MONROVIA – Liberia’s post-SONA debate has shifted from partisan reaction to a more technical confrontation over numbers, credibility, and historical record. Former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah, Jr. has entered the discussion not with slogans, but with data—challenging what he describes as persistent inaccuracies in President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s 2026 State of the Nation Address and the government’s subsequent clarification. At the center of the dispute are claims about road construction, job creation, inflation, electricity access, and macroeconomic performance. Tweah’s intervention underscores a deeper political tension: whether the Rescue Government is transparently measuring progress, or struggling to match benchmarks set by the previous administration. As Liberia debates performance, the argument increasingly turns on evidence, not applause. The Analyst reports.
Former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweah, Jr. has challenged the accuracy of key infrastructure and economic claims made by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai in his 2026 State of the Nation Address (SONA), arguing that the government’s attempted correction of a disputed road pavement figure still contains fundamental errors and reflects deeper problems in public economic reporting.
In a detailed analytical statement circulated following the President’s address, Tweah said he welcomed the government’s admission that it misstated the ratio of roads paved under the current administration.
However, he dismissed the subsequent clarification as inadequate, noting that the revised language still implies that the Rescue Government constructed approximately 1,430 kilometers of paved roads—an outcome he described as “an impossibility” within a two-year period.
“We should acknowledge the attempt to correct since it moves our discourse in the desired direction,” Tweah wrote. “But the correction still has the same error and needs to be corrected.”
Tweah said the controversy is not about personal recognition, but about integrity in public discourse. Responding to suggestions that the government should have credited him for flagging the discrepancy, he said accuracy matters more than attribution.
“I don’t need credit; just honesty in public discourse,” he wrote, adding that credibility is essential if Liberia is to move forward on evidence-based governance.
Pressure to Match Records
According to Tweah, the road data error reflects broader pressure on the Unity Party–led Rescue Government to match or exceed governance indicators established under the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) administration of former President George Manneh Weah.
He argued that this pressure has also influenced what he described as other inaccurate claims, including the President’s assertion that the Rescue Government created more than 70,000 jobs—an issue already at the center of national debate.
“The numbers are clear,” Tweah stated. “Rescue UP is struggling to match the governance numbers and milieu engendered by the CDC.”
Inflation and Cost of Living
Tweah presented inflation data to argue that living costs have risen since the CDC left office. Citing Consumer Price Index (CPI) figures, he noted that inflation rose by approximately 13.5 percent between January 2024 and December 2025, meaning that goods costing US$100 under the CDC now cost about US$113.40 on average.
He acknowledged that year-on-year inflation from December 2024 to December 2025 stood at 4 percent, as officially reported, but emphasized that cumulative price increases since the transition of power remain significant for households.
Economic Growth Comparisons
On economic growth, Tweah cited International Monetary Fund data showing that Liberia recorded growth rates of 5 percent in 2021, 4.8 percent in 2022, and 4.7 percent in 2023 under the CDC, before slowing to about 4 percent in 2024. Growth in 2025, estimated between 4.6 and 5.1 percent, remains under review.
He argued that achieving 5 percent growth under the Rescue Government does not constitute exceptional performance, noting that similar or higher rates were recorded earlier.
“CDC inherited a growth rate of 2.5 percent in 2017 and handed Rescue a growth rate of 4.7 percent,” Tweah wrote, contending that maintaining that base remains a challenge for the current administration.
Foreign Reserves and Stability
Tweah also pointed to Liberia’s net international reserve position as evidence that the CDC did not weaken the economy. According to figures he cited from the Central Bank of Liberia and the IMF, reserves stood at about US$110 million in December 2017, rose to US$220 million by December 2023, and reached approximately US$280 million by December 2025.
He said the doubling of reserves under the CDC undermines claims that the previous administration damaged Liberia’s macroeconomic stability, and challenged the Rescue Government to build meaningfully on that base.
Electricity Access Debate
On electricity, Tweah compared household connection rates across administrations. He said between 2018 and 2023, approximately 240,000 households were connected to the national grid—averaging about 40,000 connections per year—under President Weah, following the completion of Mount Coffee Hydropower.
By contrast, he said the Rescue Government connected about 63,000 households over two years, averaging roughly 31,500 per year, a pace below the CDC’s annual average.
Tweah acknowledged that electrification is continuing under President Boakai, but maintained that the rate of expansion has slowed. He also argued that Liberia’s long-term energy future depends on expanding generation capacity, including damming the Via River to improve year-round output at Mount Coffee.
Roads: Pace and Credibility
Road construction formed the core of Tweah’s critique. He noted that prior to President Weah, Liberia had approximately 745 kilometers of paved roads, largely credited to the Unity Party and former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, averaging about 62 kilometers per year over 12 years.
Under the CDC, he said Liberia added 454 kilometers of paved roads between 2018 and 2023—about 75 kilometers per year. By contrast, Tweah said the Rescue Government’s true output remains unclear due to inconsistent reporting, and he outlined three possible scenarios—50 kilometers, 75 kilometers, or 120 kilometers over two years—all of which would still fall below the CDC’s annual average.
“No Liberian government can build 1,400 kilometers of paved roads in two years,” he said.
Beyond Roads and Power
In his conclusion, Tweah argued that attempts to discredit CDC achievements are misplaced, noting that even if the Rescue Government eventually surpasses CDC road or electricity figures, it would not necessarily demonstrate superior governance—particularly if projects are financed through resources secured under previous administrations.
He urged Liberia’s political debate to move beyond roads and electricity, which he said are now institutionalized through mechanisms such as the National Road Fund.
“A monkey as president of Liberia will build roads,” Tweah wrote bluntly. “But we have not institutionalized credit to the private sector or human capital development.”
According to Tweah, these unresolved structural constraints—private sector financing, skills development, and job creation—should be the real focus of national politics.
“Let’s keep the debate honest,” he concluded.