The quest to see and feel a better Liberia appears to be near as Information Minister-designate Jerolinmek Matthew Piah joins the wagon to ensure that the country is transformed.
At his confirmation hearing on Monday, February 26, 2024, Mr. Piah told the Senate Committee on Information and Broadcasting that Liberia must be rebranded to attract investments.
Making his opening remarks at the Capitol, these were Piah’s words “We must rebrand Liberia and strategically position our country to attract investments and promote tourism.”
The Information Minister-designate told the Senate Committee on Information and Broadcasting that if he is confirmed his team will begin immediate consultations with all government ministries and agencies to increase the level of coordination to improve the efficiency of information dissemination.
He promised to build a strong and united Government of Liberia Communication Team because the government has a triangular Communication Team comprising MICAT, Executive Mansion Public Affairs/Press Secretary and the Liberia Broadcasting System (LBS).
“During the period of my service in the past, we worked as a single team, serving the people and promoting the work of their government. We will work to build upon that and ensure that both the government and the people benefit from our work. Most importantly, we will work with the Director General of LBS, the Honorable Eugene Larmin Fahngon and his team to give equal access to all on LBS and generate interest from the people in programing at the state broadcaster,” Piah stated.
Piah, who once served as Deputy Information Minister for Public Affairs, observed that Liberia has a rich history, culture, and tradition.
Unfortunately, he noted “Not much has been done to tell our story to our children and to inform the global audience of such a wonderful country. Thus, regrettably, Liberia is still known in most international circles as a fragile and poor war-torn country. We must change the narrative. We are a rich nation with bountiful blessings.”
Speaking further, Piah said he intends to foster a government communication approach by engaging the leaderships of the other two branches of government to ensure that key deliverables from their works are also articulated by MICAT.
Piah: “While we recognize the excellent work being done by communication professionals at those branches, we must come to terms approach with the fact that, though a part of the Executive, MICAT speaks for the Government of Liberia collectively – allow us to speak for you too, Honorables.”
Additionally, he stressed that MICAT will serve as facilitator for the frank exchange of ideas and information and not as a propagandist for untruths, half-truths, and fake news.
“Dissemination of truthful and timely information to the People of Liberia on the operations of the Government will be the foundation of our stewardship. Coordination with government ministries, agencies and parastatals shall be the overriding operational objective of the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism,” Piah assured the Senators.
