Looking At the Successes and Potential Pitfalls of the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Administration 

 Monday, May 31, 2010

Paul Jeebah Albert

Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf inherited an economy that was destroyed by the civil war, and almost all the industries that were the backbone of the nation’s economy were left in tartars. 

When she came to power, she made several visits abroad including the United States to meet with politicians, ambassadors, foreign business people and Liberians living abroad, expressing what was one of her concerns, which is to revamp the Liberian economy. News coming from Liberia nowadays seems to confirm that she is delivering on her promises.

Civil servants are now being paid, and not only being paid but on time. The implication here is that the economy can expand if there is a “circular flow of consumption”. What do I mean about this?  When civil servants and public sector employees receive their pay, they save some and spend some.  The overall effects on the economy are that banks are able to loan money to other businesses, which hires people to produce other goods and services.  Moreover, when people buy every time they receive pay, businesses generate profits.  The exponential effect is that it promotes the wellbeing of everyday people in that jobs are being created and lives are sustained.

Also resonating in the Liberian community is the talk about road networks the administration is embarking on.  Roads are an indispensable factor in attracting investors and bringing economic development to a country.  In other words, business people will find it much easier to move goods and services throughout the country. A network of good roads will also encourage development in the rural counties and will also slow down congestion in the nation’s capital, Monrovia. 

We have also learned that by working with non-governmental officials (NGOs), the president has been successful in taking deadly weapons from the hands of the rebels and thugs who greatly worsened the hardships of the ordinary Liberians as they roamed the cities, towns and villages terrorizing anyone who seemed to be a convenient target.  This atmosphere is not favorable to economic development because it leads to political instability.

Nevertheless, with all the positive things that are now happening in Liberia, it would be premature for anyone to think the administration has finally brought the country to the “Promised Land,” because there are still some fundamental issues that are yet unresolved.

While the president is striving to improve the lot of the Liberian people, the rumor mills are up and running. Stories and salacious gossips abound of individuals whose diabolical aim is solely to loot and pillage the revenues.  How can we stop this pandemic that erodes the moral fabric of our nation?  Liberians cannot be idle and let this pervasiveness of corruption continue. Our country has been there, and done that. Corruption did not work then, it will not work now, and it will not work tomorrow!

 A case in point:  Corruption always has a debilitating effect on an economy and way of life of any country including the most industrialized societies on earth. Quite recently, there have been predictions about a looming economic depression that is typical of the 1930’s, because of shaded financial dealings on the part of the major banks in the United States.  One of the consequences emanating from it is that over 15,000,000 Americans are now unemployed. Imagine what would have happened had not the government learned from the lessons of the past and established safety systems such as the Employment Security Commission (ESC) and other programs? However, unlike the United States the Liberian economy is too small to withstand the shocks of corruption. America’s economy is complex.  It is the epicenter of global trade, and for that matter can use her financial leverage to bail out big financial institutions.

Corruption affects the smooth functioning of the economies of nations, especially when creativity and innovation are encouraged. Unscrupulous individuals regard creativity and innovation as an opportunity to design some contrivance to misappropriate funds, conduct risky financial activities, cook the books, etc.  Corruption is so rampant in African countries that one often hears how some static and entrenched-minded individuals want it institutionalized, because it is the “African way of life,” they often remarked. In fact, many of us have developed the natural skills in concocting slogans we often associate with certain administrations in Liberia. During the Tubman era, it was: “I bite and blow,” which meant stealing government money was not wrong as long as the individual can share some to cool the tension around them. The Doe era slogan was: “C.I.C.” - a military title for Commander-in-Chief but was rephrased to “You Chop I Chop.”  This also meant that it was acceptable to dip into government’s funds once a person could open the avenue for others to do the same. Notwithstanding, the end result has always been poverty and social disintegration, because funds that should have been diverted to sectors like agriculture, education and health care are siphoned out of the economy to fund the lifestyles of the unpatriotic and criminal-minded individuals.

We must discard the myth that corruption is an African blithe that cannot be curtailed.    The negative consequences of corruption are astronomical, the implicit costs are damaging, and the long-term effects are incalculable. As a surgeon would attack a cancerous cell with surgical precision before it becomes incurable or before it metastasizes, so must we address corruption whenever or wherever it occurs? It is true that whenever things go wrong with an administration, people often look up to the leader because he/she is at the top. On the other hand, let us not lose sight of one fact. It takes collective efforts in tackling national issues of this magnitude. Corruption in Liberia surpasses any one administration or president, therefore, Liberians will have to muster a sense of national unity, avoid political grandstanding and finger pointing, and showboating to combat this issue. I do not think that President Johnson-Sirleaf is impercipient to this matter.  She would be willing to take ideas and suggestions if she is constructively engaged. The participation of civic groups, politicians, local government officials, heads of corporations and government bureaus must also be encouraged.

Even though we hear that peace has returned to Liberia, however, there are still some simmering talks of tribal/ethnic skirmishes in Lofa. If these rumors are true, folks are wondering what’s the administration’s position on this issue? The old saying always holds some truth that “Where there is smoke, there could be fire.” The trouble in Rwanda a few years ago started on a small scale.  The world remained indifferent until it grew into a tragic conflict of genocidal proportions.  Today, many are comparing it to the Jewish Holocaust.  No human mind can fathom the depths of the Rwandan genocide. Alluding to this crisis, the former president of the United States, Bill Clinton, bitterly regretted and offered an open apology for dragging his feet on this matter.

It is about time the administration takes a hard look at these intermittent-ethnic altercations in order to ensure the long-term security interest of the country.

The road to rebuilding a country whose infrastructure have been devastated and its population economically dislocated is not an easy one. Notwithstanding, the Johnson-Sirleaf’s administration has shown a glimmer of hope; and with good intentions, honesty, integrity, and hard work we can once again put our country back on its feet.

 Paul Jeebah Albert lives in Spencer, North Carolina. He can be contacted at albrtpaul@aol.com) 704-636-7868.