MONROVIA – Apparently, the tears of the masses of Liberians have reached the matriarch of the land, former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who 12-year reign restored a formerly pariah Liberia and set the footing for progress, and she can no longer be silent. Things are breaking apart, the legislature is crumbling, macroeconomic indications are petering, the judiciary is grappling with the complexities of politics and law, and economic hardship mounts. She has broken the silence and spoke to a number of critical national issues, as The Analyst reports.
President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has been lamenting the woes faced by Africa, particularly her homeland, Liberia, where her vice president of 12 years is holding on as president.
She is accordingly proposing a Summit that could be convened at a more reflective and challenging time for Liberia country.
The Liberian Iron Lady, opined that today, perhaps more than ever before, is confronted with daunting challenges of a dismal economic outlook, and the increasing prospect of looking only to ourselves to improve the conditions of living in our country.
She made the remarks when spoke at the Summit for Democracy and Political Accountability, part of Naymote’s Democracy Advancement Program (#DAP) in partnership with UNDP Liberia.
“To put it more bluntly, today, more than ever, we are on our own,” she asserted. “There is no UNMIL and there will be no international force in our country to turn to our nation’s security if we choose to break our own laws.”
She frowned on the reckless fracas between the Liberia National Police and the Armed Forces of Liberia recently.
“Therefore, now is not the time for members of our national security institutions to be engaged in public scuffles among themselves that can only serve to undermine public trust and confidence in their sworn duty to maintain and enforce law and order,” she said.
Madam Sirleaf said also: “Now is definitely not the time for the Supreme Court to deliver an ambiguous ruling that may take us away from a peaceful resolving of the knowingly disruption unfolding in another important branch of the government.”
She continued: “This is also not the time for Legislature to spend time bickering and spending the nation’s reserves in the interest of accumulation of power and benefits.”
The former President indicated that the truth is that there will always be consequences when “we act with courage to do the right things or falter in dereliction by pretending blindness in the face of an obvious wrong”.
She said: “May I remind that courage is the cornerstone of our nation. It took courage to declare our independence, to conclude an end to our wars, and to defeat Ebola. Courage is a part of our national DNA. I say this to inspire all of us, and to make the point that now, and always, it will require our inherited courage to journey to our destiny of democracy, inclusive development, unity, and political accountability.
“My fellow Liberians: Now, also, is not the time for weakening legislative oversights; so that we continue to act in fulfillment of narrow self-interests and what is best for a party over what is necessary for our country. Partisan legislators may make for a strong political party, but statesmen and women legislators will make for a better country.”
Ma Ellen further emphasized that if a legislator and legislature wish to imprint their names in history, to be remembered fondly and honorably, must choose being a statesman or stateswoman.
According to her, this will mean standing alone sometime, being right and true to one’s principles can sometimes mean standing alone, and acting on the courage of one’s conviction, rather than being lost unconscionably in a crowd and disrobed of both conviction and principles.
“Today, the duty to do the right thing has never weighed more heavily on us, leaders and citizens,” he added.
She spoke of Liberia appalling economic indicators, quoting World Bank statistics which state that Liberia’s GDP growth rate fell to 0.4% in 2024, emphasizing the urgent need for economic reforms.
“Only 28% of the population has reliable access to electricity. Only about 5 out of every 10 Liberians can read and write, with literacy rate at approximately 48%. Challenges in healthcare quality and access remain daunting,” she said.
“The reality of the circumstances our nation is faced with today must compel us to govern ourselves more responsibly, and accountably. These statistics should not frighten us. They should embolden us to act, being more mindful and determined to right wrongs, rather than repeat them, and to fight abuse, waste and corruption, rather than making excuses to continue them.”
Liberia Needs Reforms
Former President Sirelaf alarmed that Liberia desperately needs reforms, systemic, economic and judicial and that these reforms need to be bold and comprehensive to successfully respond to the size of the daunting challenges the nation faces, today, with the increasing prospects of being on “our own”.
She said the reforms must enable Liberia to govern itself better than it ever had, being even more mindful and determined to fight abuse, waste and corruption.
At the same time, she stressed, “we must confront the historic legacy that has both burdened and buoyed our nation. On the one hand we are burdened by the legacy of division, disunity and a lack of inclusive development. And on the other, we are buoyed by a legacy of resilience.”
As former President, she continued, “I have seen and experienced both legacies firsthand. Through affirmative programs like direct budgetary appropriations for county development, I imagined we could begin to address the decades of neglect of the rest of our country, which seemed to define Liberia as Monrovia.
“We would later commission an investigation of the effective use of the county development program. The investigation informed of abuses of the county development funds by local officials and the county political authorities.”
The Liberian veteran politician said “We are happy to note that in its current development agenda, The ARREST AGENDA for Inclusive Development (AAID), attention is refocused on rightly enabling inclusive development at local grassroots levels.”
“The truth is that if every child born in any village in Liberia is not exposed to the same standard of living children in Monrovia are exposed to, albeit with its own challenges, it is a farce to say that all children belong to the same Mother Liberia,” he further indicated, adding, “The AAID is laudable. But we urge stronger oversight and safeguards to ward against the use of county development initiatives to satisfy personal political objectives.
“No more using the people’s development money to build schools or clinics where no one resides, or to buy earth-moving equipment that never makes it to clearing roads to clinics, schools or markets. And definitely, we must guide against legislators and superintendents becoming contractors, overseers of contracts and verifiers that the same contracts have been satisfactorily completed when they are not!”
The former president want Liberians to learn from the past so as not to corrupt good ideas and interventions with loopholes that are easily exploitable.
She said Liberia’s future will only be safe, if all Liberians feel included in the country’s development and benefit equally from its opportunities and resources.
She said: “Through trials—civil strife, political instability, and systemic corruption, suffice to say, Liberians have continued to demonstrate resilience in the relentless quest for justice and equitable development. Our past reminds us of both our potential and our responsibility. Yes, we can achieve great things together.
“But we must each do our part, demonstrating that we have the homegrown capabilities to take on the much-needed responsibilities for our own development. Now is not the time to doubt ourselves, exclude each other nor be overcome by despair.”
She stressed the hope that Liberia continue to forge ahead standing on the shoulders of those who dared to envision a society governed by the rule of law, where every citizen is empowered to participate, and every public institution is a beacon of transparency and accountability.
“Undoubtedly, our governance history is a tapestry woven with both triumphs and scars. The legacy of our founding—rooted in the aspirations of freed slaves returning to build a new society—has been continuously tested by the rigors of conflict, the fractures of civil wars, and the corrosive effects of corruption.”
Sirleaf said each trial has equally kindled the resolve of Liberia people, and time and again, Liberians have risen to demand integrity, transparency, and justice in our public institutions.
President Sirleaf said: “Today, as reports paint a grim portrait of our economic environment, we are reminded that the remedy lies not in despair but in a resolute commitment to reform.
“The imperative of strengthening the rule of law, civic participation, and public sector governance is not a duty that can wait or be deferred much longer because as we know, a resilient society can only rest upon a bedrock of justice led by judiciary the is independent and robust – one free from undue political influence because an impartial legal framework is not merely an abstract ideal—it is the most important guarantor of rights, the remedy for wrongs, and the cornerstone of public trust.”
The Global Environment
Speaking to global issues, she reflected on the major powers of the world in collaborative unity as North Atlantic organizations (NATO) are in a state of division and disunity as geo-politic rivalry surge, driven by Protectionism and Populism.
She said the war continues in Ukraine and Russia, Isreal and Gaza remain at war as thousands of people, particularly women and children, are killed, maimed, exiled, and are destitute for lack of food, clear water and health services.
“Africa faces a similar state of uncertainties, complexity and four ECOWAS nations have chosen their own political and development paths,” she said, adding: “The conflict in Sudan wages on and the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda now face off with the likelihood of devastation conflict. In the midst of all this the United States, the world largest power has signaled profound changes in the national, political, economic and social order with undetermined effect on nation around the world.”
She asked: “How does Africa react? What does Africa do? The message coming from the African Union Summit held a few weeks ago is clear; Africa welcomes these global shocks as enablers for the long standing structural and systemic changes that are required across all African nations for the achievement of Africa 2063and sustainable development.”
The international citizen noted that as Africa leads toward the achievement of goals inspired by theme for 2025 “Justice in Africa through Reparation”.
She said while Africa applauded there is a need to set goals of self-reliance, self-determination, and that “we must rightly realize these goals are mainly aspirations and could only be achieved through strong national, and regional continental leadership that are committed to the true unity of Africa, through a disruption of historical bilateral relations of trade and finance, replaced by well formulated goals and programs through its flagship operations the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement.”
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