Attacks on me for my views are fair game in politics. Attacks on my character by lies and disinformation because of my views are a lazy attempt at debate. Calling me a hustler for my views on the current system failure in Liberia as shown by the quote attributed to me in the New York Times is again a lazy attempt to engage me. Here are the facts. I have over 44 years of work experience. Only 3 1/2 years full time working for the government of Liberia. When most people my age were in college, I was already married with children in Liberia, with eight years of work experience in 1980. I was an officer (2VP) at a major American bank in 1979 when I was recruited by the current president to work along with her as Deputy Comptroller at the Ministry of Finance. Over the last 11 years since the departure of Charles Taylor from Liberia, I have been in mostly private business, running the family bakery and many other small businesses, some failed and some hugely successful, such as my consultancy. I can count several multilateral agencies, governments, UN agencies, large multinational corporations and individuals as clients. Over the last 2 years, I have worked as a consultant for the GOL, starting full time with the HLP Post 2015 Development Agenda. That ended in June of 2103. I also did some consultancy with NOCAL producing the local content analysis for the proposed oil reform bill. During the HLP consultancy, we (international consultants) wrote our own concept note and received funding from CEDA (Swedish government) of 600,000 to fund the operations of the HLP. No government funding was paid to me. From January to June this year, I was fortunate to work with some great people at the Ministry of Finance as consultant resident at the Macro Fiscal Unit. My aide memoires, economic analyses, contributions are proprietary and rest with authorities at the Ministry of Finance. Confidential clauses would prevent me or anyone to put these in the public domain. My current position on circumstances in Liberia is not new. I have forcefully spoken out and advocated for Liberian economic empowerment during the 9 years of this current administration on the record. Even challenging my friend, the president on issues such as Elenilto, China Union, Delta Mining, and the feudal system of granting large tracts of agriculture land to foreign companies. I have spoken on that forcefully. My position is very clear. We did not build resilient institutions over the 9 years of democratic governance. The health system failed. The governance structure cracked. The economy will be gravely injured, and livelihoods will suffer. That is my point and if I am to be pilloried by people for saying this, I cannot apologize and will never apologize to people who run a system that is causing the calamity in Liberia. I prefer to be constructive, which I am by doing my two bit, but if people want to jump all over me, I am a big boy and I can take it. I prefer civility and bonhomie in debates. I am posting a picture taken in late 1981, when I was no longer working for the government of Samuel Doe. I served from April 1980 to February of 1981. When most men my age were living at home in Liberia, here I was raising a family. My three girls in this photo are all professional, including doctor, lawyer and dean of students at a prestigious US school in Virginia. I am not a freeloader. Those who know me well know that. The President knows that and the professionals I recently worked with at the Ministry of Finance can attest to that. I am probably the hardest working man my age in Liberia. I spend hours researching and writing to earn a living , while running a family bakery, and doing consultancy full time. I just completed a major piece of work for a transnational even during the Ebola outbreak, I am working. So I can say those who dislike my political, views, I am sorry we disagree, but please do not class me as a failed individual. I am a success story by any stretch of the imagination.
Posted on: Sat, 30 Aug 2014 06:29:49 +0000
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