MONROVIA – The Chargé d’Affaires at the United States Embassy in Monrovia Catherine Rodriguez says the United States is willing to assist the incoming Boakai-Koung administration in the fight against corruption, but it said it is up to the new government to take the lead.
By Gerald C. Koinyeneh – [email protected]
Ms. Rodriguez, in her press roundtable said over the years, there have been few successes in the fight against corruption, but that is not enough. What is needed, she said, is consistent political will within the executive and legislative branches to ensure anti-graft institutions have the support and resources they need to carry out the work they were created to do.
She said as one of your oldest and strongest partners in the international community, as an employer of hundreds of Liberians, and as one of the country’s largest international donors, the United States is committed to the best of Liberia, but its people should take the lead.
“I will say the incoming administration needs to do what is best for the Liberian people, based on what I have seen on social media, these sanctions were reviewed favorably which means that the people of Liberia want the new government to fight corruption. It is really incumbent on the Boakai administration to fight corruption. We are here to help, but the government has to want it, civil society has to want it, the media needs to want it, and most importantly the Liberian people need to want it,” Chargé d’Affaires Rodriguez said.
She made the statement on the back of fresh sanctions against top Liberian government officials by the United States Department of Treasury and Department of State.
Corruption within both the public and private sectors of Liberian society has long been endemic. Scandals and allegations include the manipulation of contract bidding, concession, looting of state coffers, and the misappropriation of development aid by government officials.
Transparency International’s 2022 Corruption Perception Index ranked Liberia among the poor performing countries in the fight against corruption. Out of 180 countries captured, Liberia ranked 142, with a dismal score of 26 out of 100, three steps below its 2021 ranking of 29.
The U.S. diplomat said her government was uplifted to hear that dealing with the pernicious issue of corruption is one of the incoming government’s priorities. Liberia, she added, should make it easier for regular citizens and honest government workers to report fraud and corruption.
She said: “The good news is that Liberia DOES have institutions capable of investigating and prosecuting corruption and holding wrongdoers accountable. It DOES have institutions and procedures for ensuring transparent and competitive procurement of goods and services to ensure the best value for YOU, the citizens of Liberia. We have even witnessed a few successes as demonstrated with the Anti-Corruption Champion award bestowed upon Marc Kollie this year by Secretary Blinken for his fight against corruption.”
However, she pointed out that a few successes here and there is not sufficient. What is needed is consistent political will within the executive branch and legislature to ensure these institutions have the support and resources they need to carry out the work they were created to do. “There needs to be greater transparency in government, and YOU should know where YOUR tax money is going,” she said.
As members of the fourth estate, she noted that the Liberian media also plays an essential role in transparency, both by reporting important and accurate information, but also by reporting on how government funding is being spent and how it affects Liberians’ lives.
She emphasized that the problem [corruption] can seem intractable, adding that corruption has been around for thousands of years and exists in every society, including the United States. However, she said it’s not the fact that corruption exists that’s important, but rather what you do about it.
She called for action to be taken anytime corruption is uncovered; adding action should taken. For minor incidents employees can be fired or disciplined, for major incidents they should face prosecution. But when corruption goes unchecked at higher levels, “it signals to everyone else that it’s ok to charge YOU extra for services you are already paying for through your taxes. Unchecked corruption, along with a lack of accountability becomes a corrosive force on society stifling the growth and advancement of YOUR family.”
‘Banned for life’
Last week on Friday, December 8, and Monday, December 11, the U.S. Government sanctioned several Liberian officials including Monrovia City Mayor Jefferson Koijee, Finance Minister and Development Planning Minister Samuel Tweah, Senate Pro-Tempore Albert Chie, and Senator Emmanuel Nuquay, along with their spouses and minor children using the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act and authorities under section 7031(c) for visa restrictions.
Mayor of Monrovia, Jefferson Koijee, was designated by the U.S. Department of the Treasury pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13818. The order targets individuals engaged in serious human rights abuses and corruption. Koijee, in addition to human rights abuses, has been accused of corrupt acts such as bribery and misappropriation of state assets. He is alleged to have pressured anti-corruption investigators to cease all corruption investigations.
For Tweah, Chie, and Nuquay, they were accused of abusing their public positions by soliciting, accepting, and offering bribes to manipulate legislative processes and public funding, including activities in the mining sector. The immediate family members of the designated individuals, including spouses Delecia Berry Tweah, Abigail Chie, and Ruthtoria Brown Nuquay, as well as Tweah and Nuquay’s minor children, are also included in the sanctions.
In her media press roundtable, Chargé d’Affaires Rodriguez said said calling out corruption and human rights abuse is a Biden administration foreign policy priority that is advanced globally, and in these most recent cases, the designations were the result of the official’s individual actions, not those of a political party or the country itself.
She said all sanctioned officials and their families will be banned for life from entering the United States.
“For those individuals who have been sanctioned by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control under Global Magnitsky, they and their families will no longer be able to utilize the U.S. banking system and they and their families will have a lifetime ban on visiting the United States,” she said.
“For those sanctioned by the U.S. Department of State under Section 7031(c), they and their families will have a lifelong ban from entering the United States. 7031(c) provides that, in cases where the Secretary of State has credible information that foreign officials have been involved in significant corruption or a gross violation of human rights, those individuals and their immediate family members are ineligible for entry into the United States.”