Liberia: Piah Fires Back At Cummings Over Facebook Post
Information Minister Jerolinmek Matthew Piah has reacted strongly to a recent Facebook post by Alternative National Congress (ANC) political leader Alexander B. Cummings, which criticized the Boakai administration for failing to address what he described as “bread and butter” issues affecting ordinary Liberians.
Cummings, in the post that circulated widely on social media, was quoted as saying, “La road we will eat, what about the bread-and-butter issues?” The statement drew sharp criticism from Minister Piah, who said he was shocked that someone aspiring to lead the country would downplay the importance of road construction.
According to the information minister, what troubled him most was not only the post itself but also the comments, which he said demonstrated that Liberians are closely following national development issues and are prepared to defend what the government is doing in their interest.
Piah cited several comments from Facebook users responding to Cummings’ post. One commenter questioned whether Liberians would remove what they described as a “serious government” from power to replace it with “unserious people.” Another commenter sarcastically suggested creating a “ministry of bread and butter” if that was all critics believed the government should focus on.
The minister also referenced comments questioning the return of sanctioned individuals to positions of power, while others accused former officials of corruption during their time in government. According to Piah, some commenters argued that Cummings’ record during his previous political involvement did not reflect effective leadership.
Speaking recently in Monrovia, Minister Piah questioned Cummings’ experience, stating that it was “shocking to see people who have not been tested but say they want power and think they know better.” He added, “Who would want to be president and look down on road construction?”
Although the minister did not initially mention Cummings by name, this publication has confirmed that the statement referred to the ANC political leader, whose Facebook post generated significant engagement and debate.
Under the post, Cummings received backlash from several commentators who criticized his leadership credentials, including references to his past role as a senior executive at Coca-Cola company. Some commenters argued that the statement did not reflect the mindset expected of a presidential aspirant.
Despite mixed public reaction, Minister Piah seized the opportunity to further criticize Cummings, stating that the ANC leader appeared to acknowledge that roads are being built but was attempting to diminish their significance.
“In other words, you are admitting that roads are being constructed, but you are telling people that roads don’t matter,” Piah said. “Before, the argument was that nothing had changed. Now it is that nothing significant has happened.”
The minister further argued that Cummings’ long residence in the United States may have shaped unrealistic expectations of development in Liberia.
“If your entire life has been spent in Atlanta, Georgia, where the infrastructure is far beyond anything Liberia currently has, you will never see progress here unless it looks exactly like what you are used to there,” Piah said. “Liberia is not Atlanta.”
He added that dismissing road construction as meaningless was irresponsible, concluding that such thinking explained, in his words, “why it is easy for someone to move from seven percent to one percent politically.”
By New Dawn.
