PHOTO: Former Foreign Min. Monie R. Captan
By Augustine Octavius, augustineoctavius@gmail.com
Former Foreign Minister, Monie R. Captan has attributed the lack of development in the country to the discriminatory laws barring non Negroes from citizenship and owning land in the Liberian Constitution.
According to him, the current constitution violates international laws to which Liberia is a signatory. And it is the cause of vast portions of land been bushy and underdeveloped, because most of these owners lack the resources to develop these properties.
Prof. Captan was speaking at a one-day forum organized by the Ali Sylla Lecture series of the Diplomat Development Initiative held at the William V S Tubman High School in Monrovia.
Speaking on the theme, “Experience as Foreign Minister and Lessons Learnt,” the former Foreign Minister noted that the founders of the republic established this those days so as to protect non-Negroes from taking over the country.
“The right to life, freedom and property including land are all natural rights under the international laws governing human rights. There is a need to address this issue in order to develop and open the country,” Mr. Captan said.
The audience at the forum
“The compelling reason for which this discriminatory laws have been abolished in counties such as Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Nigeria are all giving land rights to non Negroes and developing rapidly,” the former Liberian Foreign Minister.
Prof. Captan, who is also former Chief Executive Officer of the Millennium Challenge Account Liberia (MCAL), said that most of the prime properties, such as the huge buildings, hotel and estates, are on lone time lease and owned by non Negroes.
According to him, the purpose for which that law was placed in the Liberian Constitution does not exist anymore.
“How can we as a country sign international law respecting the equal rights of all human beings and at the same time discriminating against people of non Negroes?” Mr. Captan asked.
“This is so because most of our people do not have the domestic capitol to undertake massive development or business on most of these lands as result they are bushy and undeveloped for years.”
Mr. Captan, who is currently the Chairman of the Board of Director of the Liberia Electricity Corporation, said the impact is that the law limits development and determine the level of investment by potential investors in the country.
“Secondly, there is a possibility of the investor been exploited or losing his or her investment whenever the Labor Ministry or the Liberia Immigration Service refuses to renew the personal paper for working or residing in the country”.
The former Foreign Minister made it clear that the government cannot provide employment for significant number in the country as a result, the ministers, representatives and senators will always see people begging them for handouts because the people are lack of jobs.
Mr. Captan noted that one of the only ways through which that the private sector will grow and provide employment for thousands of people in increase the envelope of the national budget is to drop the discriminatory law in the Liberian Constitution.
Commenting on the 2020 national referendum, Mr. Captan wondered: what Liberians were thinking of when they voted against the dual citizenship and the reduction of the presidential terms.
According to him, the dual citizenship would afford opportunities for thousands of Liberians who are living successful lives in other nations to invest home.
On the presidential, senatorial and representative terms, the former Foreign Minister noted that the referendum would have provide Liberians the opportunity to make changes in their political leadership, whenever they are not performing to their expectations.