spot_imgspot_img
Wednesday, December 11, 2024

BISHOP KORTU BROWN: ‘ARREST’ AGENDA REQUIRES PRIORITIZATION OF EVERY COMPONENT

Date:

MONROVIA – There is much dispute about the pace of, and approach to, development in the country. Unlike the CDC-government which captioned its development program as the “Pro-Poor” Agenda, the Unity Party-led government has described their development concept as the “ARREST” agenda. This means that the priority of the government is to address the challenges in agriculture, roads, rule of law, education, sanitation and tourism – like the other unnamed areas of youth empowerment, healthcare, etc. According to Bishop Kortu K. Brown, “this agenda, the ‘ARREST’ agenda is proverbially like a law enforcement officer in the community. He has to address reported crimes simultaneously in the community. He cannot leave any reported crimes unattended to”

“That’s how the ARREST agenda is”, he said, “It must be implemented concomitantly”. The UP government agenda is laudable although in-exhaustive. However, it must be executed as “something that happens at the same time as something else”. That means, you cannot address the building of roads infrastructure without addressing the challenges of, and/or strengthening the “rule of law”; you cannot address the challenges of agriculture without addressing the challenges in the education system and so on, at the same time. “That’s why I see a lot of concerns about the bringing in of the yellow machines. It is intended to address the challenges in the road infrastructure of the country which is highly commendable and difficult to dismiss.

However, there is another component that must be addressed at the same time which is what has eroded this country for a long time: strengthening the rule of law which includes promoting transparency, accountability, fiscal discipline, justice; enabling integrity institutions like the PPCC, GAC, LACC and Internal Audit Agency to perform their responsibilities in the broader sense of promoting the rule of law. “When President Tolbert built more than 600 miles of roads in the country and ensured that every county had a piece of road equipment to maintain the roads, it was still the concern for the disrespect of the rule of law by the True Whig Party government that Liberians were concerned about”, the former President of the Liberia Council of Churches added.

People argued at the time that there was no respect for the rule of law; no accountability, that justice was for the highest bidder, that government officials did whatever seem right in their own eyes, the big-shots and small-people mentality prevailed and generally, lack of coherence in governance; the slogan: “I am in go on…”, we care less about the others’ views. “I don’t think this is what we still want as Liberians. We want a Liberia where the rule of law is respected and enforced. We all know it’s beneficial to the country because it makes it look responsible, globally”, he said, adding, “it takes nothing from the dire need for road equipment to help improve that critical and long-neglected infrastructure especially in southeastern region of the country”.

The “ARREST” agenda is intended, in a programmatic way, to “arrest” like a law enforcement officer, the challenges to Liberia’s development in the sectors already identified by the UP government. President Joseph Boakai has committed to arresting and reversing the challenges in the agriculture, roads, rule of law, education and tourism sectors. We commend him for his boldness. However, we must ensure that we are also addressing all of the challenges together including the fact that the government requires legislative approval to commit the country to any borrowing of money for any development purpose.

The Apostolic Pentecostal Church cleric who was speaking in an open interactive forum on the church campus of New Water in the Desert Assembly in Brewerville, Montserrado County commended the Ministry of Public Works for the “encouraging efforts” so far in maintaining critical road infrastructure in neglected parts of the country including the southeast and north-central parts of the country. “We hear from news reports that the roads are pliable in the middle of the rainy season. Even though we still have about two months to go in the wet season; however, just to hear that the roads are usable with much ease during this time of the year, is highly commendable. We encourage the Ministry of Public Works to not let their guard down”

Bishop Brown opined that without the much-talked about “yellow machines”, Public Works is holding up the roads against wear and tear during this heavy rainy season; might it be a good thing if the maintenance of the roads were contracted to engineering companies that could be responsible for their maintenance all year-round instead of probably building a huge logistics for county administrations that they couldn’t be able to handle due to the lack of adequate budgetary support for maintenance and proper supervision, amongst others. “Maybe privatizing road maintenance like electricity could do the trick for Liberia”.

smartnews
Smart News Liberia is an online news outlet and a product of Smart Media Group Inc. Our website, smartnewsliberia.com, covers a broad spectrum of news content. For inquiries or information, you can reach us at 0777425285 or 0886946925, or email us at smartnewsliberia@gmail.com or info@smartnewsliberia.com.

LATEST DEVELOPMENT

CLASHES AT CAPITOL HILL HIGHLIGHT POWER STRUGGLES AND THREATS TO LIBERIA’S DEMOCRACY

CAPITOL HILL, MONROVIA – Tensions boiled over at the...

‘WHERE IS OUR PRESIDENT?’ SENATOR KONNEH CALLS FOR STRONGER LEADERSHIP FROM BOAKAI

LIBERIA – Gbarpolu County Senator Amara Mohammed Konneh, who...

DR. NYAN ISSUES URGENT HEALTH WARNING AS NPHIL ENHANCES SURVEILLANCE AGAINST VIRAL HEMORRHAGIC FEVER

MONROVIA, LIBERIA – Dr. Dougbeh Chris Nyan, the Director-General...

BOAKAI SIDESTEPS SPEAKER KOFFA: LOGICALITY OR PRECEDENT-SETTING BREACH?

President Joseph Boakai's decision to submit the 2025 draft...

A MILESTONE FOR LIBERIA’S HIGHER EDUCATION, BUT CHALLENGES REMAIN

The launch of Liberia’s first doctoral programs at the...

BOAKAI’S MISPLACED AMBITIONS AS LIBERIA BLEEDS AND THE PRESIDENT COURTS GLOBAL VANITY

Eight months into his presidency, Joseph Boakai’s administration is...

COMMENTARY

THE LASTING LEGACY OF PRINCE JOHNSON’S DEATH AND THE PATH FORWARD FOR LIBERIA

By Lyndon J. Ponnie, Sr. The passing of former Liberian...

PRES. BOAKAI’S LACK OF LEADERSHIP AND LIBERIA’S POLITICAL CRISIS

-A Commentary Joseph Boakai's failure to lead has once again...

THE MASS DISMISSAL OF LIBERIAN PUBLIC SERVANTS: A TROUBLING TREND UNDER THE BOAKAI ADMINISTRATION

A Commentary by Wondah L. Jah Since assuming the presidency,...

SECURITY RISKS: IS PRESIDENT BOAKAI UNKNOWINGLY SETTING THE STAGE FOR EARLY COUP D’ÉTAT?

In his commentary, Liberian political analyst Vandalerk R. Patricks...

LATEST NEWS

SIERRA LEONE’S MAIN OPPOSITION PARTY DEMANDS RERUN OF GENERAL ELECTION

FREETOWN - Sierra Leone's main opposition party said it...

14-YEAR-OLD FEMALE STUDENT DIED AFTER RETURNING FROM FIELD TRIP IN  BUCHANAN CITY

LIBERIA – A 14-year-old female student has died in...

TWO LIBERIAN MARITIME OFFICIALS SENTENCED TO 9 YEARS FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT IN SOUTH KOREA

MONROVIA – The Liberia Maritime Authority (LiMA) has been...

Share post:

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

OPINION

LIBERIANS ARE IN AN ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE UP AND CDC

  An Opinion By Grace RK Guar Every six...

AMERICA’S NEGLECT OF LIBERIA: A CALL FOR CHANGE

An Opinion By Bishop Dr. Rudolph Q. Kwanue, Sr A...

AMID AN UNENDING WAR AGAINST POVERTY, INJUSTICES – HAS THE PROGRESSIVE STRUGGLE BECOME LOST IN TRANSLATION?

A Patriot's Diary With Ekena Wesley What manner of Liberian progressives...

HAS PRESIDENT BOAKAI’S GOVERNMENT BEGUN BEARING GOOD FRUITS? (PART1)

By Jacob N.B. Parley Following a careful reflection, I have...

ELEVATING THE AG BIBLE COLLEGE TO A UNIVERSITY: A MILESTONE ACHIEVEMENT

By Jacob N.B. Parley After many years of successful preaching...

THE GALLERY

spot_imgspot_img

MORE ARTICLES

spot_imgspot_img

MORE NEWS

LATEST DEVELOPMENT NEWS

LATEST CRIME NEWS

Share via
Copy link