By Olando Testimony Zeongar
MONROVIA – Controversial talk radio presenter Henry Pedro Costa, has lamented what he calls the grinding poverty situation Liberians are currently faced with, attributing same to among other things, incompetence and lack of leadership on the part of President George Weah.
Grinding poverty is defined as the state of being extremely poor, characterized by difficult and unsatisfying situations that never get better, changes, or ends.
Costa, a former sworn supporter of the Weah administration, turned fierce critic of the retired footballer’s regime, at a press conference on Tuesday, lamented that under the CDC-led government, poverty continues to afflict Liberians more than probably ever in the history of the country’s existence.
“Today, Liberians are suffering more than at any point in our peace-time existence as a country,” lamented Costa, who emphasized that during Weah’s reign, unemployment rates remain very high, and corruption is ever rampant – thus, undermining the country’s potential to make economic growth and development.
He asserted that while he is not oblivious to the perennial and sad reality that Liberia has always been one of the poorest countries in the World, with over 60 percent of its population almost always living below the poverty line, however, what he termed as Weah’s inexcusably patent incompetence underpinned by woeful negligence and breakdown in law and order, coupled with the lack of leadership on the part of the Liberian leader, are factors that have exacerbated the nation’s poverty situation.
Costa intoned that the widespread prevalence of Liberian children on the streets hawking commodities such as candies, cold water, and biscuits, among others, rather than being in school, where they should be productively molded as future leaders of the country, is beyond heartbreaking.
As a way of securing a better future for Liberians, Costa, a loquacious political commentator, then told Liberians that now was the time that they set aside their differences and focus on what he termed as the common good.
“We need a leadership that is capable, prudent, and compassionate to break out our country and our people free from the shackles of corruption, bad governance, and the debilitating dehumanizing poverty that we see all around us,” he further told Liberians.
“We need a leader who will put the interests of Liberians first; who will work tirelessly to improve the lives of our people; who will ensure that the democratic process is upheld,” added Costa, who rallied Liberians to stand up firmly and ensure that Weah’s leadership, which he (Costa) labeled a nightmare, is brought to an end.
He noted that while the situation in Liberia may be wearying and bleak on the watch of President Weah, who he described as a “horrible calamity”, Costa asserted that he firmly believes that together, on October 10, 2023, when Liberians go to the polls in the country’s general and presidential elections, they can break and end Weah’s reign.
“Let us continue to labor together on the noble task to build a harmonious, wholesomely functional and prosperous Liberia for all of our people and our future generations,” Costa emphasized.
