Dr. Walter Gwenigale to enter Liberia's political scene as presidential candidate

Dr. Walter T. Gwenigale, former head of Phebe Hospital, has officially accepted a petition presented to him to run for the office of President of Liberia.

Gwenigale, born in the 1930s in the village of Kpotoloma, Bong County. He attended the University of Puerto Rico Medical School, receiving a degree in 1967. In 1968, Gwenigale completed his internship in the United States and returned to Liberia to practice medicine. He was appointed Medical Director/Chief Surgeon of Phebe Hospital in 1974, and helped to strengthen health care services in the county over his nearly 30 years of service. During his tenure, Phebe Hospital increased from 65 to 180 beds with the addition of a maternity wing to the hospital. Gwenigale also encouraged the building of self-help clinics and the establishment of training programs to improve local skills in midwifery and vaccination campaigns.

When the civil war started in 1989, Gwenigale sent his wife (a US citizen) and children to safety in Puerto Rico, but chose to stay in Liberia during difficult times instead of emigrating to the U.S. and practicing his profession in safety for greater financial reward. He was instrumental in making Phebe Hospital campus not only a place to care for the sick, but also a place of refuge for people running from the war. Phebe was attacked and ransacked several times by armed fighters, who even killed some hospital employees. After each attack, Dr. Gwenigale encouraged the staff to return, and helped to raise the needed funds to renovate and re-open the hospital. The hospital was the only facility in the area to consistently remain open throughout the conflict.

In 1983, Gwenigale represented Bong County in the Constitutional Advisory Assembly that finalized the current Constitution of the Republic of Liberia.

Since his stepping down as Medical Director of Phebe in February of 2003, Gwenigale has stayed in Liberia, assisting the transition to new leadership, working as a surgeon and advisor under new Medical Director Dr. Emmanuel Sandoe.

Upon accepting a petition signed on July 17^th by the chiefs and elders of Bong Country, Dr. Gwenigale acknowledged that taking office as the President of Liberia after the 2005 elections will not be an easy task for the incoming president. “The expectations of us war-traumatized Liberians are very high, and the demands for quick solutions for our serious post-war problems on the next national government will be many.”

“Getting our people back to their homes from displaced camps, the cleaning up of our towns and villages, the rebuilding of our communities, the reconditioning of our farm-to-market roads, the building of local schools and health clinics will all depend on each of us, ” Gwenigale said in a prepared statement.

This is Gwenigale’s first entrance into Liberia’s political scene. “I am a medical doctor and a surgeon. I have shared the pains and sorrows of the sick and relatives of those who have died under our care. I have also rejoiced with those who have gotten well, or whose babies were delivered by our midwives. My profession and work experiences have helped me to understand human nature and have prepared me for the presidency of this nation.

Official campaigning for the presidency doesn’t start for several months, according to rules outlined by Liberia’s National Elections Commission. Gwenigale said he will request leave of absence from Phebe Hospital next year as he undertakes his campaign. As of the end of July, there are estimated to be 23 individuals both living in Liberia and abroad who have either publicly declared their intention or are most likely to contest the Presidency.