Belle Yella Opens to the World

Liberia - The people of Belle Yella, in Gbarpolu County, received perhaps the greatest Christmas gift of their lifetime when President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf led an array of Government officials and the Ambassadors of the United States and China to fulfill a promise that she would spend the 2009 Christmas with the people of this northwestern forest town.
What made the Belle Yella visit even more historic is the fact that, for the first time in the history of Liberia, a town once famous for its political prisons, where past governments locked up opponents and hardened criminals, was poised to be linked to the rest of the country by a motor road being constructed by the Government of Liberia.
The Liberian President had assured the County’s most famous son, Paramount Chief Old Man Jallah Lone, now 106 years old, and other prominent people of Gbarpolu that, come what may, she would spent the Christmas in their town, not by way of a helicopter, but by road. “If the road doesn’t reach Belle Yella in time for the Christmas, we will walk, wherever the road stops, to get to Belle Yella,” the President repeated recently in a holiday message and in subsequent interviews.
The President’s comments to walk to Belle Yella may not have been taken literally by many. They were wrong, because the President actually walked for more than an hour and a half to reach the town, when it became clear that the Ministry of Public Works construction crew would not be able to connect Belle Yella by road on Christmas Day.
With Government officials and her diplomatic guests following, the President walked through the dense Belle forest, crossing creeks, connected sometimes only by makeshift bridges that challenged even those who use them regularly.
“How far is Belle Yella from here?” was the question most frequently asked by the officials, determined to spend Christmas in the town. Depending on who the question was addressed to, the responses were different. “It’s just 30 minutes; you’re not too far.” One villager was very precise. “It will take 23 minutes,” he said, confidently. In reality, the stretch was longer than everyone anticipated. Those who could walk faster took an hour, others a little longer. But in the end it didn’t matter; the goal was to get to Belle Yella, a town charged with euphoria and anticipation.
At about 4:15 p.m., the crowd, ecstatic, erupted in cheers and songs. It appeared that the President and her entourage had made the stretch. But that was not the case. A motorbike had made it through, the first in the history of the town. Most of the inhabitants, especially the younger generation, had never seen a motorbike, let alone a vehicle. A young man rubbed the dust off the motorbike with his finger and licked it, in appreciation for the historic event he was witnessing.
Meanwhile, the crowd continued to surge, anticipating the arrival of the President and her delegation, which arrived, finally, at about 6:15 p.m. to the delight of the town’s residents who sang, danced, and chanted slogans in welcoming the President to “prisoner’s creek,” so-called because it was used by male prisoners as a place to shower.
Women spread their lappas on the ground as the President and her entourage walked to the recently constructed meeting place for an official program. County officials, led by Superintendant Gertrude Larmine and the Legislative Caucus, were present, and lavished praises on the President for fulfilling her promise to spend the Christmas with them.
They were particularly grateful to the President for undertaking the construction of the 25-mile stretch of road linking Bopolu to Belle Yella. “You have fulfilled the vision of our forefathers,” District No.3 Representative, Dixon Yarseah, said. He regretted that the area was marginalized by past governments, but was now hopeful that, with the construction of a motor road linking Belle Yella to the rest of the country, the area would now attract more development.
The President thanked the citizens for the warm welcome, and reiterated that her visit was in fulfillment of a promise to the people of Belle Yella that she would spend the Christmas with them. She apologized for the delay in reaching the town, but assured them they would spend Christmas night together.
The Liberian President also thanked all those who had made the trip, taking time from their families to spend Christmas in Belle Yella. She was particularly full of praises for the Minister of Public Works and his engineering crew for their hard work. “We intend to turn Belle Yella into a place of hope from a place of horror,” the President told journalists later in an interview.
The decision by the President to spend the night in Belle Yella took many residents by surprise since accommodation, especially for a President, poses some challenges, which the President acknowledged. “We will all stay up, tell stories, and dance as it is done when a stranger comes to your town and there are no sleeping places,” the President suggested.
It was worth the wait because, as the night progressed, and with the President keeping her word and staying awake, enjoying the traditional music and dance, came word that the road crew was about to enter the town. The news spread like wildfire, and like an army of ants, residents, with their flashlights, began to move towards the construction site to witness, firsthand, the history that was unfolding before their very eyes.
Yes, it was, indeed, true, because not only was the sound of the heavy-duty equipment becoming increasingly louder, but lights from the caterpillars and the Presidential fleet of vehicles began beaming through the forests, becoming visible.
“This is not true, I cannot believe this,” exclaimed an older woman as she struggled to join others who had begun to make their way to prisoner’s creek, which stood as the only remaining hurdle to the entry of the first motor vehicle ever to enter Belle Yella
At 3:15 a.m., the first vehicle, a caterpillar, followed by a fleet of vehicles, roared into Belle Yella as its residents chanted. It was reported that a woman, no doubt overwhelmed by the event, fainted. This could not be independently confirmed.
As the convoy approached, a middle-aged man, lying in the middle of the road, in disbelief, screamed: “I want the caterpillar to walk over me.”
“Who way-say, Ellen way-say; Who way-say, Ellen way-say,” chanted the residents, of all age groups, as they hugged one another and welcomed the convoy into Belle Yella – the first entry of a motor vehicle, a dream – which the President described as a fulfillment of a promise to the people of Gbarpolu to end the isolation of the town and bring development to the area.

Traditional Chief in River Gee Sentenced To Death

The Fifteenth Judicial Circuit Court in Fish Town, River Gee County has sentenced to death by hanging the Paramount Chief of Matuaken Chiefdom.

Paramount Chief Wilson Darpoh was sentenced Monday in connection with the brutal murder of Guinean motorcyclist Abdullai Bah.

According to State Prosecutor Attorney Nkrumah Teekay, Paramount Chief Darpoh is to be hanged on or before January 21, 2010

Another partner-in-crime in the murder of the motorcyclist, Enoch Jasper was also sentenced for five years in prison.

Announcing the sentence, Judge Charles Williams also called for the arrest of the driver of Ambassador Commany Wesseh for his role in the death of the motorcyclist.

Boye Wesseh is believed to be a blood-relative of Ambassador Wesseh.

The decomposed body of Abdullai Bah was on May 11, this year discovered on the Putuken/Fish Town Highway with a broken head.

Blood was reportedly drained from the motorcyclist’s body and his brain extracted.

During the trial, Abraham Karnweah an insider witness was nulle-prosequoied, to testify for the state.

Karnweah told the Court, Ambassador Commany Wesseh’s driver requested the blood and other body parts extracted from Abdullah Bah.

The court said it would make what it calls the necessary impact to ensure Ambassador Wesseh turns in his driver to face justice.

Liberian Lawmakers Linked To Stolen Vehicles In U.S.

Report says two members of the House of Representatives have been linked to the importation of two stolen vehicles from the United States.

The lawmakers are Zoe Pennoh and Rufus Gbeor both of Grand Gedeh County.

According to the reports the two lawmakers are said to have purchased the stolen vehicles and imported them into the Country.

Star Radio gathered upon importation of the stolen vehicles, international security personnel were immediately alerted.

Reports say prior to the alert, one of the vehicles belonging to Representative Rufus Gbeor had already being cleared from the Freeport of Monrovia.

On the other hand, the one belonging to Representative Zoe Pennoh was arrested at the Freeport and sent back to the United States.

Our reporter says police arrested the luxury Mercedes Benz which belongs to Representative Gbeor from a certain location and took it to the capitol building.

One of the lawmakers Representative Zoe Pennue dismissed the report and challenged anyone to prove the case against him.

Meanwhile, the US Embassy says it would cooperate with government in investigating the matter

UN welcomes climate summit deal

The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed a US-backed climate deal in Copenhagen as an "essential beginning".

He was speaking after delegates passed a motion recognising the agreement, which the US reached with key nations including China and Brazil.

But Mr Ban said the agreement must be made legally binding next year. Earlier, the meeting failed to secure unanimous support, amid opposition from some developing nations. Climate deal: Key issuesSeveral South American countries, such as Nicaragua and Venezuela, were among a group saying the agreement had not been reached through proper process.

The BBC's environment correspondent Richard Black says the deal may disappoint many countries that wanted tougher action on climate change. He says the Copenhagen Accord looks unlikely to contain temperature rises to within 2C (3.6F) and it is not yet clear whether it counts as a formal UN deal or not.

"The conference decides to take note of the Copenhagen Accord of December 18, 2009," the chairman of the plenary session of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) declared on Saturday morning, swiftly banging down his gavel.


When President Obama left Copenhagen last night, he appeared to think he carried a nice, neat deal in his back pocket.

Perhaps he didn't realise that having it formally adopted in the closing plenary session here would mean getting it past a hall full of smart diplomats and lawyers from countries that hate the contents of the deal and the way it was done.

Objections from several countries mean it has not been formally adopted. Delegations are now trying to introduce language making some bits legally binding.

A global deal? That's looking less and less likely… whether it matters, whether the Chinese and US architects care, is another matter.

Delegates at the climate summit had been battling through the night to prevent the talks ending without reaching a final deal.

The Copenhagen Accord is based on a proposal tabled on Friday by a US-led group of five nations - including China, India, Brazil and South Africa - that President Barack Obama called a "meaningful agreement".

The accord includes a recognition to limit temperature rises to less than 2C and promises to deliver $30bn (£18.5bn) of aid for developing nations over the next three years. It outlines a goal of providing $100bn a year by 2020 to help poor countries cope with the impacts of climate change.

GNN Lauches New Website

The Management of the Global News Website (GNN) has launched a new blog to adequately inform the world about happenings in Liberia. Detail follow in our subsequnet postngs.