Despite President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s promises of “hope, no business as usual, Rescue Government,” amongst other campaign and inaugural promises, renowned human rights lawyer and 2023 presidential candidate, Cllr. Tiawan Saye Gongloe, says the only change Liberians are experiencing is the improvement of the personal lives and pockets of high-ranking government officials and heads of public corporations.
Speaking Sunday, October 6, 2024 in Monrovia on the theme; “What kind of country is this”, Cllr. Gongloe said that the Boakai-Koung administration is not rescuing the ordinary Liberian people as promised. Gongloe said government officials’ homes are growing bigger, their cars more luxurious, while the rest of the citizens are asked to manage their expectations.
“What kind of country is this, where wage disparities are so glaring that it would take a teacher, law enforcement officer, or nurse at least five years to earn what some government officials make in a single month? These are the very public servants who hold our country together. They educate our children, they enforce our laws, and they care for our sick. Yet they are paid peanuts while officials at the top live-in luxury. What kind of country is this,” Cllr. Gongloe said.
He said government officials tolerate poverty, hopelessness, and mass anger among their own people, and young men and women while in despair fall victims to human trafficking, risking their lives for a chance at dignity. The Liberian People’s Party Political Leader said some citizens die in the Sahara Desert, chasing a glimmer of hope.
“My fellow citizens, this is not a rhetorical question. This is a call to action. We must confront these harsh realities. We must hold our leaders accountable. Government is a place to serve, not to steal. We must reject the notion that elections are investments, where candidates spend money during campaigns only to recoup their “investment” once in office,” Gongloe said.
Cllr Gongloe said this type of governance is not leadership but a legalized theft, urging citizens to reject political investors during future elections.
“We must elect leaders who will truly serve the people—leaders who understand that holding public office is a sacred trust, not an opportunity for personal enrichment. A better Liberia is possible. But it will not come by waiting. It will not come by wishing. It will come by action,” he said, in a rather emphatic voice.
He said a better Liberia will come when the mindset is changed towards government as a business venture, that corruption is unacceptable, and when Liberians stop making excuses for dishonesty and start holding each other accountable.
“Together we must sweep corruption from the government of Liberia. Only then can we stop asking this painful and heartbreaking question: What kind of country is this? No! No!! We cannot continue to ask this question from one government to another because a better Liberia is possible when we sweep corruption from the Government of Liberia,” he said.
