PHOTO: The LMDI forum
Two leading Liberian Civil Society actors, Lawrence Yealue and Harold Aidoo have criticized the Revised the National Aid and NGO policy of Liberia as potentially muzzling and dangerous to the survival the general Civil Society Sector in Liberia.
Lawrence Yealue, Country Director of Accountability Lab Liberia and Harold Aidoo, former Executive Director of the Institute for Research and Democratic Development (IREDD) and now founder of the newly established Integrity Watch Liberia have alarmed that the Policy as revised by the George Weah led government outlines in the policy manual what they call intentionally burdensome provisions with ulterior motives of hindering the operations and general existence of Civil Organizations in the country.
The particularly referred to the requirement of police Clarence for the NGO registration as potentially dangerous with an intent to muscle and even deny critical NGO’s and CSO’s of registration and existence in the country.
Yealue and Aidoo argued that to require police Clarence from the Civil Society as a pre-condition for registration, government officials and agents rolling out such mandate must themselves be required to have police clearance.
Lawrence Yealue and Harold Aidoo said the Liberian government knowingly isolates the country’s civil society sector in virtually all decisions regarding the sector and the general governance of Liberia.
Lawrence and Aidoo averred that government generally perceives the civil society of Liberia as trouble makers because of the critical voices of the sector on corruption and general misrule in the country, accusing the government of continuously keeping the nation’s civil society sector in the dark about key governance issues and rather making policies with provisions aimed at muscling the sector.
Though outrightly critical of the government and some provisions of the revised National Aid and NGO policy of Liberia, the two men were quick to reveal that they are negotiations and talks going on between the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning to deal with what they call the looming dangers for the Civil Society of Liberia.
Lawrence Yealue and Harold Aidoo were speaking when they appeared on the latest edition of “THE DIALGUE” , the media and community outreach blended People To People platform of the Liberia Media for Democratic Initiatives (LMDI) under the Supporting Effective Advocacy in Liberia (SEAL), a project funded by the European Union and co-financed by the Irish Aid and the Government of Sweden through Mercy Corps and Kvinna Till Kvinna.
The LMDI contacted the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning was invited to this discourse on THE DIALOGUE, but they turned down the offer on grounds that they have got planned conversation with the National Civil Society Council of Liberia.
The one day CSO discourse on THE DIALOGUE held at the Lower Careysburg headquarters of the LMDI was fiercely interactive, involving 51 students from universities across Monrovia in particular and Montserrado County in general. Most of the audience members argued that Civil Society Organizations in Liberia are also embroiled in corruption in the country and called on CSO actors to act differently in positive ways so distinguish themselves from the stagnated progress of Liberia.
This DIALOGUE forum was the first of a series of dialogue style discourses being organized and rolled out by the Liberia Media for Democratic Initiatives (LMDI) under the Supporting Effective Advocacy in Liberia (SEAL ).
Mercy Corps, Kvinna Till Kvinna Foundation (KTK), the Government of Liberia and the European Union launched the four-year SEAL Project, aimed at promoting good governance and a vibrant civic sector during a critical moment in the country’s development.
Financed by the European Union under the 11th European Development Fund, the goal of the project is to strengthen the individual capacities and collective efforts of Liberian Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) to promote good governance and a vibrant civic sector during a critical moment in the country’s development.
SEAL provides technical and financial inputs at key moments of selected CSO’s organizational development while supporting gender mainstreaming in their daily operation and work. The SEAL project targets 11 national CSOs, the National Civil Society Council of Liberia (NCSCL) and 15 Community-Based Organizations (CBOs). The Project is being implemented by Mercy Corps, in partnership with Kvinna Till Kvinna Foundation (KTK).
You may follow the LMDI at our website at www.lmdi.org and also visit our face book page at Liberia Media for Democratic initiatives-LMDI. You can send comments to info@lmdi.org and john@lmdi.org Our flagship platforms, THE DIALOGUE, DUCOR DEBATES & TOMORROW’S PEOPLE at this time are in general association and partnership with the MERCY CORPS & KTK SEAL PROJECT.