his matter so I will not comment on it further.

19    Mr. Woewiyu has passed himself as an irrational and conscienceless follower who has no moral conviction of his own and no sour grapes with the Doe government, such that he would follow any order from his masters Mrs. Sirleaf and Charles McArthur Taylor, exactly what does Mr. Woewiyu stand for and what would he condone and not condone –- will Mr. Woewiyu get out of his home here in the US and shoot people if he was told my one of his masters to do so, without considering his own moral conviction and responsibility to society, if any, and claim that he was a foot solder – would that be sufficient to clear a sane and discerning adult of responsibility for his action – if not why should he be absolved of responsibility for the central  role he played in directing the massive death and destruction his group orchestrated in Liberia?

20    A final question for the former Labor and Defense minister: Most of Mr. Woewiyu’s buddies, including Mr. Benoni Urey (who recently called Liberia a prison) and Jewel Taylor (who consistently touts Taylor innocence) are on the travel ban list for doing nothing different from what Mr. Woewiyu did in Liberia. Does he consider this an injustice and will he return to Liberia to jointly suffer the consequence of their joint operation, instead of sitting in the comfort of his home in the US while his cronies suffer the consequence of their joint actions from which they jointly benefited?

Mr. Woewiyu, since you have not failed to seek and take advantage of opportunities to stick a finger in the side of Mrs. Sirleaf for everything you and your buddies masterminded in Liberia, despite having implied that she disembarked at some point early on while you guys carried on the killing and looting in Liberia, I believe you will not find any problem sharing light on these simple questions I have asked.   Just so you know and in the interest of full disclosure, I asked these questions as both a victim of the excesses of the NPP regime and an active witness to this sad period in our history. So as you fashion your answers, I hope you will be more forthcoming than you have been in the past. As my questions indicate, as former Labor and Defense Minister and Senator, I would like to hear more about your role in the destructions of lives and properties in our country and not about desperation to pass yourself off as a suave and urbane Liberia-hugging fellow, since you have already done a good job at explaining the role of Mrs. Sirleaf. The next time you are itching to be interviewed about Liberia and Mrs. Sirleaf, I can offer to ask the questions. Just call or email me. Good luck.

Nyekeh Forkpa
401 477 4993
Providence, Rhode Island