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10 May 04 Corruption in Liberia is second to none in how public officials earn their income; and the way to go about it is numerous. Everything from extortion, to bribery, to intimidation, and inflating the costs of anything that has to do with government, continues to be the methods of choice for so-called patriotic public officials. Put very simply, the propensity to steal from their people who tend to be in greater need than we would like to imagine, has become a way of life for Liberian public officials. But the question now, as it has always been, is how do we call the thieves to roost and punish their behaviour? Surprisingly as it may sound, one way to curb corruption in Liberia is by way of developing the private sector to its full potential. That is, Liberians recognizing the importance of business ownership which in turn will empower us to challenge the status quo. The Danger of Government being the Single Biggest Employer Among the primary functions of government, job creation is not one; instead government responsibility is to regulate and protect. But in the case of Liberia, where entrepreneurship is a negative for the average Liberian, hiding our insecurities under the umbrella of government tends to be our only way out. Let’s take a moment here with history being the guide for when the opportunity existed to create a working class in Liberia; also let us take the 1970s as a marker for our discussion. What happened, when we had a bunch of so-called young progressives making lots of noise all for the wrong reasons? They supposedly knew all the answers to our problems; they professed to know how government should go about the people’s business; they were professors et al, armed with vast knowledge of textbook jargons, but nothing that could help a young college business graduate become an entrepreneur, for instance. In short, they were willing to prove their capabilities only if they were given an opportunity to be the dispensers of public funds. In the end, some of them got their wish, only to join the gang of thieves that had preceded them in making long hands with public funds. In many quarters then as it is today in the Bryant administration, eradicating corruption has only been a show, because the real plan was and continues to be becoming the CEO of Corruption, and ripping off Liberians, especially those who truly work to maintain the engine of the economy—farmers, loggers, miners, fishermen, and so on. Aside from wanting to be funny, how in hell can any individual, for example, without any other source of income but that from government, curb corruption? How can you become an advocate for eradicating corruption when your very survival depends on maintaining a government job? When have we ever come to know that Liberian government officials were anything but inept? Take a close look at the makeup of those currently charged with bringing sanity to traumatized Liberians after Taylor and fellow thugs did us in. Does any conscientious Liberia believe that those running the interim government are doing so selflessly? This includes Bryant, of course. You’d better not bank on that, considering that two years are quite sufficient to walk away far richer than anyone of them ever dreamed of becoming. Against this backdrop, let me warn that anyone excited about the Bryant government laying the groundwork for creating an anti-corruption bureau, had better debunk that notion. In fact, it is quite scary to have the executive branch oversee such a bureau as oppose to that bureau reporting to the national assembly. How Can Business Ownership help Curb Corruption? On the surface, I, too, might laugh at the notion of business ownership being an antidote to curbing corruption by public officials in Liberia. But wait a minute here; haven’t we been speaking of not chopping off the hand that feeds you? Of course, that remains true, until John Doe, a business owner who is not beholding to any minister or director as his boss, hits the scene. John Doe is an entrepreneur, who never has worked for the Liberian government, or he may have; anyhow, he has spent sleepless night working on launching a business that recruits, hires and trains many young Liberians. Mr. Doe has secured all that he needs to launch the business, including a bank loan, which he’s obligated to repay. A businessman with integrity, Mr. Doe is not prepared to engage in the petty nonsense of bribing his way—spending borrowed money to secure the proper government documents for conducting business in Liberia. Notwithstanding, he may be generous in rewarding little “cold water” to those exercising expediency in the performance of their duties. He launches the business, does well, pays his employees on time and relatively well, pays his taxes and continues to expand his business. He is his own boss, not beholding to any corrupt minister, director, legislator or even the president. Having seen the success of Mr. Doe other skeptical Liberians begin to develop confidence in the system. So much so that they, too, begin their own line of business with integrity and all else that helped Mr. Doe succeed. Soon, Mr. Doe along with other local business owners get together to form a national organization that brings them together to discuss business, politics and policy. As a strong voice, they begin to influence politics and policy, not to mention challenging the body polity by exposing societal ills, and defending their defined positions. Now who is to say that members of this organization and other independent business owners are not entitled to challenging the status quo? After all, unlike government officials, including the president, a social worker who finds it rewarding to spend taxpayers money without second thought, businessmen constantly have to devise new methods to meet payroll, grow and expand the business and meet bank obligations. So being fired by an unscrupulous boss, who is a bigger thief than those he pretends to expose, is not a worry of Mr. Doe, an independent voice. Mr. Doe, who has a deeper pocket than a big mouth politicians, can suddenly influence legislations, question the behaviour of any public official without the fear of that official ordering him arrested as they always do, and demand an investigation into the accumulated wealth of a given officials whose background before becoming a public official never surpassed the status of a pauper. All of these are not likely to happen with results if you are an employee of government. Besides, nobody listens to a voice of reasoning if all you got is talk. Least I forget to remind you, whether we are speaking of Liberia, or the United States, economics always controls the politics; that is why Middle-eastern merchants continue to control Liberian economic destiny, no matter how loud “big mouth” politicians scream. For you can possess all of the education the world has to offer, you may even have the biggest mouth on the block and know what to say, but it is the man with the deepest pocket who can either promote your cause or drown you. As though the idea put forward sounds foreign, let’s not look too far; let’s take George Haddad, whose deep pockets have always worked for him, spanning over several administrations. So much so that whereas ministers may have to make appointment to see the president, the appointment book always has an opening for Haddad; and Gyude Bryant is no exception. In short, he who has money crows the loudest.
So if Liberians
could begin to see the good that comes out of business ownership and the
independent voice derived because of it, we won’t have to be whining
about Lebanese merchants and the role they play in national politics.
But whereas we believe that that degree in business education guarantees
us a position as minister, director, or managing director in government,
the following realities will continue to haunt us. That the George
Haddads of our time will continue to influence how, when and what we
eat, corruption continuing to balloon because we all see government as
the only means of employment, and government officials, without
realizing that taxpayers pay their salaries, will continue appearing
bigger than those who pay to make government functional. |
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