MONROVIA — Opposition leader Alexander B. Cummings on Monday launched a forceful rebuke of President Joseph Nyuma Boakai Sr.'s third State of the Nation Address, arguing that the administration's focus on roads, growth figures, and record budgets masks a deepening crisis of hunger, poverty, and joblessness across Liberia.
Reacting hours after Boakai addressed a Joint Session of the 55th National Legislature, Cummings said the government's claims of progress fail the most basic test of governance: whether ordinary Liberians can eat, work and live with dignity.
"You cannot cook coal tar. You cannot feed a child a blueprint," Cummings said. "The state of the nation must be measured by the fullness of the stomach, the safety of the community, and the dignity of work."
Boakai Highlights Growth, Infrastructure
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In his constitutionally mandated address under Article 58 of the 1986 Constitution, Boakai pointed to what his administration described as strong macroeconomic gains, including 5.1 percent economic growth in 2025, up from 4.0 percent the previous year and above projections.
He said the growth was driven by mining, agriculture, fisheries and services, noting that mining expanded by 17 percent and exports rose by 31.5 percent. The president also cited falling prices for staple commodities, including imported rice and flour.
On infrastructure, Boakai said paved roads increased from under 12 percent to at least 20 percent, with more than 780 kilometers of major routes maintained nationwide, improving year-round access between key corridors such as Brewerville-Bopolu, Salayea-Mendikorma, Tappita-Zwedru and Buchanan-Greenville.
"Growth Is Not Survival"
Cummings dismissed those claims as disconnected from daily hardship, arguing that macroeconomic indicators do not reflect how most Liberians live.
"Macroeconomic stability is not the same as microeconomic survival," he said, citing Liberia's ranking of 112 out of 123 countries on the Global Hunger Index.
He said the ranking means "two in every five Liberians do not eat sufficiently," warning of long-term damage to children through malnutrition and stunted growth.
Cummings also challenged the administration's celebration of a record US$1.2 billion national budget, calling it a "moral document" that reveals government priorities.
"While the government celebrates these numbers, Liberia remains the ninth poorest nation on earth," he said, claiming more than 2.5 million people cannot meet basic needs and that rural poverty stands near 80 percent.
Calls to Cut Government Spending
Positioning his critique as a "people's alternative," Cummings urged sharp reductions in what he described as excessive spending by the Executive and Legislature, including luxury vehicles and foreign travel.
He said savings should be redirected to health care, education and security, and argued that any national budget should be understandable to ordinary citizens.
"If a budget cannot be explained to a market woman, it was not written for her," he said.
Agriculture, Women and Youth
Cummings said the government has undercut its own development agenda by reducing funding for agriculture, despite labeling it the backbone of the ARREST Agenda.
"You cannot say agriculture is the heart of development while slashing its budget," he said, calling for Liberia to meet the international benchmark of allocating at least 10 percent of the national budget to the sector.
He also criticized the lack of investment in processing infrastructure such as rice mills, cassava plants and fisheries cold storage, warning that farmers continue to lose income when produce cannot reach markets.
On gender equity, Cummings said women--who own more than half of Liberia's small businesses--remain locked out of formal finance and exposed to insecurity. He proposed targeted credit schemes for market women and stronger prosecution of sexual and gender-based violence.
Jobs, Power and Corruption
Cummings warned that short-term employment programs offer little future for young people, proposing a National Youth Service Program to deploy graduates into schools, clinics and public institutions.
He also said economic growth is unsustainable without reliable electricity, calling for rapid deployment of community solar and off-grid power, particularly for health facilities, schools and agro-processing centers.
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On corruption, Cummings rejected the administration's claim of progress, noting that only two convictions have resulted from 11 indictments cited by the president.
"That is not the anti-corruption revolution Liberia needs," he said, calling for special anti-corruption courts and aggressive recovery of stolen public funds.
"Leadership Is Delivery"
Cummings said he agreed with one line from Boakai's address, that leadership is service, but added a pointed caveat.
"Leadership is also delivery," he said. "If the economy is growing, the people should feel it. If the government is working, hunger should be falling."
He said his critique was aimed not at undermining the state but at demanding results.
"The people's alternative is not just a critique," Cummings said. "It is a promise of competence, integrity and a government that loves its people more than it loves itself."
