How long, Liberians, how long? Until we have no country?
By Tewroh-Wehtoe Sungbeh 
Rain and sea erosion are few of the natural crisis that are making life miserable in Monrovia. It is pouring day and night in Liberia, a country where (as we all know by now), it is supposed to rain because it is rainy season. However, when it rains, there has to be planning, equipment and a competent workforce to deal with the flooding that comes with the torrential rainfall.
A country such as Liberia with so much rain in its forecast - I believe six months in a rainy season, should have by now a competent public works ministry, a competent and modern water and sewer department, vactor trucks and other flush trucks to clean the drainage and storm drains; modern storm drains and modern drainage systems throughout the country ready to receive the downpour.
The other crisis is sea erosion in coastal communities, which refuses to go away like a burdensome visitor who overstays his or her visit, only to damage the friendship before he or she leaves. Any national beach restoration plan, or any national plan to minimize the sea erosion crisis? None, so far.
Over the years, however, sea erosion has taken a devastating toil on coastal communities such as Porpor Beach, Point 4, New Kru Town, West Point, (all metro Monrovia communities), Greenville, Sinoe County, Buchanan, Grand Bassa County, and other coastal cities.
And yet political leaders including President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, behave as if the erosion crisis will simply go away by ignoring the damage it can do to lives, the environment and the community where the damage is occurring.
Sea erosion is destroying those communities. And the seasonal rainfall has done its share of damage by making roads and streets impassable, lives miserable, and diseases cropping up as rain water that’s supposed to go away suddenly refuses to go away because of the lacked of storm drains and drainage systems in the city of Monrovia and other parts of the country.
Liberian political leaders are good at neglecting communities and people, and are also good at photo-ops and paying lip service to problems that looked them in the eyes. Liberian political leaders are also good at misappropriating money allocated for projects that people need to live their daily lives. At the end of the day, Liberia becomes (as the country is today) a broken and ancient country on life support struggling to be relevant.
Seeing pictures of flooded streets all across Monrovia, and seeing terrified and helpless residents held hostage during those rainy days is scary and frustrating. It is frustrating because when disaster of such proportions happens, the first question that comes to mind is, “Where’s leadership?”
Seriously, where is President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf regarding this matter and other matters? Where is presidential leadership? From the Ebola virus to Delta Airlines terminating flights to Liberia; the flooding of Monrovia and its environs, sea erosion and the abrupt cancellation of the July 26 Independence Day celebrations in Sinoe and Grand Kru Counties. Where’s leadership, my people?
Where’s presidential and legislative leadership? Where are the Representatives and Senators from Sinoe and Grand Kru Counties? What are they saying about these cancellations? Are they just going with the flow – because “the old-ma says so?”
My God, my God, where are our national legislators? Where is accountability and legislative oversight? And how long can the Liberian people continue to take this lack of backbone and lack of leadership in Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and those opportunistic and spineless legislators? Get rid of them now, and also get rid of Madame Sirleaf to spare the Liberian people any more headaches.
The flooding says a whole lot about the Sirleaf administration and future administrations, as unprepared to handle (God forbid) natural disaster; i.e. tsunami, earthquake and other natural disasters.
As of July, there are confirmed reports of 107 infected persons, and 67 deaths caused by the Ebola virus.
Now if the current Liberian government cannot handle raindrops from the sky, and has shown mind-boggling incompetence in handling floodwater from the rain, how then can this traveling president who just cannot say no to traveling constantly, focus on the Ebola crisis and other problems at home?
Making matter worse is the latest news that Delta Airlines has suspended all flights to Liberia because of weak customer demand. Do you think the excuse that Delta gave for canceling its flights to Liberia is true? The reason could be the Ebola virus and other negatives surrounding the Sirleaf administration.
My people, this is no laughing matter.
Any public comments from the Sirleaf administration yet? Are we – the Liberian people not supposed to know what really went wrong behind those closed doors, besides the president sending her high-power delegation to beg Delta Airlines not to cut Liberia off its flight routes?
This is happening in a country where political leaders, including the President of Liberia are not accountable to the people of Liberia.
Much hasn’t changed since Madame Sirleaf became President of Liberia.
Instead of accountability and bringing issues to the public to know what’s really happening in government, this president has been good at deceits, repeating lies, and repeating the fatal mistakes of Presidents Tubman, Tolbert, Doe and Taylor.
Just take a close look at the recent decision to abruptly cancel this year’s Independence Day celebrations in both Sinoe and Grand Kru Counties. Reasons given are bad roads, or at least one of the reasons given.
So when did these people get to know that those roads are impassable? By the way, where are the elected Senators, Representatives and appointed Superintendents of these counties? Any comments from them as to why their day in the sun – their Independence Day celebrations were cancelled?
What are the officials and leaderships of the Sinoe County Association in the Americas, the Greenville Development Association, the National Krao Association in the Americas, and the New Kru Town Association in the Americas saying about the latest setback in their counties?
I expect these groups and their leaders to demand answers from the Liberian government and their elected and appointed officials regarding the cancellations.
I doubt they have the guts to do so.
You know why? They are getting ready to do what they do best: travel to their various conventions to party and meet and greet their friends and lovers.
My people, Liberian politics can make me sick. I am nauseating already.
Category: Editorial, Featured Articles, News Headlines
