Monrovia, Liberia The fight against Coronavirus and the associated preventive messages are said to be resonating well with the people of Liberia even in the midst of some challenges.
Montserrado County, the epic center of the outbreak in Liberia is no exception especially in the rural parts of the county where community and village dwellers are taking matters into their own hands.
A tour of Todee Statutory District, the biggest in Montserrado County Wednesday witnessed town dwellers following the most basic preventive protocol which is hand washing.
Checkpoints are erected at basic intersections where residents and visitors are compelled to wash their hands before interacting with anyone in the towns and villages.
However this alertness did not stop the involvement of Monrovia City Mayor Jefferson Tamba Koijee and partners, the Liberia Crusaders for Peace, making an intervention to the people of the Todee Statutory District on behalf of President George Manneh Weah.
Mayor Koijee and entourage made stops at every major town and village and presented rice, faucet buckets and klim tile soap to residents along the Road to the Todee Administrative Headquarters of Nyehn Town.
Speaking at every stop, Mayor Koijee told the people that President Weah was very concern about them and wanted to make a personal intervention while Government wraps up plans for the bigger picture (national stimulus and food assistance).
Major towns that benefited include, Varney Guiah Town, Gobah Town, Tobelta Township, Nyehn Town and Morris Farm.
Mayor Koijee said the rice and other assorted items were part of the ‘Weah Project’ initiated by President George Weah to bring hope and relief to his citizens amidst the scourge of the coronavirus pandemic.
“As Mayor of Monrovia, President Weah had wanted me to share over 1000 bags of rice and other items with residents of Monrovia, but I also had to think about you people because I know how special you are to us, I mean the government and particularly the President” said the Mayor to residents of Todee in Nyehn Town.
He also said in order to govern, ‘people have to be alive’, and therefore he is under moral obligation to do whatever possible to stop the spread of coronavirus in Liberia, noting “for me to be the Lord Mayor, my people have to be alive”.
Alongside Mayor Koijee was Liberia’s Culture Ambassador Juli Endee whose entity, the Liberia Crusaders for Peace is partnering with the Monrovia City Corporation as part of the government’s Coronavirus Response.
Ambassador Endee expressed delight working with Mayor Koijee to bring relief to the people of Montserrado County through the kind gesture of President George Manneh Weah.
She encouraged the people of Todee to continue following the preventive measures and report any sick person to the nearby health center or call 4455 for immediate response from the government and partners.
She observed that while hand washing was a popular practice among the people, adhering to social distancing was still a major challenge.
Speaking in simple Liberian English, Ambassador Endee added, “I know you been washing your hands but there are still a lot of things for you to continue doing. The way you people are standing right now is not correct. You need to dress back and stand far from each other”
It was a day to remember for the benefiting residents of Todee District, Montserrado County as they could not hide their joy at every opportunity given to respond while receiving the items.
Speaking on behalf of the people of Nyehn Town, Tolberta Township Commissioner Daniel S.K. Pabie thanked President George Weah through Mayor Koijee and Ambassador Endee for the gestures.
Commissioner Pabie said the fact that President Weah thought about the people of Todee during this national health crisis means he is truly a friend and son of the district.
“We all have been told that the person that remembers you when you are in problem, that person is truly your friend. We know at some point that the President was going to identify with us because our President is a good person and a good leader” Commissioner Pabie told the gathering in Nyehn Town.
There were similar praises from the Women Chairlady Kou Dorkago who also wants the mainstreaming of women of the district in the COVID-19 Response activities.
In Gobah Town, Paramount Chief Stephen Gobah expressed the belief that the intervention by the Liberian leader will go a long way in opening the doors for additional donations and assistance to the people of Todee District.
In Varney Guiah Town, General Town Chief Moima K. Boe lauded Ambassador Endee and Mayor Koijee for taking the President’s gesture to them and called on the government to use this national crisis to focus on other key issues affecting residents of Todee Statutory District.
Both Ambassador Endee and Mayor Koijee have partnered to successfully recruit over 1300 social mobilizers and social communicators who are working in the various communities in Montserrado, creating awareness about prevention and other associated protocols of COVID-19.
Under the collaboration there are also about 6000 young volunteers working as Active Case Finders. Their role is to collect basic information from the various households in Montserrado County and the data gathered is sent to the National Public Health Institute of Liberia to inform major policy decision on Public Health.
The MCC and LCP had previously made similar intervention on behalf of President Weah in the Township of West Point where they distributed food and non-food items to hundreds of residents under the Weah Project.
