1. The NIDC was not simply an informal committee
The strongest new evidence of the history and progress of Liberia efforts in fighting drugs and crimes is the actual then Liberian legislation.
BY: Cllr. Joseph K. Jallah, Senator of Lofa County and first direct of the then Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) under former President Charles Taylor between 1997-2000
The 1998 Act creating the Drug Enforcement Agency contains a historical preamble stating that, because illicit drug trafficking and related crimes threatened Liberia’s economy, stability and security, the then Council of State, acting as the Transitional Executive Authority, created and established the National Inter-Ministerial Drug Committee and its Secretariat on June 2, 1995 “to deal with all drug control matters on behalf of the Government of Liberia.”
That is extremely important.
It means that the NIDC should not be portrayed merely as an ad hoc donor-supported project. By 1995 it had a formal governmental policy mandate.
The same Act subsequently states:
the NIDC “is hereby dissolved”
and transfers the specialized narcotics functions of the Liberia National Police and National Security Agency to the new Drug Enforcement Agency.
Thus, the legal institutional sequence became much clearer:
The then Liberia Council of State, NIDC, Secretariat, legislative establishment of DEA, the dissolution of NIDC, the transfer of specialized narcotics personnel/functions to DEA.
THE NIDC AND THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY-BASED ANTI-DRUG MOVEMENT
Turn Around America, Herman Wrice and the NIDC’s U.S. Community Partnerships, 1996–1998
A. INTRODUCTION
The history of Liberia’s National Inter-Ministerial Drug Committee (NIDC) should not be presented solely as a history of governmental and multilateral cooperation.
During the NIDC period, Liberia was also exposed to a different dimension of the American drug-control experience: community-based anti-drug organizing.
This dimension is particularly significant because the NIDC was operating in a country where the State’s institutional capacity was severely constrained by civil conflict. It therefore had an interest not only in enforcement institutions, but also in:
- community mobilization;
- youth prevention;
- public education;
- local leadership;
- neighborhood-based anti-drug action;
- rehabilitation and prevention;
- partnerships between citizens and law enforcement.
The organization most closely associated with this aspect of the NIDC’s American engagement was Turn Around America (TAA), founded by Philadelphia community activist Dr. Herman Wrice.
Independent accounts identify Wrice as the founder of Turn Around America and describe its model as an effort to organize communities against drug dealing, crime and neighborhood deterioration.
B. HERMAN WRICE AND THE TURN AROUND AMERICA MODEL
Dr. Herman Wrice emerged from Philadelphia’s community-based anti-drug movement.
His approach was based upon the proposition that communities themselves could take an active role in resisting drug dealers and reclaiming neighborhoods.
The model included:
- community organization;
- neighborhood vigilance;
- public demonstrations against drug markets;
- youth engagement;
- neighborhood clean-up;
- cooperation with police;
- public education; and
- development of local leaders.
A retrospective account of Wrice’s work states that by 1996 he had trained anti-drug activists in approximately 350 communities, demonstrating the extraordinarily broad reach of his community-based model.
A separate account of Turn Around America’s development confirms that Wrice’s work was extended through training and technical assistance to community organizations in numerous locations.
The significance for Liberia is that the NIDC was exposed to an approach which complemented formal government enforcement:
Government enforcement attacks the trafficking structure; community organization attacks the social environment in which drug markets survive.
C. ANDY GARR AND THE TURN AROUND AMERICA CONNECTION
The NIDC’s institutional history identifies Andy Garr as another important figure associated with the Turn Around America partnership.
Contemporary and later accounts of the Wrice model also identify Andy Garr as participating in the expansion of Wrice’s community-based anti-drug training. One organizational history states that Wrice and Andy Garr traveled to Columbus to train local groups in the “Wrice Process” for combating drug trafficking.
For the Liberian historical record, this is relevant because the NIDC partnership was not simply an observation of an American program.
Rather, the account supplied for this study indicates that the NIDC teamed up with Turn Around America, bringing the Liberian drug-control experience into contact with American community-based anti-drug activists.
The precise dates, memoranda, itinerary and participants should be confirmed from NIDC and TAA records.
D. PHILADELPHIA — THE FIRST COMMUNITY CONNECTION
Philadelphia appears to have been an important point of contact because Herman Wrice’s movement originated there.
The NIDC’s engagement with Turn Around America should therefore be understood against Philadelphia’s experience with drug markets, neighborhood deterioration and community mobilization.
Wrice’s Philadelphia work had already demonstrated that citizens could organize collectively against drug activity while maintaining working relationships with law-enforcement agencies.
Independent documentation describes Turn Around America as a national network that expanded Wrice’s neighborhood anti-drug approach to communities in multiple states.
NIDC significance
For Liberia, the Philadelphia connection provided an alternative model:
Anti-drug policy was not exclusively a government responsibility.
The community itself could become an active partner.
E. THE CALIFORNIA CONNECTION
The NIDC’s U.S. activities also extended to California according to the institutional history supplied for this study.
Importantly, there is independent contemporary evidence that the Turn Around America model was active in California in 1997.
A report published by the San Francisco Chronicle/SFGate on April 21, 1997, describes community anti-drug activity in East Palo Alto involving a group affiliated with Turn Around America. It states that Herman Wrice had founded the organization and had conducted a three-day training session for the East Palo Alto chapter. The local program worked in coordination with the East Palo Alto Police Department and San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office.
This is valuable documentary evidence because it demonstrates that the Turn Around America model was not merely theoretical.
It was being implemented in American communities through:
community organization + training + local government + law enforcement.
That combination is highly relevant to the NIDC’s search for practical approaches to drug prevention.
F. TEXAS — AUSTIN AND GOVERNOR GEORGE W. BUSH
The NIDC’s reported U.S. itinerary also included Austin, Texas, in 1997, during the administration of Governor George W. Bush.
George W. Bush was serving as Governor of Texas in 1997. Texas legislative records confirm his tenure as governor during this period.
According to the institutional account provided for this history, the NIDC delegation participated in meetings and activities in Austin associated with the anti-drug/community partnership.
This should be presented carefully.
What is established
- George W. Bush was Governor of Texas in 1997.
- Turn Around America was active nationally during this period.
- The Wrice community-based anti-drug model was being promoted in numerous U.S. communities.
What requires archival confirmation
The precise:
- date of the NIDC visit;
- meetings with the Governor’s office;
- persons participating;
- nature of the Governor’s involvement;
- program hosted in Austin;
- relationship between the Governor’s office and Turn Around America during the particular NIDC visit.
The final Senate history should therefore describe this as:
“The NIDC’s 1997 Austin engagement during the administration of Governor George W. Bush.”
until the official itinerary and Texas records establish the precise governmental participants.
G. TOMMY MERRITT — CLARIFICATION
The institutional account supplied for this history refers to Representative Tommy Merritt in connection with the NIDC’s American activities.
The historical record confirms that Thomas “Tommy” Merritt was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1996 and began his term in January 1997, representing District 7.
Accordingly, the final version should not describe him as a Florida Representative.
The correct formulation is:
Texas State Representative Tommy Merritt
if this is the same individual referred to in the NIDC records.
The reference to a Florida visit hosted or facilitated by Representative Merritt should remain marked “archival confirmation required” until the itinerary, correspondence or host documentation is located.
That is preferable to forcing the existing memory into an inaccurate state or federal title.
H. FLORIDA
The NIDC’s reported travels also included Florida.
For now, the Florida component should be preserved in the historical chronology as:
“NIDC community and anti-drug outreach in Florida during its U.S. engagements.”
The exact:
- city;
- host;
- representative;
- organization;
- date;
- purpose;
- meetings;
- site visits; and
- relationship to Turn Around America
should be verified from the NIDC’s travel records and the relevant Florida congressional/community records.
This is an area where the NIDC delegation’s original itinerary, correspondence and photographs could be particularly valuable.
I. WHY THESE COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS MATTER
These American community engagements reveal something important about the NIDC’s philosophy.
The NIDC appears to have understood that drug control could not depend entirely on:
- arrests;
- prosecutions;
- seizures;
- border enforcement.
It also needed:
- community participation;
- prevention;
- public awareness;
- youth intervention;
- local leadership;
- neighborhood organization.
This was particularly important in Liberia because the State was emerging from devastating conflict and formal institutions were operating with severely limited resources.
Therefore, the NIDC’s engagement with Turn Around America should be viewed as part of an effort to develop a community-based drug-prevention component alongside government enforcement.
J. THE “WRICE PROCESS” AND ITS POSSIBLE LIBERIAN RELEVANCE
The Wrice model emphasized the idea that drug dealers should not be permitted to dominate community spaces uncontested.
Community members were encouraged to:
- organize;
- occupy public space;
- conduct anti-drug vigils;
- document suspicious activity;
- work with police;
- improve neighborhoods;
- mobilize parents and youth.
Independent documentation describes the use of neighborhood vigils, community clean-up and cooperation with law enforcement as elements of Wrice’s approach.
For Liberia, the potential lesson was profound:
Community ownership could supplement weak state capacity.
A community that refuses to become a market for drugs can make enforcement more effective.
K. THE NIDC INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIP MODEL, REVISED
With the Turn Around America evidence incorporated, the NIDC’s international relationships should now be presented as four complementary pillars.
1. UNITED NATIONS / UNDCP
Technical and institutional support
- training;
- equipment;
- material resources;
- professional development;
- regional drug-control programming.
The 1996 contemporary report specifically documented UNDCP assistance to the NIDC, including training for ten officers, computers, other supplies and a vehicle.
2. ECOWAS
Regional policy and coordination
- regional drug-control strategy;
- Praia Declaration;
- Regional Plan of Action;
- interministerial committee model;
- ECODRUG financing mechanism.
3. UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT
Diplomatic, professional and law-enforcement engagement
- U.S. Mission in Monrovia;
- Chief of Mission William Milam;
- State Department Liberia Desk;
- broader U.S. security-sector cooperation;
- police professionalization;
- possible NIDC Washington engagement.
4. AMERICAN CIVIL-SOCIETY / COMMUNITY MOVEMENT
Grassroots prevention and community mobilization
- Turn Around America;
- Herman Wrice;
- Andy Garr;
- Philadelphia;
- California;
- Texas;
- Florida;
- other American communities.
This fourth pillar deserves specific recognition because it demonstrates that NIDC’s international outreach was not confined to governments.
L. REVISED NIDC INTERNATIONAL ENGAGEMENT MODEL
GOVERNMENT OF LIBERIA
│
▼
NATIONAL INTER-MINISTERIAL
DRUG COMMITTEE (NIDC)
│
┌─────────────────────────┼─────────────────────────┐
│ │ │
▼ ▼ ▼
UNDCP ECOWAS UNITED STATES
│ │ │
Technical assistance Regional strategy Government / law
Training Praia Plan enforcement
Equipment ECODRUG diplomacy
Professionalization Regional network State Department
U.S. Mission
│ │ │
└─────────────────────────┼─────────────────────────┘
│
▼
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE
│
┌────────────┴────────────┐
│ │
▼ ▼
GOVERNMENTAL COMMUNITY-BASED
COOPERATION PARTNERSHIPS
│
▼
TURN AROUND AMERICA
│
┌────────────┼────────────┐
│ │ │
▼ ▼ ▼
PHILADELPHIA TEXAS CALIFORNIA
│
▼
FLORIDA
│
▼
HERMAN WRICE
ANDY GARR
│
▼
COMMUNITY ANTI-DRUG MODEL
│
▼
LIBERIAN EXPERIENCE
│
▼
DECEMBER 23, 1998
│
▼
DRUG ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
M. NIDC’S INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL AND ENGAGEMENT CHRONOLOGY
For the definitive historical record, I recommend the following formulation.
1996 — Washington, D.C.
NIDC delegation travels to Washington, reportedly engaging U.S. State Department officials and visiting Dulles International Airport.
Historical status: Institutional account; archival confirmation required.
1996 — U.S. State Department / Liberia Desk
NIDC’s contact with the U.S. Government included the Liberia Desk. Sandra Stevens is independently documented as holding the Liberia country portfolio in the State Department’s Office of West African Affairs during the relevant period.
Historical status: State Department portfolio documented; precise NIDC meeting requires confirmation.
1996 — Monrovia
U.S. Chief of Mission William B. Milam reportedly visited the NIDC office at the Ducor Palace Hotel and provided symbolic office support.
Historical status: Participant/institutional account; archival confirmation required.
1997 — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
NIDC engagement with Turn Around America and the community-based anti-drug model associated with Herman Wrice.
Historical status: Turn Around America/Wrice’s Philadelphia work is documented; precise NIDC visit/meeting requires confirmation.
1997 — Austin, Texas
NIDC engagement in Austin during the governorship of George W. Bush.
Historical status: Bush’s governorship documented; NIDC-specific meeting/event requires confirmation; meetings were had with the commander of Texas national guard, Gen. Daniel James, III. AND Dan Barlett, Office ASSITANT to then Gov. Bush.
1997 — California
NIDC engagement with or exposure to Turn Around America’s community-based anti-drug work.
Independent contemporary evidence confirms Turn Around America activity and Wrice-led training in California in April 1997.
Historical status: Turn Around America activity documented; precise NIDC participation requires confirmation.
1997 — Florida
NIDC engagement reported as part of the U.S. tour, the then Community leader met was Cloe Coney.
Historical status: Institutional account; location, host and program require confirmation.
N. THE HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF THE U.S. TOUR
The NIDC’s American engagements should not be reduced to a list of trips.
The tour represented an institutional learning mission.
Liberian drug-control officials were encountering three different American approaches:
Federal government
State Department / U.S. law enforcement
International cooperation and professional systems.
State government
Texas / state-level government
State-level policy and institutional responses.
Civil society
Turn Around America
Community mobilization and grassroots prevention.
The importance of this combination is that it provided Liberia with exposure to a whole-of-society approach.
O. RELATIONSHIP TO THE 1998 TRANSITION
The American community-based experience should be placed immediately before the institutional transition to the specialized Drug Enforcement Agency.
The sequence is therefore:
1995
NIDC formally created by the Council of State.
↓
1996
NIDC strengthened through UNDCP assistance and international engagement.
↓
1996–1997
NIDC develops relationships with ECOWAS, UNDCP, U.S. government institutions and American community anti-drug organizations.
↓
1997
Regional drug-control architecture strengthens through ECOWAS and UNDCP.
↓
1998
Liberia determines that interministerial coordination alone is insufficient.
↓
December 23, 1998
Drug Enforcement Agency established.
↓
NIDC dissolved.
↓
Narcotics functions/personnel transferred from LNP and NSA to DEA.
This produces a very important historical interpretation:
The NIDC was the institutional bridge between Liberia’s fragmented drug-control response and the later specialized enforcement agency.
P. REVISED HISTORICAL FINDING
The definitive historical narrative could now state:
“During the mid-1990s, Liberia’s National Inter-Ministerial Drug Committee developed within a remarkably broad international network. The Committee was created by the Council of State on June 2, 1995 and was mandated to address drug-control matters on behalf of the Government of Liberia. Its capacity was supported by the United Nations Drug Control Program, while ECOWAS was developing a regional drug-control strategy centered upon national inter ministerial committees. At the same time, the NIDC established contacts with the United States Government and, according to institutional accounts, undertook exchanges in Washington, including exposure to U.S. airport interdiction systems.”
“The NIDC’s international outreach also extended beyond governments and multilateral institutions. It engaged with Turn Around America, the community-based anti-drug organization founded by Philadelphia activist Dr. Herman Wrice and associated with Andy Garr. The Turn Around America model promoted community mobilization, youth engagement, neighborhood vigilance, public education and cooperation with law enforcement. The NIDC’s reported exposure to this model in Philadelphia and other American locations—including Texas, California and Florida—introduced a community-based dimension to Liberia’s developing drug-control strategy.”
“These relationships demonstrate that Liberia’s pre-LDEA drug-control architecture was not isolated. It was simultaneously connected to the United Nations, ECOWAS, the United States Government and American civil society. The subsequent establishment of the Drug Enforcement Agency on December 23, 1998, and the statutory dissolution of the NIDC, therefore represented not the beginning of Liberia’s drug-control policy but the institutional transformation of a system that had already developed significant domestic, regional and international relationships.”
Q. EVIDENTIARY NOTE
For the final Senate publication, I recommend we classify these American travel events as follows:
Event Present evidentiary status Herman Wrice founded Turn Around America Documented Turn Around America operated nationally Documented Wrice trained community anti-drug groups Documented Turn Around America activity in California in 1997 Contemporaneously documented Andy Garr’s association with Wrice/TAA Documented in organizational history NIDC–Turn Around America partnership Institutional account; verify NIDC Philadelphia visit Institutional account; verify NIDC Austin/Texas engagement Institutional account; verify George W. Bush was Texas Governor in 1997 Documented NIDC Florida engagement Institutional account; verify Tommy Merritt was Texas State Representative Documented Tommy Merritt’s specific role in NIDC Florida visit Requires archival confirmation NIDC Washington/Dulles visit Institutional account; verify Milam’s Ducor Palace visit/donation Institutional account; verify
This approach preserves the history you have supplied while protecting the final Senate document against the problem of presenting an important recollection as though it had already been independently established by a government archive.
R. CONCLUSION
The NIDC years should ultimately be remembered as an international learning and institution-building period for Liberia’s drug-control system.
The NIDC did not operate alone.
It reached outward to:
ECOWAS for regional coordination;
UNDCP for technical assistance;
the United States Government for diplomatic, professional and law-enforcement engagement;
and
American community organizations such as Turn Around America for grassroots anti-drug strategies.
That makes the NIDC years particularly important to Liberia’s institutional history.
The transition to the LDEA in 1998 was therefore not a move from nothing to an agency.
