Without question, the reputation of President Sirleaf on the international stage is flawless. At home, however, most Liberians have serious doubts about the President’s commitment to national reconciliation, tackling corruption and prioritizing policies aimed at healing the wounds of victims of the Liberian Civil War. At the 11th hour, I call on President Sirleaf to salvage her legacy and reputation at home and among Diaspora Liberians by jump-starting national reconciliation and prioritizing healing the wounds of war by issuance of an executive order, granting visa waiver that opens the door for all Liberians forced into exile by the brutal civil war to return home and begin reconciliation.
OP-ED: ECOWAS Summit Illuminates Sirleaf’s Troubled Relationship with Tolbert Legacy
In August 1979, President William Tolbert, Jr. appointed Liberia’s first female minister of finance, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. The vacancy arose in part due to the economic fall-out associated with the high cost of hosting the 16th summit of the Organization of African Unity in Monrovia the previous month.
OP-ED: Leaving Mining Behind in a Sustainable Liberia
Mining operations degrade the environment through soil erosion, water contamination, air pollution, and often deforestation. These can lead to respiratory illnesses and heavy metal poisoning for nearby residents, sedimentation, and loss of arable land, while depleting valuable finite resources.
OP-ED: Liberia Needs to Pay More Attention to Mental Health
Looking at the violent history of Liberia over the past years, medical practitioners believe that much of this prevalence of mental illnesses is caused by the traumatic effect from the devastating 14 years of the civil war.
OP-ED: Legal Invisibility Was the Best Thing to Happen to Me
I became an undocumented migrant at age six and it changed my life.
OP-ED: A Little More Care, A Big Difference in the Result
The road between Gbarnga and Ganta is new and in excellent condition and will be maintained this way by the contractor that built it for at least the next seven years. Deaths, injuries, and damage to this vital main road can be prevented with some care and attention from drivers. Your passengers and fellow citizens are counting on you to be safe and responsible.
OP-ED: A Hopeless Unification Day
Touring Red Light, a commercial suburb outside Monrovia, was a painful experience for me this past Unification Day. Even on this national holiday, there was no space for pedestrians to easily travel or pass through as street peddlers and petty traders flooded Red Light in pursuit of economic survival.
OP-ED: The Transformation of Education in Liberia
After decades of war and the Ebola crisis eighty percent of the Liberian public education system was destroyed, so the nation needed a fast, effective plan to deliver quality education back to its people.