ANALYSIS: Liberia-Robin Hoods Of The 21th Century

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PHOTO: Liberia’s 26^th President Joseph Nyuma Boakai

By Hun-Bu Tulay

Cell # 231-777-111-032/886-517-356; Email: ntevoma@gmail.com

Who are the Robin Hoods of the 21^st century in Liberia? Before we answer this question, we first refresh the memories of those who might have faded memories, and those who have not read the Robin Hood Story. Robin Hood was a legendary heroic character who was featured in English Literature in Medieval England, during the 14^th Century. Robin Hood and his men were known for TAKING from the RICH to SUSTAIN the POOR. He was an excellent archer and marksman, who inhabited the Sherwood Forest of Nottingham, England. What we want you to remember here is that Robin Hood and his men in the 14^th Century took things from the RICH and gave them to the POOR to SUSTAIN THEM.

The Robin Hoods of the 21^st Century in Liberia are doing the opposite. The Robin Hoods of the 21^st Century take from the POOR and give to the RICH. The Robin Hoods of the 21^st Century are found all around us. They are found in Civil Society Organizations, the Fourth Estate, Religious Groups, Jurists, Government (parliament or legislature or executive or judiciary), financial institutions, schools (at all levels), and Executive of Multilateral Corporations. These groups work individually or collectively to STEAL from the POOR. They deny the POOR of their basic rights and benefits. They are responsible for all the suffering in the world today particularly in THIRD WORLD COUNTRIES. But their actions are more pronounced in African Countries because in Africa, we find men and women of GREED and Envy. In a book titled,

“Small is Beautiful”, the author attributes these two human vices such as GREED AND ENVY as the root causes of insincerity, dishonesty, social injustice, corruption, and economic imbalance in the world. According to the author, these two human vices, if systematically cultivated, the inevitable result is nothing less than the collapse of human intelligence. And when a society is being driven by these vices such a society loses the power of seeing things as they really are. In such a society the people become incapable of solving the most elementary problems of its existence.

These human vices drive a society to conflicts. They make a society to live upon ideas that conflict with the constitution and laws governing society and the universe. Greed and Envy are two seeds of society that prevent leaders from thinking rationally and make them to swerve from their CAMPAIGN PROMISES or AGENDA for their country. These seeds make the political leaders betray their people. These seeds are the cause of all the problems in many countries around the world. Just look at what happened in Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso. Multilateral Corporations and the government officials in these countries were working together ridding the masses of their benefits. Similar things are happening in our country today.

The Robin Hoods of the 21^st Century are the illiterates of the 21^st Century. The ILLITERATES of the 21^st Century are not those who cannot read and write but those who refuse to learn, unlearn, and relearn. Both the ROBIN HOODS and the ILLITERATES of the 21^st Century are the most dangerous people in any society or country. Does President Boakai have such a group of people in his cabinet? Oh YES, he does. And until he gets rid of them, his government will continue to experience challenges. These two groups were in President Sirleaf and Weah Cabinets.

We will catalog some of the activities to convenience you that they were in the Sirleaf and Weah Cabinets. But before we do the cataloging, we would like to refer to the UN Human Rights RELEASE dated November 11, 2022. Monrovia/GENEVA (11 November 2022). It reads as follows: “The Government of Liberia and Businesses operating in the country must urgently implement measures to ensure the quest for ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT does not continue to UNDERMINE HUMAN RIGHTS. The present climate of IRRESPONSIBLE PRACTICES provides PROFITS for companies but does little for the people (MASSES). A sustainable and stable PEACE calls for accountability, transparency, equality, social cohesion, rule of law, and respect for the HUMAN RIGHTS for all. Fascinating FOREIGN INVESTMENT has superseded the implementation of responsible business practices.”

The Chairman of the UN HUMAN RIGHTS EXPERTS Madam Fernanda Hopenhym further said, “Basic Infrastructure and Basic Services were lacking especially outside of Monrovia. The general neglect of LOCAL COMMUNITIES in development planning is unacceptable. The government means the Liberia Government needs to ensure DOMESTIC and FOREIGN BUSINESS ENTERPRISES DEMONSTRATE much GREATER RESPECT for the HUMAN RIGHTS OF THE CITIZENS in the affected areas.” She further said, “A critical element is transparency and meaningful participation of the affected communities i n DECISION regarding business activities.”

The Weah Cabinet ignored these warnings. If they had taken the warning of the UN Human Rights Experts, we would have avoided the St. Kinjor incident that caused the death of two Liberians and injured over fifty Liberians. And this brings us to a quote from Albert Einstein who once said, “A CLEVER PERSON SOLVES A PROBLEM. A WISE PERSON AVOID IT.” It seems like both Weah’s Cabinet and Sirleaf’s Cabinet did not have many WISE PERSONS. We think President Boakai WISE MEN AND WOMEN that were with him before his inauguration have been sidelined. The Robin Hoods and the Illiterates of the 21^st Century have taken control. They are in charge of the new president. These are people of the OLD ORDERS. They represent the interest of their MASTERS (MULTILATERAL CORPORATIONS). And the advisers of the president are poor readers. Because if the people around the President had read the UN HUMAN RIGHT EXPERTS REPORT RELEASED ON 11 NOVEMBER 2022, they would have taken measures to avoid what happened in St. Kinjor. Maybe those around President Boakai have not even seen said release. Maybe they have but did not take it seriously like those who were around Weah. OR MAYBE THEY ARE SABOTEURS. If they are, then the RESCUE MISSION MIGHT FACE SERIOUS CHALLENGES IN THE NEXT FEW MONTHS.

What is the role of the National Security Agency (NSA) and that of all the Advisers to President Boakai? How well informed is the agency or advisers on the security matters in the country? Why did the NSA and Advisers not see what took place in St. Kinjor? Maybe they saw it and ignored it. Nothing escapes the eyes of NSA, once it is a security threat to the country, be it developing in Liberia or outside of Liberia. We say this because in 1990, we had a friend, who was working at the NSA and sometime around May 1990, we saw this guy driving his car around Fiama. He stopped and we asked him to take us home. He agreed and we got in the car. On the front seat was his GUN. Considering the nature of his job, we inquired of him as to why he was still around here? He replied, “I can leave Liberia, even if the NPFL captures Monrovia.” He further informed us that the Doe’s Administration rejected all the recommendations from the NSA. He said that if President Doe had approved one of the NSA recommendations, there would have been no NPFL, hence NO Civil War in Liberia.

Actions of Post War presidents before President Boakai:

All post war presidents before you have dined with multilateral corporations. This was evidence by the following;

103 pickup trucks were given to the government and the executive distributed these pickup trucks to members of the Legislature, while the company’s agreement was before the Legislature for RATIFICATION. This was an inducement or BRIBERY.
Government assigning national security personnel to protect the assets of the multilateral corporations.
Protecting Multilateral Corporations that polluted the drinking water of the community people.
Few persons working on behalf of the government to WAIVE US$14.00 Million of the Social Development Money due for the people of three counties without their representation.
The issuance of Executive Order #124, which bans the export of unprocessed rubber. And the list goes on.

All the above mentioned showed how the government and her officials were dining with multilateral corporations at the detriment of the masses.

Boakai’s Administration:

Will President Boakai continue as did his predecessors? This is the million-dollar question. We already see signs that he might. This is evidence by the following:

It took the Boakai Administration over two months to lift the ban on Executive Order #124 issued by his immediate predecessor. The local rubber producers had already lost thousands of United States Dollars. The damage was already done. It might take many months for them to recover. Many might not even without the help of the government. Was the delay intentional? We believe it was. A truly RESCUE TEAM would have addressed this immediately because EXECUTIVE ORDER 124 was meant to suppress, oppress, and asphyxiate Liberians. Who is advising President Boakai? What would it have taken to issue an EXECUTIVE ORDER that will revise Executive Order #124 in the first 48 hours? President Boakai beware of the men and women around you. They might be agents of multilateral corporations.
President Boakai, what is the status of the report of the committee constituted to investigate the grievances of the companions of the men of the Arm Forces of Liberia. You announced that you wanted a comprehensive report from the committee in two weeks. It is now over four weeks, and you have not informed Liberians whether the committee has submitted a report. Liberians want to know the committee’s findings and recommendations and how the government intends to institute measures to prevent a repeat of the same. Remember, this was the same with the three missing boys. Mr. President, we call upon you to kindly order the Ministry of Justice to reopen the file of the three missing boys and other murdered cases, the arm captured by the Weah’s Administration at the port of Monrovia and the US$100.00 Million Drug Case? Mr. President, these arms might be used for sinister purposes in the future.
With regards to the situation at St. Kinjor, two persons were killed and over 50 injured. The Executive and both houses of the Legislature constituted committees to investigate the situation. It is now over three weeks; Liberians are waiting to hear findings and recommendations to prevent similar acts in the future. Has the Boakai’s Administration constituted a committee to probe into what happened? Has the Boakai’s Administration joined the bandwagon (protecting multilateral corporations). Is this what the RESCUE Mission is all about? We saw this with the EPA reference to the Cyanide poisoning of the water in St. Kinjor.
It is interesting to note that after more than 60 days in office, President Boakai has not nominated the Chief Medical Officer at the Ministry of Health. What is happening? This is disappointing and embarrassing. In addition, why are more than one person being nominated to the same positions in some ministries and agencies? Are the men and women around the President doing these to embarrass the president or prove him incompetent? We believe this is their objective.
President Boakai said in your INAUGURATION SPEECH that thing will not be BUSINESS AS USUAL. But documents and communications requesting fund from public corporations and autonomous agencies and commissions showed the opposite. Nothing has changed and in fact, it is getting worse. This is what happens if you bring the ILLITERATES OF THE 21^ST CENTURY in your government. Nothing will change for the better.

Cleaning up the MESS:

The President needs to get rid of the ILLITERATES OF THE 21^st Century that are around him if he is to succeed. He needs to get rid of 75% of the Ministers at the Ministry of State. An EXCELLENT CHOICE FOR MINISTER and the Principal Deputy Minister of State would be Mr. H. Pewu Subah and KBK Sando. Mr. President, these are individuals you know very well. On many occasions, we were privileged to be around you when they visited you, we listened to some of the issues you discussed with them, reference to the country and suggestions they proffered to you for solutions. They represented you on many occasions. Where are they today now that you are President? You need to find them; YOU NEED THEM AT THE MINISTRY OF STATE to clean up the MESS that has been created. These gentlemen will give your administration a positive and new image. If you must succeed in your mission of RESCUING the people of Liberia, you need Mr. Subah and Sando as the Minister of State. H. Pewu Subah will be to you as C. Cecil Dennis was to Tolbert.

You also need to clean up the mess at the Liberia Electricity Corporation. The LEC has been in existence for 51 years (1973-2024) Mr. President. What we are experiencing is the worst LEC performance. All along the LEC was managed by Liberians and NO ONE PERSON OCCUPIED THE POSITIONS OF CHAIRMAN, CEO AND CONSULTANT AT THE SAME TIME. This only happened under your predecessor. Maintaining the Status Code at the LEC implies that Liberia lacks the human resources to manage the LEC.

This is not the case, Mr. President, the country has hundreds of Liberians that can effectively manage LEC. Contact the Engineering Society of Liberia and this organization will provide you names of competent Liberians. Recycling old ideas does not solve the country’s problems. You need a new breed of engineers and technicians with innovations to manage the LEC. It is alleged that the Chief Operations Office at the LEC is not a Liberian. Mr. President, this position should be given to someone who lives, breathes, and understands the LEC. What does this person know about the LEC? We have underrated our engineers and technicians for too long. The RESCUE TEAM needs to do better. Rationing of the current has resulted in burning of homes around Monrovia and LEC Power Theft Team even killed a citizen of the country. These acts/actions give your government negative images. It is also alleged that individuals appointed to positions at the LEC were rejected or were asked to see the Minister of State by the CEO. Does this mean that the GREEN LETTER with your Signature means nothing? Who is in control, you the president or your Minister of State? Mr. President, whoever advised you to make that trip to Cote d’Ivoire does not love. Some members of the delegation were controversial characters. They have NO POSITIVE STANDING because they have lied to their counterparts in that country. Mr. President, you were used. It alleged that the LEC waived US$3.0 Million owed by LIBENERGY. This needs to be investigated. In fact, there is a need to AUDIT THE LEC NOW.

There are also the issues with the appointments at TENURED POSITIONS. These fine gentlemen and women you appointed are yet to take their positions. If you are not embarrassed, Mr. President, we who supported you are.

These have never happened in this country.

Mr. President, reviewing of historical records showed that Liberia has done the following:

Constructed the most Expensive Hydro plant in the world at US$4.06 Million per Megawatt. Anyone you associated with this project should not come near any hydro plant project in Liberia in the future. The average cost for hydro plant construction is US$2.881 Million per Megawatt. Guinea Conakry constructed 450 Megawatts at a US$1.3 Billion. This is US$2.889 Million per Megawatt.
Liberia is currently constructing the most expensive paved road in Africa, the RIA Highway. The original cost was US$93.00 Million for the 45-kilometer Road. The last time we checked, the cost of this road has gone up toUS$116.0 million. This is US$2.58 Million per kilometer. It can be recorded that a sitting minister was SANCTIONED for his involvement on the RIA Contract.
Liberia is undergoing the most expensive water pipeline construction in Africa. The 48” or 1,200 mm Transmission pipeline. The original cost was US$US$12.4 Million to lay 11.8-kilometer ductile Iron pipe. The contractor in late December submitted a change Order request valued US$3.0 Million pushing the cost to US$15.4 million.

Mr. President, Liberia cannot continue to set records. Liberia conducted the most corrupt election in 1926. Now the most expensive hydro plant, paved road, pipeline and the list go on. There is a need to review these contracts.

Mr. President, it is time to apply some Engineering Methods in government. In Engineering, we do develop what we call CRITICAL PATH for a project. The CRITICAL PATH describes a sequence of steps that should be taken to enable a successful completion of an Engineering Project. It is based on the idea that some activities/needs are more critical than others. For example, considering your government agenda (ARREST), such activities like security, drugs, rule of law, roads, youth employment, social services (water, sanitation, electricity, and communication), health, education and agriculture are crucial for transformation in the first 180 days. If the population does not see any transformation in the above areas that would improve their condition, they would lose FAITH in your government. It is important to have an ARREST FLOWCHART for effective monitoring of activities.

We recommend that the government engages the University of Liberia College Of Engineering as her Infrastructure Adviser/consultant if she wants to succeed.

Last but not the least, it is insane for the members of a RESCUE TEAM to purchase US$45,000.00 vehicles and above for her members and depreciate these vehicles in three years. In addition, Mr. President, it is necessary to reduce the numbers of ESCORT VEHICLES assigned to government officials, particularly the first five. The last time we checked each has five ESCORT VEHICLES all purchased using government funds at the same time, the security has limited vehicles, hospitals have no drugs for the masses, students have no desks, chairs and educational materials and the list goes on.

IT IS ONLY SOMEONE WHO LOVES YOU CAN TELL YOU THE TRUTH.

GOD BLESS YOU, MR. PRESIDENT.

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