President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has showered praises on the security forces of Liberia for their effort in ensuring that the security of the state remained stable all through the Ebola crisis.
The Liberian leader recounted that during the peak of Liberia’s health crisis when innocent Liberians were being threatened and killed by the Ebola disease, the security forces remained the last hope as they were there to rescue and bring relief to the people of Liberia.
“When we needed somebody to protect our people and join the fight against the Ebola virus during the difficult hours, we called upon them, and so I want to say how much we appreciate our security forces,” the Liberian leader said Monday at the thanksgiving program to commemorate the declaration of the end of the Ebola outbreak in Liberia.
The program, which was held at the Centennial Memorial Pavilion in Monrovia, was also intended to remember the 4,608 Liberians who died as the result of the Ebola virus outbreak which assumed the proportion of a public health crisis.
According to President Sirleaf, the Armed Forces of Liberia in partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense worked diligently to erect needed health facilities as well as construct Ebola centers which brought relief to the people of Liberia.
Meanwhile, President Sirleaf has urged Liberians as well as partners to support Guinea and Sierra Leone, who are still reporting cases of the Ebola virus so that they can reach the same level as Liberia.
She said the regional and cross-border approach intended to share experiences, information and talents should be intensified, adding: “Because we know that until they are totally free, we are not free.”
Liberia was declared Ebola free by the World Health Organization on Saturday, May 9, bringing to an end the long-running health crisis occasioned by the outbreak of the Ebola Virus Disease which has claimed over 10,000 lives in the three Mano River countries of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.