|
|
|
Gabriel Nimely regrets role in execution of 13 Liberian gov't officials
Posted June 28, 2009
|
The first Minister of Information of the Samuel Doe military government in Liberia, Mr. Gabriel Q. Nimely has expressed regrets for his role in the execution of the thirteen former government officials immediately following the 1980 coup in that country. He said, “I made one political mistake as it relates to the execution of those thirteen people. That’s what I regret, other than that, I am proud.” He could not however say whether he was ready to openly apologize for that political mistake. Mr. Nimely said he will not apologize to anyone, not even a rat. He described his role as simply allowing the television crew to film the executions which he regrets. As the Minister of Information at the time, Mr. Nimely was widely quoted by media reports of announcing that the executions of people he called the enemies of the people would take place that afternoon. Speaking to WRAR-96 recently, Mr. Nimely who now resides in Ohio in the United States said he was asked by the People’s Redemption Council (PRC) to serve his country and he did his job and is proud of it. At the time of the military take over, Mr. Nimely was working at the state-owned broadcaster as a newscaster, announcer and sports play by play announcer. The former Minister of Information has meanwhile described as pathetic what he calls the refusal of President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf to appear before the Truth & Reconciliation Committee – TRC. When reminded that the President had in fact appeared, Mr. Gabriel Nimely said, he had never heard that she did. He referred to her book in which she had earlier said would contain accounts of her role in the Liberian conflict as pathetic and carrying nothing about her involvement with Mr. Charles Taylor and Libyan leader Murmur Khadafi. Mr. Nimely said, President Sirleaf has failed to answer the question that people are asking – about how much she contributed to the destruction of Liberia and “the creation of the monster Charles Taylor”. Mr. Nimely who was on a list of persons of interest required to appear before the TRC in December of 2008, said he refused to do so and would never have done it because, of the Commission’s mandate to look at the root cause of the Liberian conflict dating back only to 1979. He argued that the Liberian conflict started from the founding of the nation and by limiting its mandate to 1979 was the same old trick of the bourgeois class to try to blame the late Samuel Doe for what the Americo-Liberians did to Liberia. He said the Accra agreement which created the TRC did not give a time frame to look at, and accused the Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf government of providing the time frame that limits the Commission’s work to 1979, adding “tell the whole story.” |
Advertisement |
|
|
In addition, Mr. Nimely said other than the list that had his name on it; he did not receive an official invitation to appear before the Commission.
For more on this and other news, interviews an music click here to listen to WRAR-96 Internet Radio, a part of the African Media Network which owns this website.
|
||
|
www.runningafrica.com |
