THERE IS A line between defending public service and excusing corruption. Senator Crayton Duncan of Sinoe County crossed that line — and then kept walking.
IN A RECENT statement before the Liberian Senate, Senator Duncan chose to lash out at Liberians who criticize their elected officials for amassing wealth after ascending to public office.
IN A SPEECH laced with frustration and defiance, he claimed that Liberians are too focused on dragging down their own leaders while ignoring foreign investors who “get rich” off the country’s natural resources.
BUT WHAT SENATOR Duncan conveniently failed to mention is that he is no stranger to the very kind of exploitation he condemned. His speech, filled with populist rhetoric and an air of righteous indignation, rings hollow when examined against his own record — a record marred by legal and ethical breaches dating back to his time as a Representative.
LET US BE clear Senator Duncan is not the voice of oppressed Liberians crying out against foreign exploitation. He is the embodiment of the very problem he claims to despise — an elected official who used his position to pursue private profit under the guise of public service.
IN 2021, THEN-Representative Duncan signed a 25-year lease agreement between the Bannah community in Sinoe County and a company he represented, Sino Forest Corporation. The agreement, which granted the company access to 250 acres of forestland, was signed not in his capacity as a public official, but as Executive Director of the company.
THE IMPLICATIONS are as alarming as they are illegal.
LIBERIA’S COMMUNITY Rights Law (CRL) of 2009 and the National Forestry Reform Law of 2006 explicitly prohibit elected officials from owning or operating logging companies or interfering in community forest matters. The Code of Conduct for Public Officials similarly bars conflicts of interest that pit private business dealings against public responsibilities.
YET, DESPITE THESE legal safeguards, Senator Duncan — then Representative —signed a lease that directly benefitted a company under his control. This is not public service. This is self-service. This is a betrayal of the very communities he claims to represent.
THE PEOPLE OF Bannah did not take Duncan’s actions lightly. In 2022, they staged a protest in Greenville, demanding answers. According to Youth President Ranford Beah, the community believed Duncan was leasing the land to build a plywood factory. Instead, they discovered the land had been handed over to Chinese investors through Sino Forest Corporation. Beah called the act “disappointing and frustrating,” and rightly so.
SENATOR DUNCAN’S SILENCE in the face of their demands spoke volumes. Not only did he mislead his constituents, but he also avoided accountability when confronted with the consequences of his actions. How can such a man now lecture Liberians on fairness and patriotism?
THE SENATOR WENT on to criticize foreign companies for hiring Liberians on short-term contracts without benefits. He lamented the high unemployment rate in areas like Sinoe County despite the presence of logging companies, some of which, he said, employ only eight Liberians. “What is the purpose of us having these people in Liberia when they cannot employ our people?” he asked.
BUT THE BETTER question is this: what is the purpose of having lawmakers like Senator Duncan, who engage in the same extractive behavior they accuse others of?
IT IS THE height of hypocrisy to denounce exploitation while actively profiting from it. Duncan’s actions are not only inconsistent with his words; they are an insult to the intelligence and suffering of the Liberian people.
THIS IS NOT an isolated lapse in judgment. It reflects a broader pattern of abuse that is all too common among Liberia’s political elite — public servants who see elected office not as a sacred trust, but as a stepping stone to personal enrichment. Duncan’s case is particularly egregious because he has tried to wrap his misconduct in the cloak of nationalistic outrage.
HE IS NOT alone in this behavior, but his brazenness stands out. To attack the public for holding leaders accountable, while actively violating the very laws meant to protect public resources, is to spit in the face of democratic responsibility.
LIBERIA DESERVES LEADERS who serve — not loot. Leaders who invest in transparency and legal compliance — not hidden logging deals and murky lease agreements.
THE LAW MUST not only exist on paper. It must be enforced. Senator Duncan’s conduct demands investigation, and if found in violation of the law — as the evidence strongly suggests — he must be held accountable, no matter his current title.
IT IS TIME TO reject the politics of victimhood practiced by corrupt officials. Senator Duncan wants sympathy for himself and scorn for foreign investors. But both forms of exploitation are wrong. And when they happen at the hands of an elected lawmaker, they are worse — not because the money is bigger, but because the betrayal is deeper.
SENATOR DUNCAN’S comments were not merely tone-deaf — they were dangerous. They reflect a mindset that sees accountability as persecution and wealth as entitlement. Liberia cannot afford such thinking. The country is at a crossroads, and the path forward must be paved with integrity, not impunity.
LET SENATOR DUNCAN’S words serve as a warning—and his actions as a case study in why the fight for transparency and good governance must not only continue but intensify.
THE PEOPLE OF Liberia are watching. And they deserve better.
