Liberia: Belle Yella Opens to the World

28 December 2009
The people of Belle Yellah, 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 Yellah 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 Yellah in time for the Christmas, we will walk, wherever the road stops, to get to Belle Yellah," the President repeated recently in a holiday message and in subsequent interviews.

The President's comments to walk to Belle Yellah 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 Yellah 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 Yellah 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 Yellah, 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 Yellah. "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 Yellah 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 Yellah 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 Yellah. 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 Yellah 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 Yellah 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 Yellah.

At 3:15 a.m., the first vehicle, a caterpillar, followed by a fleet of vehicles, roared into Belle Yellah 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 Yellah - 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.

Copyright © 2009 Liberia Government. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).
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