Remembering Stanton Peabody: A Tribute

Ibrahim Al-bakri Nyei

When I first met Mr. Stanton Peabody, by his age then, he should have been a retired person, but on the contrary, he was a classroom teacher and an active journalist for the Daily Observer Newspaper. This was in 2007, and I was a Junior Student at the A.M.E. University. My encounters with him went well beyond the classroom. My major was Political Science, and minor Print Journalism. So the Course was News Editing and Writing. I owe much of my practical skills in writing features to his lecture, and tutorials. In February 2008, Mr. Peabody announced his birthday to the class, and as young students, we asked him where were we going to ‘boil’ or ‘kick the dust’, he laughed and told us to read our lessons, and that was the only gift he wanted from us. This tells how much he was interested in making more print journalist for Liberia, before he departs the world; successfully, he died as an accomplished person. He had taught hundreds of persons before we met him. Some of my friends are today active journalists, that is a vocation I love too, but I am now immersed into public policy, governance and development research.

That February of 2008, Mr. Peabody or Bob Stan was 77 years of old - old enough to be a grandfather to any of us - but he was our teacher, so much committed. Our Class was on the second floor, and we all needed to climb long stair cases before reaching that afternoon class. Mr. Peabody was never late, and I can’t remember anytime that he was ever absent as was the case of most of the young lecturers. His style of teaching was through lectures and so many drills. A requirement for that class which ran every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday was that each student submits a written news story before sitting in class. By the next class sitting Mr. Peabody would have read each submission, and evaluated them all. As students, some of us some times will default, and we won’t submit, but he didn’t care. Everyday there will be new exercise, either in writing a news headline, a news lead or writing a news story from a long press release. He kept all of those exercises, and surprisingly at the end of the semester, he distributed every paper with no one complaining of a missing exercise paper. All of Peabody’s exercises had made each of his students capable journalists – everyone had something to say that he or she had learned about news writing and editing.

He was so jovial a man, and he left me with a name. He was the only one who ever called me that name to the extent he forgot my real name, and would sometimes while ask me ‘what is your real name again’? One day, as President of the National Muslim Students Association of Liberia, I signed a press statement which was syndicated to the various media institutions. As editorial consultant at the Daily Observer, he ultimately saw the release and even made it published in the paper. So when we met, this was what the jovial old man had to tell me: “So you want to be the Ayatollah of Liberia; do you want to make Liberia an Islamic State’? And we both laughed about it. From that time till his passing, he never stopped calling me Ayatollah. Even in the classroom, he would call me Ayatollah. So on many other occasions, when I go around this old man, I tried listening to him to hear about his struggle as a journalist under repressive and authoritarian regimes in Liberia. One time, I passed by the Daily Observer office, and I asked to see him, just to joke, I was told he has not been coming due to sickness. This time he was eighty years old.

The next time I met him was in July 2010. I had accompanied Dr. Amos C. Sawyer to the launching of Mr. Kenneth Best’s book on Albert Porte. By the time we entered the hall, we met the old jovial Peabody, and this was what he had to say to Dr, Sawyer: ‘What is this Ayatollah doing here?’ Dr. Sawyer asked in return ‘who is Ayatollah?’ He said ‘this young man’, holding my hand, ‘he never writes anything except releases advocating for Muslims in Liberia, I am sure he wants Liberia to be an Islamic State’. We all laughed! Dr. Sawyer introduced me as his assistant. Peabody introduced me too, as his former student, and with compliments. I felt flattered by his compliments.

At that same occasion, I went back to the old man just to sit and listen to him. So I asked him for a copy of the book just to glance, he said he was doing a book review. This is a book of over three-hundred pages and this man at eighty was editing and writing newspaper articles everyday and at the same time doing a book review. His energy and penchant for writing beats my imagination; he never left the profession he loved so dearly. That taught me so many lessons. No wonder why he became a hero of journalism in Liberia.

From that time I did not talk to Peabody again, I only read his writings, and maybe once in a while saw him and just said hello until he finally stop going to the Daily Observer office. At last, while in Transit to Abuja at the Mutarla Muhammed International Airport in Lagos , Dr. Sawyer turned to me and said, ‘Ibrahim do you remember Stanton Peabody… he told me once you were his student’? I said ‘yes’, and in returned he said “well I am sorry, he died yesterday (referring to to Tuesday April 12, 2011), I just got an email on that news”. I became instantly dumbfounded.

So Peabody had died, but he left behind cadres of young and determined writers that he trained. He left behind lessons of courage that every journalist must learn to keep up the profession. Those of us who had not yet become practicing journalists, it is impossible for us to leave the media activities, particularly feature writings, because what we learned under this old man is too worthy enough that to be wasted. His passing is a sad thing for us on earth, but he was called, and It was God that called him, I am sure if he gets the equipments and time, he will practice journalism in heaven, because this was a profession he lived his life for. His passing is like the burning of a historical diary…what a loss to this country?

Ivory Coast after Gbagbo: The Road to Peace and Security

Ibrahim Al-bakri Nyei
pericle925@yahoo.com


After intense international political and diplomatic pressures, followed by sustained military operations by his opponents, Ivory Coast’s long time political icon and defiant strongman, Laurent Gbagbo, has met an unfortunate political end. Gbagbo’s calculations probably ended up in the negative quadrant of the plane. He allowed himself to end a long history of so many years of unrepentant Ivorian nationalism and ten-years of presidency in disparagement. As of his fall, historical verdicts shall emphasize more on the troubles he created in which thousands of his kinsmen died, millions forced to the harsh lives of refugees, and the debris he left his flourishing country in. After losing to a long time rival, Gbagbo sidestep all efforts at negotiation, hoping for a Kenyan, or Zimbabwean style government of inclusion. Gbagbo’s fall must now signal a strong warning to autocrats, that with the emerging consolidation of regional powers, strongmen can now lose weights.

But Gbagbo has gone. Is this the end of the troubles he created? Experience reminds us that the fall of a single person (president) does not necessarily solve problems of systemic governance failures, particularly when rooted in ethnic and sectarian cleavages. Just around Ivory Coast, in Liberia and Sierra Leone, strong men fell; but the negligence to do institutional and systemic reforms led to prolong crises and violent disorders. The new Ivorian project after Gbagbo must therefore learn from the pitfalls of the projects in Liberia and Sierra Leone. Even though there were rebels challenging the Jospeh Momoh’s All People’s Congress in Sierra Leone, his fall in 1992 constituted no guarantee to peace and stability. As we witnessed in the ten years that followed Sierra Leone was engulfed in a civil war characterized by terrible human tragedies and social breakdown. In Liberia, Samuel Doe was painted as the demon holding back the country’s progress, Liberians thought that the end of Doe would have stabilize the country, but Doe’s demise just 10 months after a rebel invasion proved to be a piecemeal of a huge trunk of catastrophe to unfold in the next 13 years. With these experiences, conflict and security analysts believe that Ivory Coast is yet impulsive and unpredictable. However, despite the trivialities and fragility of the situation, there are opportunities for transformation and renewal. First, the participation of the larger international community in the crisis demands its participation in the rebuilding process. The support of the international community will therefore hasten peacebuilding activities. A second opportunity is the desire of the Ouattara government to reunite and reconcile the country, as was declared in his first address after the arrest of Gbagbo. The French security engagement in Ivory Coast is also among several other opportunities that can be exploited to stabilize the country.

The greatest challenge the situation in Ivory Coast will face is in the prosecution of those persons and institutions who have committed gross human rights violations. This will put the Ouattara administration in a serious dilemma - to prosecute Gbagbo’s loyalist who unleashed terror on the people while protecting his (Gbagbo) strongman-hold to the presidency after his electoral defeat; and to submit for prosecution those of his (Ouattara) own loyalists whom in the process of getting him installed as the elected president committed mayhem against the Ivorian people. The ethnic violence that sprouted in the wake of the crisis will also pose a stiff challenge to the reconciliation process if efforts are not made to stop political persecutions.

The elections of 2010 signaled to us that both Ouattara and Gbagbo do not enjoy original support of a significant portion of the Ivorian masses. As a matter of first choice, only 32% percent of the Ivorian voters wants Ouattara as president, while only 38% wants the incumbent Gbagbo. It is clear that the country Ouattara has taken over, about 68% of its decision-making population originally marked against his candidature. Ouattara preference came only when the people, by law, were constrained to choose between him and Gbagbo. This time Ouattara got 54.1% while Gbagbo got 45.4%. Again, a sisgnificant portion of Ivorian voters constituting 45% disapproved Ouattara’s candidature. The above analysis is intended to make us understand that the two men do not enjoy the confidence of the people at first choice, there is therefore a huge challenge of convincing the Ivorian people. What then are the way forward for peace and stability after four month of chaotic struggle for the presidency?

Ivory Coast is geo-strategically positioned in West Africa, and its instability could spill over terribly, and remake a cycle of violence in the Mano River sub-region or beyond. We must be reminded of the spill-over effect of the Liberian civil war that has still not been substantially dealt with. Liberia’s fragile peacebuilidng process is getting overburdened by an influx of refugees from Ivory Coast. The threats are in human security, border porosity, and the mercenary trade Liberia’s postwar economy is exporting. The Ivorian project must therefore be well calculated from both within the country and in the larger international community. This article does not claim to be absolute solutions to the Ivorian crisis, neither an academic treatise, but its recommendations cannot be overemphasized as relevant elements to the peace and stability of Ivory Coast and the Mano River basin.

State Reconstruction: The state in Ivory Coast was approaching near failure. Empirical data from expert institutions will in the future tell us of the state of the Ivorian State amidst the 2010-2011 crisis over the presidency. But what is certain is that the Ivorian judiciary (Constitutional Council) was partially drawn into a political crises that has rendered its integrity and credibility muddy; and the parallel running of two governments spoke of a bloated, polarized and partisan-driven civil service. Both the judiciary and the civil service reforms must be at the heart of the state reconstruction project in Ivory Coast. Institutions of the state must be reconstructed that they may regain public confidence and efficient service delivery capacity. One of the challenges of postwar governments is in the management of the people’s expectations. Ouattara’s government will need strong state institutions that will be effective in public service delivery.

National Reconciliation and Justice: The 2010 election which was intended to reunite the country (North and South) ironically deepened the existing cleavages as a result of the crisis and violence that followed the elections. Rather than beginning with a process of a united government, the Ouattara Government will have a challenge not only in reconciling and uniting the North and South, but reconciling political and other ethnic cleavages that spawned in the aftermath of the elections. The Ivorian reconciliation and justice project is blessed to have lessons from Liberia and Sierra Leone. In Liberia, genuine reconciliation is yet to be achieved as politicians gamble with findings of the country’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission. It would be important for a grassroot civil society movement to lead reconciliation and healing projects in Ivory Coast, while the international Criminal Court deal with issues of retributive justice for individuals who perpetrated mayhem against the population. Thanks to the Ouattara government for inviting the ICC to investigate the situation. As was indicated above, Ouattara’s dilemma will be in submitting some of his loyalists for prosecution, if indicted by the ICC. This was the case of Sierra Leone’s Tejan Kabbah when he had to submit his ally Chief Hinga Norman, leader of the Civil Defense Force (Karmajors) for prosecution. As part of the reconciliation process, Ouattara needs to appoint a prime minister of broader appeal from the professional, technocratic, or academic segments of the Ivorian society. His current prime minister may not appeal significantly to the people who supported the Gbagbo and who were victimized by the New Forces. Appointing someone of signicance acceptance among the majority of Ivorians will be critical to reuniting the people and running a credible government with popular legitimacy.

Disarmament and Security Sector Reform: Disarmament and Security Sector reform are very important in stabilizing and rebuilding violent-ridden societies. Security and political analysts are most often confronted with the questions of ‘who should be disarmed’ and ‘who should be recruited in the new security agencies’. The Ivorian case is not too different from the security systems polarization that took place in Liberia and Sierra Leone during their crises. There are slight differences though. In Ivory Coast, an elected president was rejected by the military forces, and supported by rebel forces. Careful Observations must therefore be given to security reform in Ivory Coast to avoid its further privatization and politicization. At this point it will help were the United Nations to assume full responsibility of the security systems in Ivory Coast. This will require the deployment of more troops and logistical and financial support to the UN Operations in Cote d’Ivoire. With the UN in charge, the New Forces, the Young Patriots, and the Army can go through a process of disarmament; demobilization and the moderate segment of the army go through a systematic process of reorientation.

Good Governance and Democratization: The 2010 elections in Ivory Coast and the crisis that ensued make it difficult to classify the state of Ivorian democracy. The results of the election as was announced by the Electoral Commission amidst insecurity and threats spoke of a credible electoral management body, and the machinations of the Constitutional Council exposed the weaknesses of democratic institutions in the country, which is characteristic of many African nations. A functional democratic government will contribute significantly to the stability of Ivory Coast after Gbagbo. The divided Ivorian media will have to be reoriented and given a free space to operate independently of partisan, regional and/or ethnic affiliations. A strong civil society must be supported to form part of the governance process, particularly in monitoring human rights, freedom of association and of the press. Democratic governance is now a foundational element of 21st development, and it is supported by broader participation of people at all tiers in decision making. The Ouattara government must ensure a significant decentralization of decision-making and promote a policy of mass participation, efficient service delivery and wealth distribution.

Finally, the road to peace and stability cannot be done in an isolated framework. The Mano River Union must play a greater role in following-up the process, particularly in enforcing sub-regional security. Security agencies in the border areas of the Mano River basin must be strengthened to protect civilians, deter invasions, and enforce peace in the sub-region. I end this with a reminder to leaders of the sub-region of my proposal for a sub-regional Mano River Peace and Security Council, and a joint paramilitary border patrol agency in the basin. These recommendations were sent to the Chair of the Inter-Ministerial Committee of the Union, Hon. Amara Konneh, during the Union’s strategic planning session in Monrovia in 2010.

South Sudan and the Challenges of Modern Statehood

The year 2011 began with a remarkable developments for the people of Sudan (both North and South), and this marks an interesting development in Africa. For the North, they have seen the extent of their power and control extensively abrogated, while the Southerners believe they can now boast of ‘real first class citizenship’ in their own country. As a result of a 2005 peace deal Southern Sudanese have unanimously voted for independence, breaking them away from the Republic of Sudan. This development is likely to encourage secessionist movements across the continent and even the world to push forward. Moreover, other oppressed regions are likely to begin considering demands for independent states. But with a new state of South Sudan, expected to be declared in July 2011, what are the possible challenges in running a functional state in this 21st century - sustaining peace, promoting social development, advancing human security, rule of law and security?

Concept and Functions of a Modern State: Can South Sudan Live to the Task?A capable modern state is one that maintains local stability and provides for the human security needs of its people through the provision of effective justice and rule of regimes, social services in health education and sanitation. Critical also, to the stability and proper functioning of a modern state is broad-based participatory democratic governance. Two major characteristics of sovereignty are territory and population and South Sudan is reported to have a vast land area (territory) and a large population of over 4 million people. Beyond territory and population, the legitimate control on the use of violence as theorized by Max Weber, is a fundamental function of the state. This means the state is the sole institution with a monopoly and right to use violence, but with this right of the state being tempered with by non-state actors (mainly rebel movements), state sovereignty have increasingly come under threats, particularly in Africa. How prepared then is South Sudan to run a functional modern state?

With the huge turnout in the referendum of January 2011 and the overwhelming vote for an independent South Sudan state, there is no doubt of the resolve of the people of that region to be united in a single nation-state for their self advancement. The rise and ultimate success of the Sudanese People Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) speak to the weakness of the original Sudanese Republic in its control of the legitimate use of violence. Other states in Africa have experienced civil wars during which the state authorities were challenged and the consequences were mass human tragedies and overall state failure. Some of these states, like Liberia, end up becoming pariahs and burdens on the international community. How then can a functional modern state remain in control of the use of violence? The use of violence in the context of state sovereignty is not limited to the use of force, but also that the state is the sole institution of law and order and the sole provider of security to which all of its citizens subscribe and depend on.

A modern state can therefore maintain its control over violence and strengthen the integrity of its sovereignty by instituting effective systems of democratic governance through the rule of law. The new state of South Sudan has a real opportunity to learn from the numerous cases of state-failures in Africa. Some of the lessons well taught can be found in the annals of the recent history of DR Congo, Somalia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Liberia. But the challenges in South Sudan itself have evolved overtime with internal disputes among the local regions, ethnic groups, and a struggle for power. Analysts have suggested that the fulcrum of the superficial unity in South Sudan is formed around the collective desire for an independent state, but that there are more internal divisions capable of threatening the stability of the new republic. This transitional period must therefore be used to address the challenge of reconciliation, build a cohesive national identity, and unite the people into a Southern Sudanese nation without which a capable Southern Sudanese state is illusive.

With unity and strong national identity fostered among the different classes, regions and ethnicities in the South, the new South Sudan Republic can now perform its traditional functions as a modern state and participate in the international community. The primary functions of the contemporary 21st century state as suggested by Ashraf Ghani et al include, a legitimate monopoly on the use of violence, administrative control, sound management of public finances, investment in human capital, creation of citizenship rights and duties, provision of infrastructure, regulation of the market formation, management of the assets of the state, effective public borrowing and management of international relations, and maintenance of the rule of law. The attainment of all of these has been the real challenge facing the states in Africa, and had been underpinned by strongman politics, cronyism and weak state structures. South Sudan will have to start first by establishing a strong governance system that will guard against strongman dominance, and class or sectarian manipulations.

The Challenges and Prospects At hand
As a new country, South Sudan is faced with so many challenges first in setting up, and then in implementing state functions as outlined above. The challenges are conspicuous and can be traced to problems emanating from the years of neglect, civil war and geography and economy. A major challenge of the South currently is to reduce and stop the violence in the region and enforce internal security which entails disarming armed bandits, establishing a strong national police force and an army. There are reports of continuous hostilities and violence in the major towns in the region and its surrounding. Street attacks and public killings, like the broad day murder of a government official (reported by the BBC Feb. 9, 2009) are troubling for this new country. South Sudan needs to begin to build an economy that will support its people and provide jobs for its vulnerable youths. Violence in every society plays a role in determining the economic future of that society. Despite the fact that South Sudan is a land-locked area, it has numerous economic opportunities as can be seen in its geography. This region is blessed with vast grassland and forest, and has been the citadel of Sudan’s oil economy. Sound public management is therefore needed to maximize benefits from the natural resources so that they too, like in other countries, cannot be ‘natural curses’ on the people that own them.

The management of the body-polity of South Sudan will also be a serious challenge after July 2011. Determining and upholding to constitutional processes of leadership and governance will be critical in predicting the future of the country. Will the SPLM, like other liberating guerrilla organizations, cling onto power with an iron fist; or will it open the process for broad based participation, open space for the press and the civil society? These are all issues need to be looked into as this state emerges.

The issue of citizenship will be a recurring problem in this new country. People that have once lived together as one and became divided only over political issues are highly inseparable. There are many people from both the north and south born to the same families and tribes. Many successful southerners that invested in the north will find it difficult to return home, and will also find it difficult to live as foreigners in a place they once considered their country. This question of citizenship will feature highly during political processes, land ownership and land rights, and wealth distribution; and are most likely to lead to conflicts and violent crises. One way to deal with this is for the political leaders of both the North and South to reach an agreement in which the people in each area that were originally Sudanese be left to determine their nationality before July 2011.

A grand prospect for a progressive and stable South Sudan republic lies in the euphoria surrounding the victory from the referendum for independence. Despite internal divisions, the collective campaign and victory from the independence vote can be seen as opportunities for unity, and this needs to be adequately utilized and built upon. The numerous international aids and the plethora of regional and intergovernmental organizations open for the participation of this new country are grand opportunities for speedy economic growth, international cooperation and peace.

Many local developments, like the acceptance of the referendum results by the North and positive declarations by Southern leaders speak of a brighter future for this new African state. The growing hostile diplomacy between the North and the South in the aftermath of the vote constitute a serious challenge to peace and security in the regions of central and eastern Africa. The AU must now consider a durable peace mechanism between the North and South as a priority; and must also lead the front in supporting statebuilding and peacebuilding efforts in South Sudan as a new member state. But how does the secession of the South impact political activities on the continent and what are the implications for peace and stability in Africa?

Implications of the Secession on African States
The formation of a new country in Africa by July 2011 will significantly impact the discourses of international politics in Africa. First the number of countries at the African Union and the United Nations will increase by one; consequently, there will be new strategic alliances.

A significant lesson from the guerrilla success of the Sudanese People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) is that other active and dormant secessionist organizations around Africa will gain courage and inspirations to press on with their separatist agendas. While it is the rights of people everywhere to fight for their self-determination, the re-ignition of violent secessionist struggles in Africa will destabilize the continent. In cases where the secessionists are fighting for an exclusive ethno-national state, the challenge might be much difficult as compared to regions where people of multi-ethnicities mobilize against marginalization and advance a common political and eco-social agenda in initiating causes of self-liberation. There are secessionist’s movements in nearly all of the regions of Africa, and the forging of alliances with these movements by already existing sovereign states, are potentials for regional-wide conflicts that will threaten even the stability of sovereign states. In Sudan alone, where the recent secessionist victory is recorded, there are also separatist movements in both the west and east fighting for independence. In the terribly failed state of Somalia alone, there are more than two autonomous regions fighting for self-determination, this is further deepening the crisis in that country. Despite, the failure of the Biafrans to gain independence from the Federal Republic of Nigeria, there are still triggers in that country that are capable of dividing it or keeping it in perpetual instability. Militancy in the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria, and demands by some ethnic groups for self-actualization continue to threaten Nigeria’s stability. The Casamance region of Senegal and Cabinda region of Angola are regions that have active organizations, and there are needs for immediate settlements in those places to avoid prolong fighting. A number of organizations in Africa representing ‘marginalized and oppressed’ peoples and regions are also part of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO), a Netherlands-based organization of separatist movements and activists around the world.

Conclusion
The SPLM/A had gained a remarkable victory in leading a guerrilla struggle for the independence of the people of South Sudan. The weakness of the state in Sudan contributed to this division. South Sudan must be nurtured and supported to live up to the expectations of its people. The AU must lead an effort of negotiating peace in the South before the state is declared in July 2011. Other African states must now begin to initiate internal reform processes that will positively transform the lives of their peoples in all regions, ethnicities and communities. A critical point to note from the emergence of separatists movements across Africa is that the centralized state system has failed markedly. Most African governments do not have efficient state security and social services accessible to majority of their peoples, particularly rural regions and areas far from political headquarters. Africans must now begin to experiment with decentralization, a system that will entrust power to the local people in every given area, and through which the people will manage their own politics, resources and institutions. With effective systems of decentralization working in African states, significant progress will be made at poverty reduction, and the strengthening of democratic governance. With the involvement of the majority of the people in the decision making processes (the politics), and the distribution of resources (the economy), violent conflicts from greed and grievances will reduce in African states, and ultimately there might be no need for the rise of secessionist/separatist movements.

Marginalization and Inequality in the Justice and Rule of Law Systems in Liberia

Introduction

Liberia’s history of governance from 1847 to the fall of the True Whig Party oligarchy in 1980, and to the fall of the military dictatorship in 1990 has been characterized by marginalization and inequality in the distribution of the nation’s wealth. Even after those two periods, the years of crisis also witnessed similar governing arrangements. Indeed, warring factions found eloquent justifications in using the terms ‘marginalization and inequality’ as a means of rallying mass support for their factions. Membership of a warring party became a prerequisite for participating and/or benefitting from the country’s wealth. Ironically, however, only selective members of these factions were able to benefit from the distribution of the state resources, leaving most of the foot soldiers and citizens excluded from the spoils of the crisis.

Given the above history, the perennial challenge of the country remains limited or no participation of the majority of the people in the political direction of the state – or lack of good governance. This is generally underscored by the poor quality of the law, or no effective system for addressing grievances in the country. It is within this corridor – the interaction between the citizens and the state – that needs focused attention.

Marginalization, Inequality, Poverty and Conflict in Liberia

In the past, political marginalization through which the majority of the people were excluded or limited from the state formed the basis for establishing the two economic classes in Liberia. This is anchored in Jeanne E. Arnold’s (1995) definition of marginalization and how it builds social inequality. Arnold (1995) defines marginalization as a process by which established or emerging elites create socio-economic relations of superior versus subordinate/dependent through manipulations of labor and distributions of social services (See Jeanne E. Arnold (1995): Social Inequality, Marginalization, and Economic Process: Chp. III Foundation of Social Inequalities). In Liberia, this socioeconomic arrangement thrives because the political system had been structured to marginalize and systematically impose on majority of the people. For example, schools, hospitals, public utilities and recreation centers were limited to only selective few of the population nestled in urban enclaves like Monrovia. Consequently, the relationship between handfuls of elites (mainly senior public servants) to that of the majority has been that of superior-to-servant; and in some cases, low level government workers, including military officers, drivers, and office assistants have been used as house helps by their superiors.

On the basis of this structural arrangement, the majority saw the state and the functionaries of government as ‘personal’ properties of senior officials, until lately in the 1970s when a group of ‘progressive’ Liberians mainly from indigenous communities mounted a challenge to the status quo and demanded participation. This challenge and demand for a wider democratic space was preempted in 1980 when the military unseated the ruling oligarchy at the applause of the marginalized masses. This euphoria was short-lived as the military regime became infested with ethnic rifts, and assumed a character of repression and dictatorship. Nonetheless, the new government officials, mainly illiterate soldiers and their cronies, and members of the ‘progressives of the 1970 suddenly became Liberia’s new elites.

Under this arrangement, military officers took senior positions in government and civilian employees were given military ranks and uniforms. Leaders from the three frontline advocacy groups against the True Whig Party autocracy – the Progressive Alliance of Liberia, Movement for Justice in Africa, and the Union of Liberian Associations in the Americas – were all incorporated into the military government, thus giving them status in the class of elites.

Reflections on these historical patterns of class and elite constitution in Liberia form the premise of this article: access to political positions has defined the class divide in the country, and has also determined who deserves full justice and who does not. In other words, the dominance of one class (elites) in one sector of Liberia - its politics - empowers that class to spread its influence to other sectors. Consequently, Liberia’s political elites have always formed its economic elite as well. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission, in its final report clearly indicated that the exclusion of the majority of the people from the affairs of the state, and the foundations on which the state was established as a separatist state to ‘civilize, and Christianize’ were part of the causes of the civil war, and have further contributed immensely to poverty in Liberia.

The struggle for participation by the marginalized groups in Liberia, and the insatiable desire for everyone to be part of the governing class, which may subsequently give him/her membership to the economic class is another succinct explanation for the intractability of crisis in Liberia.

Resolving these issues must be through a systematic process of institution building, particularly in governance and the rule of law. An effective governance system that will promote equal participation and efficient service delivery to every part of the country is critical to addressing the issues of marginalization and inequality. Also important is the opening of economic corridors that for private sector development that will facilitate the growth of an economic middle class.

The right of every citizen before the law and the availability of means to get access to justice at any given point in addressing grievances cannot be overemphasized. The strengthening of public institutions that will provide services in a way that individuals are left to blame for their own progress or failure can properly address structural violence in Liberia.


Judiciary and Rule of Law Reforms

The Rule of Law is a concept that represents the ideal function of the modern state in addressing the interests of the community and the general population of its territory (See Swiss Agency for Development Corporation: The Rule of Law Concept: Significance in Development Corporation). Basic indicators for a functioning rule of law system include: An adequate functioning judiciary, equality of all citizens in legislations and the application of law; the separation of powers between the legislative, executive, and the judiciary; the respect of human rights (both civil and political rights); the primacy of the constitution; the principle of the legitimacy of the administration; and the human security of every citizen etc.

The above are very relevant to present day Liberia, particularly during this post-war recovery era. The Government of Liberia Poverty Reduction Strategy generically addressed all in separate ways, and some cut across the four pillars.

Judicial and rule of law reforms are addressed in Pillar Four of the PRS: Strengthening Governance and the Rule of Law in which the GOL‘s goal is ‘to work in partnership with all citizens to build and operate effective institutions and systems that will strengthen peace and promote and uphold democratic governance, accountability, and justice for all’ (See Republic of Liberia (2008): Strengthening Governance and the Rule of Law; Poverty Reduction Strategy). A broader focus in this pillar is placed on increasing participation of all citizens in governance and public policy decision-making processes. The remaining sections speaks of justice and rule of law, but with little details. This is also stated in the 2009 -2011 Strategic Plan of the Judiciary. Realizing that the GoL placed little emphasis on judiciary and rule of law reforms in the PRS, the plan contends that ‘even though its (the GoL) major contribution will focus on governance and the rule of law, the effective functioning of the Judiciary is also a necessary prerequisite for success in the remaining three pillars of the PRS’ (See The Judiciary of the Republic of Liberia (2009); Strategic Plan 2009 -2011.


Challenges

The justice system and the Judiciary in Liberia have faced many challenges that can be traced as far back as the founding of the country. The Judiciary has been manipulated by the Executive Branch of Government in many instances, and most of its dispositions in both lower and upper courts have supported and further explained the inequalities in the dispensation of justice in Liberia.

However, the challenges face by the judiciary and the enforcement of the rule of law are not limited to its manipulation by the Executive Branch, but also extend to its huge technical and professional deficiencies to function effectively. Many cases are left unaddressed; and many persons are accused and detained for very long periods before or without trial. These and many more have eroded its confidence in the eyes of the very people it is serving. As a result many persons or communities have resorted to mob actions or violent uprisings as a means of settling grievances. In February 2010, angry citizens burnt to death an officer of the Liberia National Police, after he allegedly killed a resident of their community. This reaction of the citizen was in response to the slow process of justice delivery in the courts, which has caused extreme lack of confidence for the judiciary and rule of law systems among the people.

In rural communities trial by ordeal or traditional means, mainly through the application of magical ‘science’ is used by local people as alternative to statutory judicial process. This justice process has numerous ways for its trial process. One example is the laying of a very hot iron on the foot of suspects, with the belief that only the guilty person can be burnt in this process. Verdicts from such trials are usually highly contested like in courts, but there is no source of last appeal.

Since the launch of the PRS the process of judiciary and the rule of law reforms has been a daunting one for the government of Liberia, and it is observed that the three-year implementation period as set within the PRS is too limited for such a herculean task. The following are still major issues to ensuring equal access before the law as a means of dealing with the long system of marginalization and inequality in Liberia: Limited number of court houses in most parts of the country; Limited number of law enforcement officers around the country (particularly rural communities) – in most rural communities police officers are hardly seen, and in some parts individuals volunteering as community police erect checkpoints on main highways, and lack capacities to arrest or enforce any laws. Magistrates, public defenders, prosecutors, and even judges in courts in the rural communities are under trained. An observation at a magisterial court hearing in the Cestos City Hall (Rivercess County) in April 2010 further convinced me that the state is not fully functional at the level of the counties, and the local people are left to survive their own way. Yet, they look up to that system, despite its conspicuous faults. In some counties, County Attorneys are lords unto themselves. In Bomi County for example, a County Attorney used his title to intimidate people for a contested farmland in which he has vested interest.

Political influence on law enforcement officers- Liberia is yet to establish an effective system of rule of law to which every citizen must account. Public officials constantly interfere with the work of the police, particularly in cases of their interest. In July 2010, an officer of the Liberia National Police was badly flogged on order of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives. This situation became a heated political issue when member of his political party rallied at his gate to stop his arrest by the LNP. Additionally, the following challenges are still in the judiciary; Unresolved cases on courts’ dockets; Limited or no action against corruption – even with a professed anti-corruption agenda, there is still a class system in the ruling administration on which the rules for accountability are compromised. Prosecution or dismissal for corruption in the government remains selective, and the president in some instances will publicly defend officials indicted by audits and special investigative committees; Lack of adequate legal representation for indigents litigants and accusers.

In the midst of the numerous challenges faced by the judiciary and the justice system, some progresses are however noteworthy. The problematic issue remains whether the progresses made can be institutionalized and distributed equally across the country. Carving out a national strategy for sustaining these reforms will go a long way in assuring equal opportunities to justice in Liberia, and enhancing popular participation of Liberians everywhere. Some notable progress made thus far include, the establishment of the James A.A. Pierre Judicial Institute; The deployment of public defendants and county attorneys in the counties; The establishment of the judicial budgetary independence; The building of modern court houses in some counties; The building of new police stations in some counties; The recruitment of college graduates to be trained as magistrates for lower courts.

Conclusion

The Poverty Reduction Strategy represents a well defined program for post-war development in Liberia provided its implementation is well articulated and sustained and its vision pursued forward beyond 2011. Despite the numerous inadequacies of resources, and the challenges face by the current administration, significant progress is being made in reaching out to communities with public goods and service, particularly justice. The most problematic issue remains the delivery of services to rural communities, particular security and the enforcement of the rule of law.
The judiciary needs a well carved out program of de-concentration in the country to ensure that people everywhere, no matter their social or economic statuses, have access to institutions of legal remedy to settle grievances.

Citizens have resorted to mob violence in Liberia because of the slow pace in addressing their grievances through the court system. Informal sectors are left on the fringes of the state creating alternative power and authority independent of the state. Additionally, corruption and parochial interests are gravely undermining the rule of law system. In most cases the sale of justice begins with law enforcement officers at the expense of indigent people. This has continuously led to distrust for the system, and has increased cases of crimes and mob actions. The best way to address these (mainly mob violence) is to build a system of integrity in the judiciary, and build the capacity of law enforcement and judicial officers, not only through education and training, but also through pay and incentives reforms that will motivate staff and improve integrity and professionalism.

Revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt: Lessons for African Autocrats and Revolutionaries

Ibrahim Al-bakri Nyei
pericle925@yahoo.com

A wave is blowing across the Middle East and North Africa, and there are prospects for other oppressed people in sub-Sahara Africa to gain inspirations from this wind of change blowing upward. Interestingly the people’s power is challenging and bringing down – in matter of days – regimes that have maltreated them and mismanaged their resources. What is doubtful is that whether sub-Saharan Africa, a region whose history is replete with violence and civil crises, can succeed in toppling kleptocrats and autocrats without arms? Two of Liberia’s respected young intellectuals (Ali Sylla and Ali Kaba) argue that such revolutions are mainly possible in ‘highly conscious societies’, they therefore doubt the capacity and ability of the people of sub-Saharan Africa to imitate their northern counterparts in self-organizing and liberating themselves. A reflection of what took place before toppling Mobutu in Zaire, Doe and Taylor in Liberia, Momoh in Sierra Leone, and the numerous past and current civil wars in the region led me to accepting their postulation. I concur that if Liberia had a conscious civil society in 1979, the True Whig Party oligarchy would have come to an end without going through a high scale violent struggle, or if indeed the people were weary of the dictatorships of Doe and Taylor the long bush path to destruction would have been averted and a mass nonviolent citizen protest against the harsh excesses of said regimes would have installed a democratic order.

The Middle-east and North Africa have proven to be different in expressing grievances at autocrats. The people’s power in this region has made significant changes like the Iranian revolution of 1979 and other past civil disobedient actions in that region. Egypt and Tunisia have demonstrated real people’s power in the 21st century, and this is snowballing across the region. What are the lessons now?

Revolutionary successes in Tunisia and Egypt have taught new lessons to African autocrats that they cannot perpetually marginalize and oppress their people, and the people of Africa have been reminded that the real power is in their hands, and where socio-economic conditions become unbearable, political processes repressive, mass mobilization for non-violent revolutions can make the necessary change popularly demanded. Egypt and Tunisia have indeed taught good lessons in 21st century Africa. Interestingly, the developments took place in a continent where processes of regime change and even electoral processes have been very violent. In some instances, military coups hijack constitutional processes, or for the ‘better’ put end to resented dictatorships. In 2010 alone Africa was experiencing civil wars largely necessitated by bad governance and dictatorship in Somalia, Darfur Region of Sudan and DR Congo. Countries like Guinea and Niger were under military leaderships while Madagascar was under a pariah civilian regime that came to power through a putsch.

Unlike the cases of unconstitutional regime changes or military putsches across the continent, no international group or nation has announced any form of sanction or suspension of membership or diplomatic ties against the popular people’s action in either Tunisia or Egypt. Powerful nations and organizations have praised the resilience and determination of the people in their attempts to liberate themselves without armed struggle. This must also teach us that no force is powerful enough to condemn a popular success of regime change planned and executed by the people. Liberia, Sierra Leone, DR Congo, and some other conflict-affected countries in Africa became pariahs because their revolutions were led by greedy and power-drunk politicians whose only motivations were to ascend to power and get access to state resources. Those were not revolutions popularly supported from the grassroots.

What African leaders need to learn now is that they can leave power just in days when their people grow weary of their excesses. This lesson must be a motivation for immediate reforms across the continent. Reforms in constitutions that promote popular democratic participation and accountability are critical to addressing present day governance challenges in Africa. The people’s power in Tunisia and Egypt were expressed against regimes that spanned more than two decades, and resentment has begun to grow in Cameroon and Libya against strongmen rules. This means that Africans are getting increasingly angry with old fashioned leadership, and want to experiment with new ideas of the 21st century deposited in the marginalized young population. Constitutional reform processes must therefore be clear on term-limit for elected offices, and be specific on age range for political offices. Young people are the engine of political development and economic growth across the world. They have shown it in Egypt and Tunisia, and they are mobilizing in Algeria, Libya and Bahrain. They must therefore wake up for national leadership.

In some regions, like in the West, young leaders are progressively ending the poverty of their people through contemporary innovations. Africa is still led by politicians from the 1960s. In Liberia for example, it is most likely that emerging young politicians and technocrats will not easily succeed in transforming the country to a 21st century nation-state with its attendant opportunities while politicians from the 1970s are still struggling for space in the process. Leading oppositions and the key figures in the ruling party in Liberia are politicians from the 1970s - with the least age being 67 - who are still mounting efforts for another six-year political challenge. These people are also succeeding by machinations, co-optations and manipulations of the young people. How then can the young generation lead a progressive and nonviolent revolution in sub-Saharan Africa?

The young people of Africa need to stand up for their rights and demand from their governments accountability in the use of resources and the exercise of power. More to that, the young people need to work and build mass consciousness among their people and begin to take political challenges for higher offices. They must motivate and inspire their people into revolutions that will positively transform their societies and make socio-economic opportunities equitable. These revolutions must be accompanied by strong desires and passions for ending the suffering of the people of Africa. Honest and sincere revolutions in the name of the people can only be executed by young men and women who have high moral character and high sense of political and social responsibility to their people and community.

As for Mohammed Bouazizi of Tunisia, he believed that by committing suicide would have ended his suffering as a young university graduate without a job under a regime that have oppressed him for decades. The self-immolation of this young vegetable seller in December 2010 was the sacrifice for the redemption of his people and his country from an unbearable autocracy. The end of Bouazizi’s life and the liberation of the people of Tunisia has become an inspiration for the self-emancipation of oppressed people worldwide. Bouazizi’s self-immolation did not only expelled Ben Ali and his cronies from Tunisia, but has cost Mubarak his job of 30 years, and is threatening the foundations of other autocrats in Africa. May the souls of Mohammed Bouazizi rest in peace, and may the arches of his soul from the self-immolation be a fertilizer for democracy around the world. Bouazizi has gone to join ranks with other martyrs of African liberation. The ways to commemorate Bouazizi and to ensure that his sacrifice does not go in vain are to ensure that democracy flourish in his native Tunisia and Africa at large; that socio-economic opportunities in employment, heath care and education be available and affordable for the people of Tunisia and Africa at large; and that young Africans continuously challenge autocracies and begin to work towards transforming their countries for the better.

Prejudice of Ethnicity and the Disenfranchisement of the Mandingoes

CRITICAL ISSUES OF NATIONAL CONCERN XX
Ibrahim Al-bakri Nyei
pericle925@yahoo.com

We begin this edition of the series with cautionary notes on the devastating consequences humanity has suffered resulting from either emotional or physical expression of ethnic prejudices. In the Great Lakes region in Africa, Rwanda and Burundi have continued to suffer ethnic differences expressed violently. In Sri Lanka, differences between the Tamils and Sinhalese led to years of civil war with the Tamil leaders forced into exile repeatedly calling for a separate Tamil state. In Liberia, we need not mention of the tragedy of the 1990s when rebel forces launched an invasion and specifically targeted Krahns and Mandingoes for elimination. With over millions of Tutsis and Hutus killed in Rwanda and Burundi, the two ethnic groups continue to live together. And with the attempted genocide against the Mandingoes, they are still around and progressive than ever before. This is meant to remind us all that no one group can completely eliminate any other group in a country or anywhere. If this was possible there might have been no Jew after the Holocaust.

We lay the above historical premises to draw attentions to what seems to be a recurrent provocation of the Mandingoes in Liberia. Let it be known that the peacefulness members of this ethnic group have exhibited in the midst of trials and tribulations, even from state authorities, cannot easily be borne by other ethnic groups in some places. In the 1990s, there was a genocide attempt that failed miserably. Today discrimination against this ethnic group have manifested itself in many ways including provocations, public denials, and harsh questioning of their citizenship; and now, it seems a real opportunity has come for their ‘nemeses’ to disenfranchise them from the forthcoming elections. This by extension is to effectively deny them their citizenship. Individuals assigned at voter registration centers have acted as though they were trained to be critical of only elements of the Mandingo ethnic group. This, they do by questioning the citizenship of people who carry names associated with this tribe. There are several factors that should be considered in the Mandingo case which many Liberians do not understand. The only postulate they have used is that Mandingoes are from Guinea, and therefore anyone bearing name associated with this ethnic group is from Guinea. How weak or intellectually strong is this postulate? We declare the debate open.

A point of clarity to make here is that Mandingo is not the only Liberian tribe found in other countries. An understanding of the political concept of transnationalism can answer many questions around ethnic groups found in multiple countries and regions, and how they have maintained their ethnonational identities without interfering with their individual citizenship. In the Mano River basin alone, the Kissis, Mendes, Lormas, Kpelle, Gios, Krahns etc, are transnational ethnic groups with members bearing different citizenship. Scholars have attributed some of these to the creation of artificial boundaries as a result of Western colonialism in Africa. Another point we need to clarify here is that the attempted genocide against the Mandingoes in the 1990s forced them into exile and children born to those exiled families in refugee camps in Sierra Leone, Guinean, Ivory Coast and elsewhere are returning home with limited knowledge of this country. They are entitled to Liberian citizenship like any other Liberian born inside or outside of the country. Unfortunately, and very preposterously, immigration officers, and voter registrars judge people’s citizenship by their accent in English or the standards of English they speak. What’s about those Liberian government officials who speak like Americans or Europeans? Can that be used as a measurement of citizenship? Of course not! (A second debate is left opened). Sadly, As a result of growing prejudices against the Mandingoes in Liberia, the stereotype has been constructed in a way that a Guinean Kpelle or a Sierra Leonean Kissi for examples, can easily be considered a Liberian than naturally born Liberian Mandingo citizens.

Reports from around the country, mainly Bong County and around Monrovia speak of continuous denials of the Mandingoes in the voter registration exercise, and that those successful face thorough scrutiny than any other registrants. Denial of a person in an isolated community is not limited to that person, but constitutes a target of a larger community with hundreds of thousands of people. We must know that we are at the crossroad in determining the next direction of this fragile, but ‘stable’ country, therefore we must continuously remind ourselves of our bitter past. What we achieve as a nation during the fourteen years of internecine feud must be the best lesson for us if we are to move forward. A short term employee or contractor with no advance training is wrongly suited in determining someone’s citizenship, or by extension disenfranchising a person. I mean the citizenship of a person should not be determined at the discretion of a contracted voter registrar.

Liberians will have to call themselves to order, and be reminded that the grievances from unbearable prejudices against ones ethnic group can be responded to terribly, and that the toll such grievances have had on humanity are too tragic to be stated here.

We see the current trends of ethnic differences as issues crossing over from the civil war that remains unaddressed seven years after the war. It is hard time for our country to begin to address critical issues concerning national identity, citizenship and the use of ethnic, sectarian and religious differences as forces of development rather than forces of division. Ethnic prejudice against any single ethnic group in Liberia must be discouraged because they are sources of chaos. As I conclude, I am filled with hopes that one day the diversities in this country will collectively strengthen us to build a nation that will value individual worth rather than ethnic or religious affiliations.

- In the Cause of Democracy and Social Justice the Pen Shall Never Run Dry

A Country for Sale: How and Why Poor Liberians are Selling the Country to the Bourgeoisie

Critical Issues of National Concern XIX

Ibrahim Al-bakri Nyei
pericle925@yahoo.com

A specter is haunting Liberia. This specter seems different from the ones that came in the 1970s, the 1990s, and the early 2000s. This time, it seems, having survived decades of poverty in harsh socio-economic conditions and hopelessness, many poor Liberians have resolved to sell their most powerful constitutional possession to those of their fellow countrymen that have become wealthier by preying on the state. The same people have over the years unleashed poverty, illiteracy and injustice in the country as a means of enhancing wealth and consolidating power bases.

Article One of the Constitution of Liberia states that ‘All power is inherent in the people. All free governments are instituted by their authority and for their benefit and they have the right to alter and reform the same when their safety and happiness so require. In order to ensure democratic government which responds to the wishes of the governed, the people shall have the right at such period, and in such manner as provided for under this Constitution, to cause their public servants to leave office and to fill vacancies by regular elections and appointments’. The powers discussed above are in the citizens’ vote, and petitions for impeachments of elected officials and petitions for legislations. In an emerging democracy like Liberia, the citizens exercise this power periodically, like after every six years or in the event of death of an elected official. Their ability to demand and evaluate the outputs of the government as part of the process of ‘assessing output legitimacy’ is weak due to manipulations, poverty, and mass illiteracy’.

Why are the people selling their constitutional power to vote? Many Liberians believe that whether they participate or not, they will remain disaffected by the state and its policies. Observations and experiences from travelling around Liberia indicate that effective state institutions for service delivery and security are absent in almost 90 percent of the country. The people have had limited roles and their power-to-vote comes just every six years, and the output legitimacy of successive governments have been very weak. Currently, the people have developed serious apathy towards the electoral process, and now they believe that their votes are only legitimate instruments of giving individuals power and wealth. This is being discussed in public transport vehicles, market areas and community squares. A young woman said openly on a taxi cab that she cannot ‘do voter registration free of charge’ when others are being paid to register. With about 68 percent of the population in abject poverty, it is assumed that only about ten percent enjoys real ‘wealth’, and that those wealth are directly traceable to the Government of Liberia. This means, those considered wealthy Liberians, must have either worked for the government, still works for the government, or are close relatives of former government officials. Some of them are in giant size businesses, which cannot survive without the support or manipulation of government officials. With a seemingly competitive democratic space, the cash must be spent to retain political seats that will ultimately give unfettered access to economic opportunities. The repetition of this process after every six years will keep the poor poorer, and make the rich grow richer. How this vote-buying market running and what are other motivating factors behind it?

Liberia is built on a system in which access to political power gives an individual dominance and influence in the economy. This is to say, the easiest way to economic fortune in Liberia, is to seek political power. This is why the bourgeoisie are doing all they can to retain their status, either by retaining electoral offices, or by graduating from presidential appointment to autonomy in the legislature, where they will by law, set their own salaries and benefits. There is a huge profit in this business: pay for votes with as low as 20 to 30 US dollars, donate bags of rice to poor people, and expect to get in return over US 5000.00 and hundreds of gallons of gasoline monthly, guardsmen, home servants, and high lobby fees.

This is a dramatic and ironic occurrence in our process of democratic development. After years of agitation for participation, the process has now been opened and we have a seemingly level playing field. Wealthy and influential Liberians, mainly government officials are taking people to legislative districts of their interests to register for the pending election. With voter registration on-going, thousands of people, mainly young voters (young people are over 60 percent of Liberia’s population) are transported from their communities to far away electoral districts by rich Liberian politicians, where they will be paid to register and in return vote for the same politicians. The prices vary per area and distance. In some places, you register and give your card to the rich Liberian and get 20 USD and make a promise that you will collect the card on voting day and mark a ballot in the favor of that rich Liberian. Consider after this transaction that your share of the country has been sold or permanently leased for six years. If socio-economic conditions remain the same, you may renew the lease agreement after another six years.

The justification they have for transporting voters is that they are facilitating citizens who wants to go back to their counties of origin to vote. Interestingly, these people did not transport citizens to their counties of origin during the 2008 census, something that might have recorded high populations for those areas and put them under considerations for development programs, if any. Doing this at the time of voter registration have exposed their selfish motives.

The long time effect of this on our country is that it will deepen systems of marginalization and promotes predatory regimes. Citizens’ frustrations with predatory and marginalized systems have been expressed aggressively around Africa. The civil war in Liberia has probably not revolutionized the country to the equitable advantage of all of its citizens. The secession of southern Sudan, the recent fall of the long time ruler of Tunisia, Ben Ali, the fall of the Marxist regime in Ethiopia (1990), were aggressive citizens’ actions that resulted from long time grievances and frustrations.

With the country being sold to the rich politicians, it is obvious that sincere individuals with advocacy and strong leadership backgrounds in communities will be effectively disenfranchised due to their financial impotencies. Political parties are scrutinizing aspirants on the basis of their financial power and their willingness to pay huge sums of money to buy votes. Instead of sitting and allow the poor people to unsuspectingly sell their rights, and by extension their country, the civil society must now take the lead to do massive civic education in communities. This civic education must consider among other things how to choose leaders, rights and duties under the constitution, and methods of scrutinizing certified candidates – this must also consider individual competence, integrity, leadership charisma and moral and criminal records. High schools and university instructors must also be involved in this process of civic education, because it is assumed that many first-time-voters are students.

-In the cause of democracy and social justice, the pen shall never run dry

The Servant Paradox: The benefits the People’s Doctor, the People's Teacher, and the People's Representatives

CRITICAL ISSUES OF NATIONAL CONCERN XVIII

Africa has always been a poor and unstable region with reputations of dangerous political games. The reason is if you enter politics in Africa, you must enter with your whole life, because it is a ‘do or die’ contest. In political science, when reading game theory, you will come across the zero-sum game. In the zero-sum game the winner takes all, and the loser takes none. This is the style of politics in Africa. The fortune of winning an electoral office in an African country, like Liberia, exposes you to many benefits even out of your scope of duties. First you have a constitutional cover that protects you even if you flout public rule. Second, the country’s resources are at your disposal. With only the politicians having unfettered access to their country’s natural resources and the financial returns from those resources, the stakes for political seats will always be very too high. This is why we can see a real rush and plethora of candidates vying for electoral seats in Liberia as we go to the next general and presidential elections.

This edition of the series looks at the benefits the people’s teachers have while in the classroom making future leaders and servants, and the doctors while in the hospitals saving lives as compared to the benefits of those who represents the people in the Legislature makes. Do they do the same work? The man who teaches, the man who saves lives, and the man who makes the law - who lives the better life? These are the questions we seek to answer here, and ultimately we can determine while everybody is petitioning some people to petition him/her for a legislative seat.

The paradox here is that the people who are always in hurry and very busy making society to function are paid less and less cared-for by the governing authority, while the people who make laws for society, make a budget and determine their own salary, work just for two days a week in six months, and take a six months leisure break, live an extravagant and opulent life paid for by the people. The people’s representatives will call this leisure break an agricultural break, but it is mostly spent in cities and hotels in other countries like the United States. Imagine an Ambassador telling the people’s representatives to stop going for visas and spend their break in their constituencies. The people’s doctors work throughout the year, and practically have no break, likewise the people’s teachers.

According to the Constitution of Liberia, the people’s representative cannot be arrested for any crime while going to the Legislature, except for felonious crimes, but the people’s doctor and people’s teacher can be arrested for any crime including traffic violations, even if going to save lives or going to the classroom.
The people’s representatives practically live on the state, while the people’s teacher and the people’s doctor are left by themselves and survive on handouts from the state. Every year in Liberia, the people’s doctors stage strikes and walk out of health centers either because of low pay or no pay. The people’s teachers are the most deserted, and there is no successful school year in the country that does not experience a teachers’ walkout due to low pay or no pay.

The people’s representatives will never stage a strike for their ‘sixteen hours’ work per week benefits and salaries. Any attempt to delay, reduce or deny the people’s representatives of getting their pay, the official responsible must be ready to respond to contempt charges in a tribunal where the representatives are the prosecutors, the jurors and judges. Today in Liberia, the cash value of the monthly salary and benefits of a representative of the people is more than 100% higher than the total value of what the people’s doctor and their teacher take home in total.
This is how the socio-economic disparity, as defined by the body-polity is wide in our country; and this is a country that does not have running water, electricity, and better sanitation for up to 10 percent of its population. Any system of such terribly undermines the effective functioning of a society and cast doubts on the seriousness of modern capitalism in improving citizens’ welfare. Do we advocate here for a non-capitalist order? NO! We call for a social democratic revolution that will address our national income disparities in a way that everyone will not necessarily be paid equally, but that everyone’s income can be considerable enough to justify his/her level of contributions to the welfare of the citizens, and the state.

How then do we rationalize this servant paradox? It takes a real people’s revolution to mobilize the workers against such conspicuous disparity. The people must now begin to call for constitutional reforms and make decisions on these issues. By the law, the constitution must lay down the floor and ceiling for the pay and benefits of the people’s servants – doctors, nurses, teachers, representatives and other officials. And if every servant is left to decide his own pay and benefits, like the representatives have, there will obviously be no control, but effective exploitation and legitimate pillage of the state’s resources. With only the people’s representatives deciding their own pay (a very fabulous and huge one), all of the citizens will seek to be representatives, and the society risks losing teachers, and doctors, for everyman loves good and free life, uncheck and in abundance as we can see our fellow citizens on Capitol Hills.

-In the cause of democracy and social justice, the pen shall never run dry

CRITICAL ISSUES OF NATIONAL CONCERN XVII

The Politicization of Civic Voter Education Campaign

Ibrahim Al-bakri Nyei

Elections in Liberia are just 10 months way, and the stakes are getting too high, ultimately, there will be huge desperations in contenders for the presidency and legislative seats. Electoral processes with high stakes and uncontrolled desperations are usually characterized by enmity amongst contenders, violence and distrusts. With the dawn of 2011 commencing with a voter registration exercise, one can see that the politicians or interested contenders are not waiting for full certification and declaration of campaign period. The strategy of subterranean campaign activities can now be seen in the ongoing civic education process aimed at increasing mass turnout during the voter registration exercise.

This edition of this series has one major argument: That voter and civic education initiatives during electoral processes are functions of the legitimate electoral management institution, and independent civil society organizations. Unfortunately, the current trend of voter education is being overshadowed by politicians in the name of promoting mass turn out. What is more ironical in this process is that people who are publicly known to have direct vested interest in contesting the elections or are members of political parties are the ones fronting as civic educators and claiming neutrality. Interestingly, the National Elections Commission and the civil society are accepting this, and in some cases, endorsing them.

Some political parties have begun to publicly announce to offer free transportation facilities to voters wanting to travel distances to register. Ministers in government are launching their own voter education campaigns. Incumbent legislative candidates have begun the same. These legislative and cabinet officials claiming neutrality have several advantages over other candidates; this must be seen as the beginning of what is called unfair elections. First, they invite the citizens in the name of their official capacities, and second use the forums to create awareness about their interests in the elections. It is no argument that any citizen has the right to call an assembly of citizen or to canvass for support. But the assumption of the functions of the National Elections Commission and that of the civil society movement by political parties and interested candidates can influence the electoral process in many ways and cast doubts on the credibility of the election.
Contrary to the popular belief that electoral frauds can only be done during voting and counting of ballots, is the fact that frauds begin from the beginning and planning processes of elections. To ensure credibility in democratic elections like the forthcoming one in Liberia, the process must be thoroughly guided from the process of nominating members of the electoral management body – developments have shown that we have an independent and credible NEC in Liberia. Other sources of fraud long before the voting exercise can be the process of registering political parties and candidates; the process of civic voter education, and the process of voter registration, and so forth.

With voter registration being the issue at hand, what political parties and candidates should do is to train their supporters to observe the process and take recorded notes of registered voters, outline successes and challenges. Developments from this exercise will give each party a roadmap to strategizing an effective campaign and will also help to give early warnings to the NEC where challenges are discovered. The announcement of transportations facilities for voter education and distribution of food and water at registration sights are the beginning campaigning with material inducements or vote buying. The NEC must therefore call on the parties and the interested candidates to stay clear of the civic voter education campaign, and the voter registration. Each citizen is entitled to be at the center only on the day he is registering, except electoral workers and observers.

The Liberian civil society movement has a huge challenge. And bulk of the work of civic voter education should be channeled through the CSOs that are in the counties, and this should be done in effective collaboration with the NEC. With the civic voter education being overshadowed by politician using covert-campaign slogans, concerned activists will continue to wonder as to what the civil society is doing in all of these, and what role will the civil society play in the future, and will the parties leave the continue their proclaim ‘civic education campaign’ when political campaign is declared open?

-In the cause of democracy and social justice, the pen shall never run dry

CRITICAL ISSUES OF NATIONAL CONCERN XVI

AN EXPERIENCE WITH LOCAL DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGES

Ibrahim Al-bakri Nyei




For the past few months, I have been engaged with official matters going around the country working on a major national reform process: the Liberia Decentralization and Local Development program. This engagement and other scholarly vocations have kept me not necessarily silent, but in action for what I have been campaigning for - the empowerment of local people to advance themselves through democratic self-governance. For those who have been reading this series for the past two years, I invoke your forgiveness for keeping you waiting so long, but truly I have been working to ensure that our collective visions and thoughts are translated into actions. Our work around the country has been about engaging local leaders and citizens in each county on the National Policy on Decentralization and Local Governance. This has basically involved sensitization and soliciting inputs on how decentralization can be implemented in Liberia.

My experiences around the country were mixed. And I intend to share these experiences in this edition and the ones that will follow. First, may I say that it was a grand opportunity, and a significant education for me to travel to all of the counties in Liberia. I spent not less than 72 hours in each of the county capitals. My curiosity led me to discovering lot of things I have not learned in a classroom, neither had I seen on paper. Through conversations with local residents, I discovered a resilient characteristic to survive in the absence of a fully functional state authority. I travelled so many miles and passed so many towns and villages without seeing state institutions. I saw how resourceful Liberia is in terms of forest and habitable resources when I travelled through the southeast, and I discovered a huge potential for tourism and fishery investment in some counties, like Grand Cape Mount, Rivercess, and Grand Kru Counties. Gambia is today boasting of tourism as a major source of revenue. Kenya and Ghana are also making significant gains in the tourism industry. Liberia needs to dig into this area to have an additional source of state revenue. This will also empower local communities.

The people of Rivercess for example, have two major occupations: Fishery and Forestry. Empowering the people in that part of the country to advance in these areas will take them from subsistence to commercial activities. This will promote local employment and sustainable development. Our failure to efficiently tap into what nature has endowed us with is what continues to hold us back.

It is not strange that despite Monrovia being a very least developed city, all of the capitals in the counties are far least developed, and that effective modern institutions for human development are absent. My experience at a magisterial court hearing in the Cestos City Hall (Rivercess County) in April 2010 further convinced me that the state is not fully functional at the level of the counties, and the local people are left to survive their own way. Yet, they look up to that system. I witnessed major cases concerning mineral agents and illegal miners, rapes, and civil matters decided by undertrained magistrates and city solicitors.

In all of the counties, you see revenue collection offices, but you will hardly see effective service delivery institutions. This piece is just intended to practically state how challenging it is for an under-resourced central government to effectively deliver services to the local people. The need for decentralization in Liberia is long overdue, but will never be late in as much as the centralized state system continues to dismally fail those that are not in the urban and peri-urban areas of Monrovia. I mean not to say either that it has greater efficiency in the urban and peri-urban areas, but I admit that it has huge visibility in those areas.
In some of the counties, the imperial presidency in Monrovia is vested in the president’s agents - Superintendents and Commissioners - who do not see themselves as leaders of the people, whose power and authority is in the hands of the people. As agent of the President in Monrovia, they act on their own and wait for command from Capitol Hill to decide the fate of thousands of people in big communities and towns. Some of them see themselves as lords, and they are imposing arbitrary rules on the local people. In Bomi County for example, a County Attorney is using his title to intimidate people for a contested farmland in which he has vested interest.
Beyond Monrovia, there is no major socio-economic development, and the rise in rural-urban migration is heavily affecting agricultural activities in those areas; and with limited employment opportunities in Monrovia, the potential for crime in idled young people cannot be overemphasized. Monrovia is getting populated by the day even in the absence of socio-economic facilities. The solution to our development problems can be directly traced to our inadequacies in governance and public administration. In order to avert these and ensure an equitable distribution of our collective power and wealth, we must accelerate the process of transferring power to our local people. Through this, they will be empowered to determine who leads them, and what development priorities they want. Government decentralization is also a means to peace and democracy. The ‘power inherent in the people’ as provided for in Article One of our Constitution, cannot be adequately accentuated if our people do not fully participate in their own governance and development processes. Holding periodic elections does not translate into functional participatory democracy. Participatory democracy extends to the right of the people to continuously decide what they want, get regular accounts of the actions of their leaders, alter government at their will, and so forth. And this process is not an end, but its goal is to advance the lives of the people at all levels, and to create the enabling environment through which every individual has equal opportunities to excel. By this, greed is curtailed, and the possibilities for individual, ethnic or sectarian grievances become limited. Thus peace and development will prevail. Therefore, the most sustainable solution to our development challenges lies in a process of decentralization or a system shared-authority between national government and semi-autonomous local governments.

-In the Cause of Democracy and Social Justice, the Pen Shall Never Run Dry-