Political seasons in Liberia are some of the most exciting times where candidates normalize false or make impressive promises.
With their speeches not rooted in evidence. But at the end, they always succeed in getting into power through deceptive talks, while citizens get discouraged at the end of the day, causing them to compliment the then leadership they were manipulated to change.
Campaigning has now become sweet talking the citizens to persuade them to vote for individuals, many of whom do not mean well for the country. Unfortunately, rhetoric has come to trump reality in the voting season where level of deception we witness in our society is mind numbing. We have seen broken promises over and over and again.
As I listened to talk shows, political rallies, jamboree, festivals and slogans as politicians may name them, I hear and see deceits. Most often, the opposition blocks are the one who try to bury incumbents’ gains without data to substantiate their claims.
Common phrases such as “the government or lawmakers failed us,” “elected officials did not do anything for the past 6 or 9 years,” “most of the citizens are unemployed,” “no good roads in the country”.
“Many people are living in poverty.” Etc. their basis for making those claims are rooted in abstract or snapshot analysis, coupled with self-centeredness and hatred for neighbor regardless of the incumbents’ potential as well as what he has done and will do when elected again.
Even though it is true that there are citizens who truly love candidates despite clear signs that they are not capable of executing future assign responsibilities when elected, it is the beginning of betraying the country because of personal love for an individual not the country.
Across Africa, Libya is relatively regretting the death of Col. Gadhafi, Gambia who just out-casted President Yaya is beginning to accuse the most preferred individual, Adama Barrow of ruling the country alone. These plus many more are happening in around the African continent.
Deceptions used by would be leaders don’t only influence voters’ minds for accumulating personal wealth, but rather, it has made many regions or districts to be behind in terms of tangible developments-it has also changed the true meaning and independent capacity of voters to make sound decisions based on their own judgement or what they have observed over the years they were governed.
Because of political rhetoric that had infested people of voting age minds, this election season opinion poll has shown that 40% of voters are undecided (FrontPage Africa). Those are people who to my understanding, are in a state of dilemmas- they don’t know which way to go due to too many lies from people who want to occupy public offices.
In addition, non-comparative issues like economy, health and social issues are routinely compared with other countries like Ghana and others to Liberia. Some said, Ghana budget is higher than Liberia.
Candidates who are making such claims have relatively done no research to understand Ghana’s strength of economy.
Questions to political leaders who are being unrealistic in addressing issues of importance in their quest for power are: How many internationally recognized universities does Liberia have? Is Liberia capable of awarding Ph.D. like Ghana?
How many flights land at Kotoka international airport as compared with the one and only Robert International Airport?
How many foreign companies CEOs are Liberians as compared with Ghana who has a policy that limits such advantage? How many foreign students do we have attending our universities that are paying higher fees than Liberians as seen in neighbouring countries?
We need our politicians to provide evidence-based solutions to problems that face their constituents. Let them tell us how they will address health care, education, transportation congestion, poor infrastructure, increasing unemployment and underdevelopment problems etc.
Perversely, we see righteous anger coming from people who had the power to make Liberia a better place against incumbents as if they were living on another planet.
This is dishonesty at the highest level.
For the health sector, how many of our candidates contesting for the higher seat in this country have ever been admitted at our referral hospitals or donated essential materials prior to their involvement in politics?
The only thing they did was to seek medical treatments outside of the country in areas that they have no idea how they got to where they are.
When do they realize that “mobile clinic” is an effective way of reaching out to people who are in need of health services? I doubt if those they recruited to render services to our citizens are trained and certified health workers who are licensed appropriately.
Instead of stating exactly how they are going to handle the preventable deaths that are occurring at our referral hospital because fees are not paid prior to patients’ admission, they are doing “mobile clinic” that is not sustainable/ is political strategy to gain votes-it will vanish as soon as election is over.
Regrettably, why should the health sector of this country allow our citizens lives to be risked in such a manner? There is an existing chain of command at the central, county and district levels.
Are those drugs being tested for potency before administration to Liberians? It is so pathetic that issues of higher importance in this country are given “level playing fields” when it involves politics. Issues facing the health sector are like an ice bag-on top of it looks small but beneath is a very solid ice that can destroy whole ship.
Moreover, my worst discouragement was during the first Presidential debate held at the Paynesville city hall. Not one of those candidates could at a minimum level address issues facing the health sector ranging from one of the higher big belly death (1,072) reported in this country through shortages of drugs and facilities around the country, disproportional ratio of doctor to patients (1:76,000), low salary structure for health workers who are cardinal to lives of the very would be President and their followers, counties hospitals have no functional ambulances to transport patients, to how will they retain health workers who turnover rates had increased drastically?
Even security threats pose by the “at risk youth” was not even addressed substantially. If you in-cooperate them in the government as claimed by some politicians or not, there is a fundamental way to mutually take them off the streets. This was missing by candidates who claimed that.
This fundamental way is rooted in research, nothing more but research. Without research that will provide data on each individual’s rehabilitation needs, you are not going to score any point.
Until politicians whom many believe in can speak with facts, become diversified in dealing with numerous issues affecting every sector of government, what they think are their priorities will be of no preference to the citizens. And At the end, as a country, we will continue to acknowledge the past leadership that was once termed failed.
Certainly, this had started popping up by other opposition parties since President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, whose administration was once a failure is being appreciated for gains made because she is not contesting. To the electorates, your vote is the only power you have now. After elections, you have no more power to make the change you wanted.
I end with a quotation from Albert Einstein that states: “the problems we have created in the world today will not be solved by the level of thinking that created them.”
Eddie Miaway Farngalo, BSN, RN MPH,
0886484351/077590035, [email protected]