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ATSC Media (Monrovia)

Liberia: One Thousand Small Steps

Abdoulaye W. Dukulé

27 October 2008

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opinion

We are well on our way to rebuilding our institutions of government and welcoming the return of a vibrant civil society, a dynamic market-based economy and an open press. (Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, October 22, 2008, in Washington, DC, introducing US President George W. Bush at the World Development Forum).

It was 1,000 days ago when Liberian voters, in a leap of faith, cast their ballots in favor of Mrs. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, with the hope that she will lead the nation out a quarter of century of mayhem and destruction. Her election was a watershed event in a continent long dominated by "strong men" and especially in a country where an entire generation had grown to see nothing but men-in-arms and other warlords as rulers in leadership position.

By electing a woman who had been in the trenches fighting for human rights, democracy and a new political system where every Liberian had a stake, Liberians decidedly indicated their intention to turn the page and move their war-battered nation into a new era.

President Sirleaf made it clear, from the onset that she wanted to take Liberia to a higher level, where the injustices of the past, the corrupt and self-serving governance would belong to a forever gone era. She wowed to eradicate inefficiency, streamline the bureaucracy and inspire Liberians to do good for themselves.

Liberia was not created in one day or over the length of one presidential term. It took 140 and some years to get it where it stood in 2005: a country that was still aspiring to be one; a nation divided along religious and ethnic lines, polarized by 14 years of brutal civil war that destroyed not only the meager infrastructure of an unequal development, but also took a toll on the people. Those who survived the mayhem sought greener pastures elsewhere. The war that almost tore apart the fabric of the nation had come after an equally brutal military dictatorship that squandered not only the wealth, but scared away the goodwill that could have built the nation.

The 14-year war destroyed what it took 140 years to build. Rebuilding that same infrastructure, in the absence of the most educated portion of Liberians, without the wealth that was once available in a growing market place and limited international goodwill was and still remains a challenge of a tall order.

There was never an illusion that things would change overnight. There was never a naïve belief that a magic wand could be waved to reduce homelessness, unemployment, disease and abject poverty as well the ills of bad governance.

To objectively gauge the success or failures of the Sirleaf administration, one must look at where Liberia stood just 3 years ago, in terms of infrastructure, governance and every index of human development. From thence, one can see the great strides that have been made, although going unnoticed because of the magnitude of the challenges. For the first time, since the mid-1980s, civil servants are paid on time.

Furthermore, the basic monthly salary has risen from a paltry US$15 a month to $75 in just two years. Road construction in Monrovia and other parts of the country led to repair of major transport network, facilitating the movements of goods and people. Schools and primary health care centers in Monrovia and around the country are opening their doors to children and patients, with school attendance going up some 60 percent in just two years. In 2005, Liberia was so much in debt, both locally and internationally that it was written off by foreign lenders.

That situation has dramatically changed because the government has been able to negotiate debt relief and pretty soon, Liberia would be able to go out and access international funding. The success of this international debt relief can be fully credited to the confidence President Sirleaf inspired in the international community and the goodwill that ensued. In the security sector, the formation of a totally new army is near completion, with 2,000 soldiers and officers already trained and deployed. The police and the immigration service have also undergone training. The judiciary is extending its arms throughout the length and breadth of the country.

These developments are commendable and could be hailed as a success for the young administration. However, what is more important and is palpable at the surface is the fact that Liberians have regained what had eluded them for almost a generation: peace and stability. A climate of peace and security is indispensable for the implementation of the grand projects the government envisions.

From the onset, President Sirleaf focused her attention on four pillars to serve as the corner stones of the new foundations on which Liberia will be built: peace and national reconciliation, security, infrastructure and governance reform. In each of these areas, progress has been made. The fight against corruption has attained unprecedented level, the only impediment being the weakness of the judiciary still in its formative stages.

From the poster child of failed statehood just a few years ago, Liberia has slowly but surely inched its way into the comity of nations. This move, to be credited to the strong presence and the aura of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, is an indispensable element in attracting investments and international goodwill to Liberia.

For the past 1,000 days, small but irreversible steps have been taken to move Liberia into a new era. The 1,000 steps have instilled in Liberians a feeling of pride, a feeling of being a nation again on the rise, a nation energized by a strong leadership. Good leaders do good things for their people, a philosopher said, adding that great leaders make their people do great things for themselves.

The latter applies to Mrs. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. She has inspired a battered nation to stand up again, she has shown to a continent that change is possible and she has demonstrated to the world that indeed, good things can happen in Africa. There is no doubt then why the nation looks forward to the next 1,000 steps under her leadership. Indeed, as she said a few years back, "out of the ashes of the war, Liberia is rising again!"

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