In remembrance of his development orientation and service to the people of Liberia, scores of citizens from Grand Gedeh County on Monday gathered at the Samuel K. Doe Sports Complex in Paynesville, outside Monrovia to commemorate the 69th birth anniversary of the late Liberian leader Samuel Kayon Doe.
Deceased former President Doe came to power in a military coup staged on April 12, 1980.
During the coup, former Liberian President William Richard Tolbert was killed and some 13 officials of the government executed.
Delivering the keynote address at the ceremony,, the Chairman of the Grand Gedeh Legislative Caucus, Representative Alex C. Grant, said the celebration of the day was not to please the family of the deceased president or the people of his county, but to show gratitude for many development programs initiated by his administration and ten years of stay at the Executive Mansion as Head of State.
He said President Doe’s interest in promoting infrastructure development of Liberia during his tenure still sets joy on the hearts of many Liberians and the people of Grand Gedeh County in particular.
Grant said the birthday of the late noble leader permits him and all citizens of Grand Gedeh County to recount some of the infrastructural development projects he undertook during his era.
Naming some of the development projects, Grant cited the SKD Sports Complex, the modern Health Ministry, Pan African Plaza and the Liberia National Police Headquarters.
Others include Clay-Bo Waterside Highway which runs from Bomi through Grand Cape County in the Western region of Liberia and the National Housing Bank, among others.
Grant further said the late president sound economic policy in which his government printed the Five Dollars coin to match with the United States Dollar legal tender at the time inspired more Liberians to construct real estate for the improvement of cities and communities, noting that his government also developed Liberia’s middle class, which triggered economic growth and boosted Liberian-owned industry.
Representative Grant also recounted President Doe’s “Green Revolution” policy which promoted and elevated the production of agricultural produce in the country at the time, stressing that the sector both public and private were heavily supported for the creation of wealth under his regime.
He said the policy empowered the Agriculture Cooperative Development Bank (ACDB) as financial institution lending to farmers to support growth and development to agricultural programs, such as Nimba County Agriculture Development Project (NCADP), Bong County Agricultural Development Project (BCADP) and Lofa County Agricultural Development Project (LCADP).
Among other things, Grant noted that the Bank used the Cooperative Development Agency to channel support to the various agricultural projects to serve as link for supervision and accountability, adding that the economic development strategy supported and promoted competition amongst farmers and stimulated agricultural production in both food and cash crops.
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