Public Wealth, Public Trust: A Call for Humility and Responsible Leadership in Liberia

Part I

Liberia belongs to every Liberian, not just a few politicians, the politically well-connected, or those who looted or continue to loot the resources of the Liberian people- who think they can do so with impunity.

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By: Austin S Fallah – A True Son of the Planet Earth Soil: [email protected]

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President Joseph Nyuma Boakai:
“They were not appointed to be served but to serve.”
Context: President Boakai emphasized that public officials must serve citizens, deliver results, and manage public resources with integrity.
Connection to theme: Public office is a responsibility entrusted to leaders, not a privilege for personal advancement.
Source: Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism — President Boakai’s remarks⁠.

Former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf: “Africa is not poor, but poorly managed.”
Context: Sirleaf made this statement during the Sixth Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture in Johannesburg on July 12, 2008.
Connection to theme: National wealth must be managed responsibly if it is to improve citizens’ lives. Source: Nelson Mandela Foundation — The audience warmly receives the Liberian president’s address⁠.

Former President George Manneh Weah: “I believe that we will succeed in our fight against corruption and will bring to justice relevant individuals and corporations who continue to defraud Liberia.”
Context: Weah made this statement in his January 27, 2020, annual address to the Legislature.
Connection to theme: Stewardship of national wealth requires accountability and consequences for the misuse of public resources. Source: Executive Mansion archive — “There Will Be No Sacred Cows In Corruption Fight.”⁠

Dr. Togba-Nah Tipoteh: “Liberia belongs to all Liberians, and all Liberians have the right to all of the resources in Liberia.”
Context: This wording appears in Dr.Tipoteh’s 2017 annual message as published by FrontPageAfrica.
Connection to theme: Liberia’s national resources should benefit the population broadly rather than being captured by a privileged few.

Dr. Henry Boima Fahnbulleh: “What I have to advise President Boakai and his administration is to love the people, serve the people, respect the people, and be committed to their welfare.”
Context: Dr.Fahnbulleh offered this advice in a March 2024 interview. Connection to theme: Humility in leadership means respecting citizens and putting their welfare ahead of personal ambition.

Hon. Augustine K. Ngafuan — Minister of Finance and Development Planning: “We’re the ones taking care of the country’s bananas, so we can not be monkeys.”
Context: Hon. Ngafuan used this metaphor to urge ministry employees to uphold integrity and act as responsible stewards of public resources. Connection: Those entrusted with national finances must set the standard for honesty and professional conduct. Source: Reports 231 — Integrity Is Non-Negotiable⁠.

Hon. Samuel D. Tweah Jr. — Former Minister of Finance and Development Planning: “Our goal is to increase growth that is sustainable and inclusive.”
Context: Hon. Tweah made this statement in a March 2021 World Bank interview about Liberia’s economic recovery and reform priorities. Connection: National wealth should generate durable economic opportunities for the wider population, not just increase government revenue—source: World Bank — Interview with Hon. Samuel Tweah⁠.

Hon.Boima S. Kamara — Former Minister of Finance and Development Planning: On fighting corruption and protecting national resources · March 2017: “We must fight corruption and kill it.” Hon.Kamara also stated: “God has endowed this country with so much, and if we put in place the right measures, every Liberian will live a peaceful and prosperous livelihood.”
Source: Liberia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs daily media summary, March 9, 2017, reporting on Hon.Kamara’s remarks at Bomi County Community College.

Hon. Amara M. Konneh (Now Senator)— Former Minister of Finance and Development Planning: “We need to be able to ask tough questions and demand transparent answers.” Source: The News Newspaper Liberia, reporting on Hon.Konneh’s public comments about internal accountability in government.
Question inspired by the statement: If public money belongs to the people, why should any public official or government institution be exempt from answering questions about how that money is collected, allocated, and spent? Connection to the theme: Public trust requires openness, independent oversight, and a willingness to explain decisions affecting the national treasury.

Hon. Edward Wesee: Stop reducing our people again and again to abject poverty. You may not be held to answer today, but remember, one day, justice will call your name, and you must answer to the Liberian people for your deeds.”

A nation’s greatest wealth is not only found in its gold, timber, rubber, diamonds, land, or government revenues.

Its greatest wealth is found in its people: the market woman who rises before daylight to sell goods, the farmer who feeds communities, the teacher who shapes children’s futures, the nurse who serves patients with limited supplies, the student who dreams of becoming a doctor or engineer, and the civil servant who works honestly despite hardship.

Liberia’s progress depends on whether these people are valued, protected, and given a fair opportunity to succeed.

When public officials or influential individuals misuse government funds and national resources for personal comfort, they do not merely violate laws or financial rules.

They betray the hopes of ordinary Liberians.

Too often, people who gain wealth through public office or political connections come to believe money makes them better than the citizens they are supposed to serve.

They may travel in expensive vehicles, build large houses, display luxury items, and surround themselves with people who praise them. In that moment, they may forget where their power came from.

They may forget that the people made their authority possible.

They may forget that government resources are not personal property. They are the Liberian people’s collective inheritance.

This is why every leader, public servant, and citizen who has access to public resources must remember a simple but powerful truth: do not let looted money make you feel more important than the people you robbed.

Wealth obtained through corruption may create the appearance of success, but it cannot create honor.

It may purchase a large home, but it cannot purchase respect.

It may attract temporary friends, but it cannot guarantee loyalty.

It may produce influence for a season, but it cannot erase the pain stolen opportunities cause.

Liberians have seen many people who misused public money and national resources later return to the same citizens they once ignored or harmed to seek help.

History repeatedly teaches that power is temporary. Political positions change. Governments change.

Economic conditions change. Health can change. Relationships can change.

A person who seems untouchable today may become dependent on others tomorrow.

For this reason, humility is not weakness; it is wisdom.

A humble leader understands that public service is a privilege, not a private business.

A humble official recognizes that the poor, the unemployed, and the struggling are not beneath them.

They are fellow Liberians whose dignity deserves protection.

Corruption is not limited to money that disappears from government accounts. Corruption takes food from a family’s table.

It keeps medicine out of clinics. It leaves schools without books, chairs, trained teachers, and safe buildings.

It delays road construction that farmers need to bring produce to market.

It weakens the electricity and water systems that businesses and households depend on.

It reduces opportunities for young people seeking employment.

In other words, when a public official steals one dollar meant for public development, that dollar isn’t simply lost.

Its absence may be felt in a child’s education, a mother’s health, a village’s road, or a young graduate’s future.

Imagine a community where the local health center lacks basic drugs, gloves, and equipment.

A pregnant woman arrives in distress, but the facility is unable to provide adequate care.

Meanwhile, funds allocated for medical supplies have been diverted for private use.

This is not merely a financial mistake.

It is a moral failure with human consequences.

Or consider a school where students sit on the floor because money intended for desks and books has been misappropriated.

How can a country prepare the next generation for national development when the very resources meant to educate them are treated as private income?

No serious nation can develop when its public resources are continuously drained by selfishness.

Liberia has endured conflict, instability, hardship, disease outbreaks, and economic uncertainty.

These experiences should have taught all citizens, especially leaders, that national progress requires unity and responsible management.

Liberia cannot afford to waste resources while communities lack clean water, stable roads, quality schools, reliable health care, and meaningful employment.

Every Liberian deserves to see the country’s wealth reflected in daily life.

The principle is clear: government resources must be used for the common good of society.

Taxes, donor support, national revenues, public contracts, and natural resource income must serve the people, not enrich a small circle of individuals.

A government official does not own public funds; the official is a caretaker.

The money belongs to the people. The nation owns the land and natural resources.

The authority of office belongs to the public trust.

A leader who understands this responsibility will ask important questions before approving any public expenditure: Will this project improve citizens’ lives?

Will it create jobs? Will it strengthen health care?

Will it improve education? Will it make communities safer?

Will the process be transparent and fair?

Will the poorest citizens benefit?

These questions help transform leadership from self-enrichment into service.

The image of a bridge is especially meaningful in discussing public responsibility.

No one should destroy the bridge that carries them over, because one day they may need that same bridge on the way back.

The people are that bridge. They vote, work, pay taxes, defend communities, support institutions, and carry the nation through difficult times.

When leaders disrespect the people, exploit their poverty, or deny them basic services, they weaken the very foundation that supports their own position.

Likewise, no one should break the ladder that took them up, because one day they may need it to come down safely.

Many public officials came from ordinary families and communitie(Like me).

Some were educated through public schools(like me in Liberia and the US), scholarships(Like me in the US), supported by relatives( Like me), encouraged by teachers(Many thanks to my teachers at Zaweata Elementary and Junior High school(Bong Mines my home of birth),Boatswain Elementary and Junior High School(Bushrod Island),Cathedral Catholic High School(Ashmus Street Monrovia), St. Mary’s Catholic High School(Duala, Bushrod Island)) or promoted by citizens who believed in their potential.

Their success did not happen in isolation. Others’ sacrifices made it possible.

Rising in society and then turning against the people who made that rise possible is both ungrateful and dangerous.

A person may believe that political influence, private security, or wealth will protect them forever.

But no wall is high enough to separate a leader from the consequences of public suffering.

When poverty grows, insecurity grows. When young people have no jobs, frustration grows.

When citizens lose faith in institutions, national unity weakens.

When public funds are stolen, trust in government disappears.

In the end, corruption harms everyone, including those who believe they benefit from it.

This is why accountability must be a national priority.

Liberia needs institutions that investigate corruption fairly and without political favoritism.

Laws against theft, bribery, fraud, and misuse of public property must be enforced consistently.

No official should be above the law because of wealth, family connections, political party, or social status.

When justice applies only to the poor and powerless, it is not justice.

A country becomes stronger when all citizens understand that public office comes with responsibility and consequences.

However, accountability should not be limited to punishment after money is stolen.

Prevention is equally important.

Government budgets should be transparent and easy for the public to understand.

Major contracts should be openly reviewed.

Citizens should know how national resources are collected and how they are spent.

Independent audits should be respected, not ignored.

Journalists, civil-society organizations, community leaders, and whistleblowers should be protected when they expose wrongdoing.

Ordinary citizens should be encouraged to ask questions about development projects in their communities.

Transparency is not an attack on government.

It protects good government.

Honest officials should welcome transparency because it shows they use public resources responsibly.

Only those who wish to hide wrongdoing fear public scrutiny.

When citizens can see how their money is managed, they are more likely to trust institutions and cooperate with national development programs.

The fight against corruption also requires a cultural shift.

In some situations, people may excuse theft because they believe “everyone does it,” or because they expect officials to help only relatives and friends.

This way of thinking must change. Public money should not disappear.

It is unacceptable to give contracts only to political supporters.

It is dishonorable to use a government position to get rich while communities remain poor.

Liberia must reject the idea that corruption signals intelligence or success.

Real success is building something that benefits others.

A successful leader is not measured by the number of cars in a garage, the size of a private house, or the amount of money displayed at social events.

A successful leader is measured by the number of improved schools, supplied clinics, repaired roads, created jobs, and empowered young people.

The greatest legacy is not personal luxury. It is public progress.

A leader should want to be remembered not for how much wealth was accumulated, but for how many lives were improved.

Young Liberians, in particular, must be included in this vision.

They are not merely the country’s future; they are part of its present.

They need education, skills training, access to technology, employment opportunities, and an honest political system that rewards merit rather than connections.

If young people see corruption rewarded at the highest levels, they may lose faith in hard work and integrity.

But if they see leaders serving honestly, managing resources transparently, and facing consequences for wrongdoing, they will learn that character matters.

Every Liberian has a role to play.

Citizens should refuse to celebrate people simply because they have money, especially when the source of that money is unclear.

Communities should value honesty, service, and hard work.

Religious leaders should speak courageously about justice and moral responsibility.

Teachers should teach students that public property belongs to everyone.

Parents should raise children to understand that taking what belongs to others is wrong, whether it happens in a home, a school, a business, or a government office.

At the same time, the national conversation must not be based only on anger.

Liberia needs a spirit of reform, responsibility, and hope.

The goal is not to destroy people; it is to build a country where wrongdoing is rejected and service is honored.

Those who have misused public resources should be held accountable, but the nation should also create systems that make honesty easier and corruption more difficult.

Strong institutions, transparent processes, civic education, and ethical leadership can move Liberia toward a more just future.

Life is good when every Liberian has a real chance to be happy and successful.

It is good when the farmer can sell crops on reliable roads, when the student can learn in a safe classroom, when the patient can receive treatment at a functioning clinic, and when the graduate can find meaningful work.

It is good when public officials see themselves as servants of the people rather than masters over them.

It is good when national wealth reaches villages, towns, and neighborhoods instead of remaining in the hands of a privileged few.

Liberia’s future must not be built on greed, arrogance, and the misuse of public resources.

It must be built on humility, fairness, accountability, and a deep respect for the people.

Those entrusted with public funds should remember that power is temporary, but the consequences of their decisions can last for generations.

They should not destroy the bridge that carries them over.

They should not break the ladder that lifted them up. One day, they may need both.

The path forward is simple, even if it is not easy: treat government resources as sacred public trust, serve the people with humility, and use national wealth for the common good.

When leaders and citizens embrace these values, Liberia can become a nation where prosperity is shared, dignity is protected, and every person has reason to believe in a better tomorrow.