By Abraham Mitchell (former Liberia Immigration Service)
DW! Viva MoJA! Viva LPP!
He called me Mitch, and I called him DW. The passing of DW – Sr. Comeade Dusty Wolokolie yesterday, May 21, 2026 following intermittent health depreciations, does signify another tragic loss for the entire progressive democratic forces of the 1970s, 80s and the entire 20th Century, and beyond.
The point of the reality check is this: With the sequential passing of MoJA’s leadership stslwarts – Sr. Comrades Logan, TJ, ACS, and now DW – it is clear we are finished! And if these vacuums will have not been filled comparably by younger, more vibrant comrades, seriously, then, we are truly finished as progressives. Meanwhile, as MoJA, PAL has had her share of the teagedy of the loss of heros, with the tragic passing of G-Bac, Jayee, Bo West and Vlah! We contend, notwithstanding, as revolutionaries that death is part of the inevitablity of history.
Mitchell’s Eulogy to DW
In his eulogy to his best friend, comrade, and lifelong collaborator, at the Highgate Cementery speech in March 1883, Frederick Engel highlighted, among other things, that while Karl Mark as a revolutionist and leader of the milirant proletariat may have had many opponents ideologically and philosophically, Engel reminded the attendees at the Cementery and said: “I make bold to say Karl Marx had no personal enemy” in the struggle for the emancipation of the proletariat from the bourgeousie.
That was Dusty Wolokolie. I worked with Dusty, both as a veteran student leader and a stalwart of
the national movement – MoJA. Charactetistically, DW was open, independent-minded; he was always frank and audicious; he played no games; told no lies; claimed no easy victories at the expense of others, and never took politics personal, including scheming and plotting.
I had two critical encounters with DW historically in the student movement (SUP/ULSU) and the national movement (MOJA).
In 1979/80 on the eve of the party’s (SUP) Convention/Caucus to elect the standard bearer and vice standard bearer of the Party, I had successfully gone through the “scrutiny” of the 23-Man Central Committee as a vice running mate to Groge Klay-Kieh, Jr. Shortly thereafter, Dusty, the 1979 outgoing ULSU President and his Vice President, Siapha Kamara, invited me, vice running mate and Culumnist of the “Vanguard”, to a hastily arranged meeting of SUP’s Polit Bureau members,
including running mate Kieh, SG/ ULSU 1979;TJ, Asst SG/ ULSU 79; J.S. Fromonyan, Chair of SUP; etc. – all MoJA stslwarts in SUP. I hah gotten an intelligence about the meeting. My supporters, led by Cdes. Geegbe A. Geegbe and TR (Tonia Richardson – RIP).warned me should I capitulatel I I’m that meeting I should never ever count on their support politically in the future.
The meeting had a one point agenda: A mandate from the MOJA leadership on Ashman St; the presiding chair, Dusty said: “Mitchell, you are oedetedI to step-down as a vice standard bearer in the pending SUP Convention”. And the matter reached me. I asked why such a mandate from above. The response was: you are viewed as being
“too radical” by the national leadership! After a ferocious debate of the matter, I replied: “Neither do I trust the message nor the messengers” – and therefore, both the messengers and their message I declared rejected. The meeting was disbanded in chaos; I was branded as being disrespectful; the convention was held; Kieh and I as vice running mate to him came out of the SUP Convention with resounding victory. Kieh defeated T. Sampson Quioh ( RIP) and Korboi Weisnor- Sando. And I defeated Patricia Jappah and James Paye Legay, respectively. The Kieh-Mifchell Ticket killed the opposition caolition – the All Student Allied Party (ASAP); they never put up a candidate in that election; that was unprecedented. After the election, DW called me, and said to me, congratulations! And we continued with the struggle.
On the eve of the April 12 Coup, the Kieh- Mitchell ticket was inducted on April 11, 1980. Comrade Dr. Professor H. Boima Fahnbulleh, Jr. was the induction keynote speaker. His topic: “The University Without Walls” – a direct response to the TWP ruling class that warned UL students to study their lessons and keep out of national politics.
The coup took place; the TWP was overthrown; ASAP died a natural death because it no longer had any relevance, as its patron (the TWP) had ceased to exist. Subsrquently, though, in the following ULSU election, at the end of 1980, under the People’s Redemption Council dispensation of a new dynamic, remnants of ASAP regroupped under a new formation, called, UPS – Union of Progressive Students – led by Kwame Clement, Charles Gbayon, both journalists and others. It was that new formation (UPS) under the euphoria for “change” that defeated the indomitable SUP for the very first time, with Muwalimu N’sengbe and Tiawon S. Gonglo as SUP’s standard bearer and vice standard bearer, respectively.
The second encounter with DW was serious than the first. A group of MoJA cadets – Group of Twelve (GOT) had returned from abroad, following a six (6)-month rigurous training in revolutionary doctrines, 1981, including myself. During the training, the head of the group delegation, Siapha Kamara, DW’s VP in 1979 and a core member of the MoJA leadership, wrote a dirty report back home to the MOJA leadership, and said the GOT, highlighting me as ring leader, should not be received by the MOJ leadership – that the GOT had become a serious threat to the leadership and the greater Movement. What that meant was if MOJA
controlled of state power then, I and others of GOT would have all been eliminated!
With such a devastating report after such a training, least to the knowledge of some of us of the GOT, on returning home, the GOT members were summoned to an emergency meeting in the apartment of Siapha Kamara by DW, in the building also hosting the residence of ACS, behind Stricker Funeral Home. DW presided and read the “Royal Act”! The meeting was also a one point agenda: To warn and disband the entire GOT, effectively immediately, and it was so ordered. DW said, “we have learned about your plan upon your return”; but you are hereby disbanded!
Most of us were ordered to leave the Capitol (I was ordered to go to remote Sinoe, my orher colleagues were sent to Cape Mount, Nimba, and remote Maryland, and the rest (apparently the most trusted) remained in Monrovia.
In those foregoing encounters with DW, acting on orders from above, he did not antagonize; he did not personalize; he did not scheme; he told no lies and claimed no easy victories. And when it was all over, he was Dusty, a friend, and maybe though an opponent, but neve a personal enemy, like what Engel said of Marx.
As President of ULSU in 1979, DW was unwavering and fearless. ULSU, under DW, and with the Chairmanship in the hands of the “Chairman for life”, Fromonyan, backed by the 23- Man Central Committee, ASAP, a surrogate of the True Whip Party, was a mincemeat! Under DW’s leadership, SUP officially and openly supported the 1979 April 14 Rice demonstration, orgastrated by PAL.
On the eve of April 14, DW was in Havana, Cuba, attending the “World Yourh Festivals” of the ISU – International Students Unions. In his absence, ULSU and SUP, jointly issued a press release, and called on the “security forces and the military” to join the protest – the press release was signed by the ULSU Vice President and Acting President, Siapha Kamara.
The government and the TWP were provoked
and breathed fire. The entire ULSU and SUP leaderships were summoned by President Tolbert at an emergency meeting of the National Security Council, at the Executive Mansion, along with the entire UL administration, led by Dr. Mary Antoinette Brown-Sherman, an outstanding fighter, to discuss the security implications of the ULSU & SUP release, titled “BRAVO! BRAVO! BRAVO”! Calling on state security and the military to join the April 14
Demonstration.
Dr. Shermam took with her in that meeting Dr. Professor Amos Sawyer, Chair of the Pol. Sc. Department; and Dr. Teah Teppeh, Vice president For Academic Affairs, etc. On the other hand, the Speaker of the House of Representatives (Richard Henries), and President Pro,Temporary (Senator Frank E. Tolbert), were all angrily in attendence of the NSC Meeting . Oliver Bright, Attorney-General
and Bradley Holder, Defense Minister, all in attendance. Siapha Kamara, Acting ULSU President, Chairman Fromonyan and I, Culumnist of the “Vanguard” and member of the Polit Bureau, and others were in attendance at that meeting.
President Tolbert, angrily slammed his desk, pulled the BRAVO, BRAVO, ULSU Release from the draw, and shouted: “Who authored this release, calling on my military and security forces to demonstrate against my government and the Liberian State, which I consider as foreign troops on my borders?” At that moment, hell could have broken loose! And on a serious note, I panicked, with the legal and security implications of BRAVO, BRAVO, the President had acclaimed – TREASON (lol)!
The meeting was tensed! Dr. Sherman then said: “Siapha, Fromonyan, Mitchell, your talk na”! Siapha, the ULSU Acting Presudent stood up and said, I authorized the issuance of the release. We backed him: We issued the release. Subsequently, and astonishingly, Pro-Tempore Frank Tolbert, brother of the President, took an angry look at Acting President Siapha, very young, smallish, in his early 20s, and he exclaimed: “You signed that release?”; Siapha responded, yes, Sir! Senator Tolbet furthered: “how old are you?”; Siapha responded: “I’m 25”; the Senator’s next question: “Do you own property, and are you married?”; Siapha responded: “No, Sir!”; “do you pay taxes”? No, Sir,Siapha, responded! The Pro-Tempore rudely acclaimed: “But you are an irresponsible jigger flee”! He asked again, “and what did you say is your name?”; Siapha responded: “I’m Siapha Kamara!”; the Montserrado Senator responded: “You are a Guinean; how are you a student leader at “our” University? Siapha responded, I’m from Lofa, Kpayea!
The Senator moved to the UL President: “You girl”, “why are you allowing these young fellows to be so unconscionable at the University?”; Dr. Sherman, wife of the Minister of Education, G. Flama Sherman, angrily rose up, and said: Mr. President, I will not have the Senior Senator and Pro-Tempore referred to me as a girl!”. President tolbert responded: “Now Hon. Senator, you can’t refer to the President of the University of Liberia as a girl!”; the Senator responded”, “Mr. President, she’s a girl”. He further said to Dr. Sherman, “why don’t you stop these fellows from acting as men and women at that Univerdity”? Dr. Sherman angrily responded: ” Ifyou people cannot stop MOJA and PAL on the national scene, what do you expect me to do on the UL Campus?”. Immediately, Speaker Richard Henries stood up, and said: “Mr. President Dr.Sherman has a point”! “I mean, we just gat these PAL and MOJA people causing trouble all around in the country”!
The Pro-Tempore turned to Professor Sawyer: “You – who are you?”; Dr. Sawyer responder: “Amos Sawyer”. “Oh! Hoooo”! The Senstor responded! So, You the Amos Sawyer; you want to be mayor of Monrovia, while teaching foreign ideology at the University!” Dr. Sawyer responded, I teach Political Science, and Science is science everywhere; I don’t know anything about “foreign ideology”. The Senator responded: “Stand up”! Dr. Sawyer stood up. Then the Senator said to the President, “you see the man who wants to be Mayor of Monrovia?”- President Tolbert laughed! The Senator rudely said to professor Sawyer, :sit down”!
In any case, the meeting came into a cool, and President Tolbert asked: How many of copies of the release were issued? We responded: only 1000 copies (they were actually about 10,000). The President further: to whom did you people release your release? Before we could respond, Speaker Henries said: those releases are all in West point, Buzzy Quarters, Jallah Town and all those places.
Finally, the neeting drew closer to closure. President Tolbert emphasized that by instigating his securities and military agsinst his state and government, we could be charged with “treason”.- Attorney-General Oliver Bright responded: “Exactly, Mr. President”! Dr. Sherman order the ULSU leaders to apologize to the president, and pledge to counter the release with a self-rebuttal – and we did. The President accepted our apologies, on behalf of the government, but warned against a repeat.
The President order the attorney-General and the joint national security to put all mechanisms in place to curb April 14, including stringent measures to monitor the UL Campus with vigilance. The meeting ended; we shook hands and departed. That was a formidable experience.
DW returned from Havana; he was briefed. Notwithstanding, April 14 was unstoppable, and it was held. The event of April 14, it’s impact on ULSU and SUP, under the leadership of DW is the next phase of my tribute to DW.
Viva, Somora! Viva, Menjestu! Viva, Rodney! Viva, Saybah! Viva, Zubah! DW lives!
