Liberia Halts Public Land Sale

Liberia has placed an indefinite moratorium on public land sales and all transactions including the issuance of tribal certificates and town lot certificates. The moratorium takes immediate effect.

In Executive Order NO.53, issued Monday, December 23, 2013, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf insisted that this moratorium applies to all individuals, government functionaries, local officials, traditional authorities, communities, groups, businesses and associations involved in public land transactions.   

According to the President, the moratorium applies to all activities involving the issuance of tribal certificates by traditional and other governmental authorities or the issuance of town lot certificates by municipal authorities.   She then ordered the relevant ministries and agencies of government to closely monitor the situation to ensure compliance with this moratorium. 

President Sirleaf has warned that all tribal certificates and town lot certificates issued by any local authority during the period of this moratorium shall be considered illegal and void.

Liberia: Sirleaf Waives Right to Appoint

Sirleaf charges CSA to recruit
political appointees

President Ellen Johnson has finally waived her right to appoint, as President. That is now the responsibility of the Liberian Civil Service Agency (CSA).

As mandated by the President, CSA will, henceforth,  do the vetting of political appointees before they are presented to her for appointment, the Executive Mansion announced Thursday,  December 19, 2013,  in Monrovia. 

This is a demonstration of her commitment to the process of depoliticizing the civil service, it added. She, however, observed that merit-based appointments will continue to be a matter that will not be compromised.

Sirleaf Brands Corkrum "A Criminal"

The President said there's nothing to be ashamed of

My Fellow Citizens:

We are happy to be back home. We thank the Almighty God for our successful and safe travels. As you know, to achieve the goals outlined in our Agenda for Transformation, we must continue to seek support from our development partners to rebuild the country, expand the economy and create jobs for Liberians. We must also continue to strengthen our peace. This is why I have directed the Justice Ministry and the Joint Security Task Force to take the necessary actions, in keeping with law, to stop the wave of lawlessness which is creeping upon the State.

Prez Sirleaf: 'Leadership Has Nothing to Hide'

Prez. Sirleaf: 'This leadership has nothing to hide'

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf late Monday evening told the Liberian people that her leadership has done nothing for which it is ashamed. It has absolutely nothing to hide, she added in her December 2, 2013, statement delivered in Monrovia. 

"We have only been the victims of a warped and criminal mind who, to divert attention from her crime, has rendered evil for good," added the Liberian leader.

Cambodia After Khmer Rouge

Hoes, cuttlasses, and other tools were used to massacre victims 

My 25th birthday was spent in Cambodia; not in grand style, but with deep emotions.  I had been undergoing a course in peace building and conflict resolution at the Rotary Center for Peace & Conflict Studies, situated within the Chulalongkorn University based in Bangkok, Thailand. And as part of the course work, fellows were flown into Cambodia to undertake two weeks of intensive field  work. The goal was to afford fellows a chance to come face-to-face with the realities of a post-war context.

World Bank Report: Unsafe Sex Threaten Global Health

A new World Bank report warns that risky behaviors –smoking, using illicit drugs, alcohol abuse, unhealthy diets, and unsafe sex— are increasing globally  and pose a growing threat to the health of individuals, particularly in developing countries. The report looks at how individual choices that lead to these behaviors are formed and reviews the effectiveness of interventions such as legislation, taxation, behavioral change campaigns, and cash transfers to combat them.

Liberia: 'Yanaboys', Market Women Can Now Own Shares in CEMENCO

The Government of Liberia must truly mean business this time around. It has announced that consistent with its policy to create wealth for Liberians, it will be undertaking series of divestitures of its interest in major income earning companies, beginning with the country's sole cement producer -- CEMENCO.

Disclosing this to the public this week, Finance Minister Amara Konneh recalled that this exercise was kicked into motion last week. The government has hired the services of Liberia Bank for Development and Investment (LBDI) to divert 200,000  of its shares in CEMENCO to ordinary Liberians.

According to government, this goes to show President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf's commitment to ensuring that ordinary Liberians share in the wealth of the nation.

"By transferring Government’s shares to Liberians, the real owners, they will have the opportunity to share in the profits that CEMENCO is enjoying as a result of investing in Liberia. The details of the offerings will be disclosed in a series of advertisements in the local dailies and radios," Minister Konneh said. "One thing we have made abundantly clear is that no one Liberia can buy more than 15% of the total share offerings. In this direction, we encourage ordinary Liberians; market women, yana boys, school teachers, nurses, doctors, trade men and women and Liberians from all walks of life to take advantage of this divesture." 

He continued: "When more Liberians own a part of these investments, it generates a wealth protection safety net that can run across several generations. The President has instructed that we ensure this exercise is not monopolized by any one group of Liberians, with wealth or authority, as this program is critical to her vision of creating a middle class in our society consistent with the National Vision 2030 and the Agenda for Transformation."

State of the Liberian Economy: Full Text by Finance Minister Amara Konneh

Min. Konneh

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, Fellow Liberians

Let me begin by first extending sincere apologies for the abrupt cancellation of our October Press briefing with the media on the state of the Liberian economy. It was due to pressing and intervening national emergencies. My apologies again!

Ladies and Gentlemen of the press, today, we continue the exercise of keeping the country and the public informed about the opportunities, challenges, difficulties we are experiencing and gains we have seen so far, in the quest to transform our economy and put Liberians to back work again. We believe it is important for Liberian citizens to know what Government is doing for them, and to hold us accountable. 

Liberia: CDC Lawmaker Wants Officials Tested for Drug

Gray believes a national drug test for officials is the way forward

Opposition parliamentarian Acarous Gray has challenged President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to subject her officials --- heads of ministries and agencies, especially those tasked with the responsibility to fight substance abuse, as well as personnel of the various security apparatus ---  to a national drug test. 

'I Control HIV': A Positive Liberian Mother Puts It

___The Burden of Care on An HIV+ Mother___

A mother breast-feeding her little one

Scores of HIV+ women who are in care at various health facilities in Liberia have called for a need to create an avenue for them to be self-employed. These women – predominantly single moms – have blamed stigma and discrimination for their limited or no access to livelihoods. “In the end, we turned into beggars because of our status,” they have said. Economic empowerment is all these women are hoping for.

Liberia’s President Seeks Gurus’ Intervention

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is once more soliciting the intervention of religious leaders in Liberia’s ongoing search for lasting peace and stability. The country is recovering from a brutal civil war that lasted 14 consecutive years. An estimated 250,000 lives were destroyed. Thousands of Liberians were also displaced internally or dispersed across the various sub-regional [West African] countries as refugees.

Earlier this week, the President issued a Proclamation in which she called on religious leaders (priests, imams, bishops, etc.) to gather in their various places of worship across the country to give thanks and praises to Almighty God. She would also appreciate it were these religious gurus to pray for God’s blessings and mercies to continually rest upon Liberia and Liberians.

Are Media Owners a Threat to Ethical Journalism?

Media owners have been blamed and described as “a big threat to ethical journalism” as demonstrated by their one-sided approach to the running of their entities. But come to think of it though, there are some managing directors or publishers who would do  just anything to see certain news items blocked from the production process -- be it in print or electronic. 

Vet Before You Vote: Beware of Fiasco “Gender Advocates”

   As Liberia's 2014 mid-term Senatorial Race draws closer, this is what I think we, the women voters, should be mindful of.... 

Liberia has and continues to indulge more than its fair share of fiasco advocates. These are characters in our society who charter huge amounts of airtime and space in the media to spew out the imperfections of our society especially on the most lucrative sub-areas of development, which include youth, corruption, and the most popular of them all these days -- women!

These fiasco characters make enough noise to gather a few listeners as a platform to launch themselves into prominence by way of propaganda and politics.  And guess what?  Once they accomplish their aim, they hardly look back at the people on whose plights these “advocates” were propped to prominence.  So this is a wake-up call to all voters, especially women, who might end up being a mere stepping stone for these hungry, fiasco advocates: vet them before you vote for them.

Selective Feminism II: How about a Wife Shortchanging Her Husband?

He is the man. So, let him take charge

“This woman you see sitting here (pointing at his wife sitting next to him), I have been married to her for more than 20 years; but never a day has she taken it upon herself to at least contribute to the feeding of the family,” a disappointed husband recently told me.

I am continuing with where I left off in our last edition, Selective Feminism. Recently, I focused on how hypocritical our gender advocates can be in their advocacies. They have been unwavering in their battle for emancipation and equity in all spheres of life, but when it comes to sharing the family’s financial responsibility on a 50 – 50 basis, they are mute on that. Why are we being so hypocritical about this gender equity thing? So, we only want to be given all of the rights, especially the right to earn, but the right to spend equally must exclude us?

LIBERIA: Women in Retrospect 2011

Before we finally close the chapter on 2011, flipping a fresh page for a new beginning in 2012, let’s not forget that the unresolved issues of 2011 and other past years are still in need of solutions. In this first week of the New Year, we want to highlight that the socio-political and economic advancement of Liberian women remains an ongoing struggle, claiming the attention of advocates on a daily basis. However, here’s a look back at a breathless twelve months (2011) that saw ordinary women doing extraordinary things to improve their lives; the women’s world pushing for gender democracy. Let's takes a reflective look at an eventful year in news. Below are highlights of key issues underscored in 2011:

My Mummy’s ‘Hot’ Water: A Remedy for Fever Relieve

Whenever I took sick, be it whatever, her first aid she would administer was a ‘hot’ bath. With a bucket of ‘hot’ water, she would soak a small size towel in it and begin to massage my entire body; letting the steam from the towel absorb into my body.  This would go on for seconds, minutes. 

That bath would be followed by a thorough body massage with hot ointment for relief. And sure enough, my body would begin to loosen up minutes after. After the hot bath, Mummy wrapped me up in some warm clothes, preferably, a sleeping suit or night gown.

'Death' for Traditional Journalism?

Some Liberian dailies

There are heated debates ongoing; they regard the fate of traditional journalism. There seems to be growing fear, especially among practitioners, that the revolution of new media might see traditional media (newspapers, televisions, radios) eventually fading into this new trend. It is being argued that new media are opening up new ways to communicate, share knowledge and information as a powerful tool helping to raise new voices, especially from young people, who were once considered the voiceless in their societies.

The Arab Spring – birthed in Tunisia – is seen by many as a testament to the transformative power of social media (new media). Unlike the traditional media, which require professional coverage and production of news stories, with mobile connections, satellite TV, ordinary people can at any time air their views, without having to go through any gatekeeper such as an established publication, editor or other traditional media manager. This is the danger, many believe, social media poses to old or traditional media.

Girls As Breadwinners

The innocence in those eyes MUST never be traded for anything 

Look around Monrovia today [as well as other urban or even rural settings in Liberia] and tell me who you see hustling in the streets day-in and day-out. It is the children, predominantly girls, who are dispatched in the streets and other markets places every morning to fend for their parents. By sunset, they are expected to be home with some cash to ensure that there is food on the table the next day. At such tender ages (5 to 10) they are already practically being used as income-earners or breadwinners when they are supposed to be in school to prepare themselves for a bright tomorrow (the future). The interesting thing is that they blindly accept that responsibility without knowledge of their rights. 

Ask a Liberian mother or father why must it be the son or daughter who has to roam the streets selling ice water, and she/he will remorselessly respond like this: “Oh, I alone can’t do everything. The child needs to play his part, too.” Some parents will even tell this: “The boy [or girl] needs to help, too. After all, I gave birth to him [or her] and he [or she] did not and can never pay me enough for doing so. The only thing he [or she] can do is serve me and serve me better.” 

Fatoumata Forfana | IREX - Civil Society, Education and Media Development

Fatoumata Forfana | IREX - Civil Society, Education and Media Development

Another Liberian Mother Who Has Never Failed In The Discharge Of Her Duty As A Mother To Her 8 Children

After concluding her daylong petty trading, she is getting ready to go set a trap in the Gbar River at sunset.  Fish caught from the river will surely help with the provision of the next day's meal. Photo taken by Fatoumata Nabie Fofana, Gbartala, Bong County, Central Liberia (copyright 2010)

A Liberian Mother Making Sure Food Is Kept On The Table For Her Kids

She is producing "iron soap", produced locally from palm oil and caustic soda,  for domestic use. "Iron soaps" are  most popular in Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire, Sierra Leone, and now Liberia. Photo taken by Fatoumata Nabie Fofana, Suakoko, Bong County, Central Liberia (copyright 2010)

The Daylight Robbery that Women Commit

Ingredients on display on Mechlin Strt.

A couple  recently broke up because, according to the boyfriend, his girl stole his Blackberry Bold, an allegation never denied by the young lady. She remorselessly admitted to stealing the mobile phone, which costs nearly $800 in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, to rent a flat for her mom. According to her, this boyfriend of hers happened to be a hard-to-spend type and so, stealing his phone was the only option left for her.

Was her approach to solving this financial crisis of hers the right way to go? Some might argue that if these two were a married couple, then what this young lady did won't technically   be considered as theft, which is a criminal offense. The idea is that in the institution of marriage, the term 'theft' doesn't exist ---a wife just can't steal from her husband. She takes, not steals. What is his, is hers and what is hers, is hers.

But stealing is nothing less than stealing. I see no point in being rosy about it. Unfortunately, many women seem to share this bad habit of discreetly "pinching" their husband’s money. They spare no cash left in his wallet and/or pockets. The situation becomes terrible with married couples because no matter what, staying together has a way of exposing all the annoying mannerisms that are otherwise concealed during dating. 

My Source of Inspiration

Fanta Kone-Fofana (my sweet Teyah) we love you much, much

Her children affectionately call her Teyah, and indeed she is their Teyah. Here's a mom who has proven to be balanced and fair in loving her offspring (four children: two boys, two girls). She has never loved one more than the others; it's equal share. Oh yeah, she had been and still is my greatest source of inspiration. And she is my best and sweetest friend, my #1 and biggest FAN!!

Catching UP WITH LIFE AND ALL THE DIFFERENT GOODIES IN STORE FOR ME

Me, 2013, USA

Women's Economic Exclusion In Focus

Raising women’s labor-market participation rate boosts economic performance in a number of ways. For example, higher incomes for women lead to higher household spending on educating girls – a key prerequisite for faster long-term growth. Employment of women on an equal basis with men provides companies with a larger talent pool, potentially increasing creativity, innovation, and productivity. And, in advanced countries, a larger female labor force can help to counteract the impact of a shrinking workforce and mitigate the costs of an aging population. Read more here 

Courtesy: projectsyndicate.org

'Taylor Must Die'

Funny how Charles Taylor's hope for a twist in the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone's 50 years sentence, brought against him on 26 April 2012, was quashed by the court's Appeal Chamber on Thursday, September 26, 2013. Here's a man found guilty on 11 counts of participating in the planning of crimes, and of aiding and abetting crimes, committed by rebel forces in Sierra Leone. He then gets sentenced to 50 years imprisonment on 30 May 2012. But his defense team fights back; arguing that the trial chamber had made systematic errors in the evaluation of evidence and in the application of law.

Ok Mr. Taylor, so what have earned in the end? Your 50 years still stand! Now, you will spend the next 50 years in a British cell.

Press Freedom Watchdogs On Ellen's Back; Demand Reform to Liberia's Libel Laws

Liberia should promptly revise its libel laws to meet international standards for freedom of expression and the media, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and Global Witness said today in a letter to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. The groups urged President Sirleaf to press for the reform of libel laws and procedure to prevent excessive judgments and restrictions on appeals from undermining free speech rights.

Liberia: A Legacy of Deceit

Prez Sirleaf 

Madam President:

Are you for real or are you being even more hypocritical? Oh, wait... do you seriously think your son's departure from those juicy posts would somewhat look like a redemption for you? Hell NO! Your darling son's exit from those fat-paying positions -- chairman of Liberia's most lucrative Oil Company (NOCAL) and senior advisor to the President -- has really got nothing to do with the fight against massive CORRUPTION that has marred your administration. 

Corruption, bad governance remain rife in your government, and you know that. Besides,  the lack of basic social  services to your people, nepotism, and the general failure of your Administration to meet its end of the social contract continue to remain the cries of the Liberian people.

Hello My People

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. Life is happening and I must make myself available for it all.

Advancing Women in the Media: What Really Do We Want?

Fatoumata Nabie Fofana, the author

At the helm of a nation-wide campaign aimed at advancing women to reach the top in the media is a USAID funded Civil Society and Media Leadership Program, being implemented by the International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX).

At the crux of this initiative is the aim to sharpen, shape and strengthen women capacities to be forceful in transcending leadership disparities as reflected in the ratio of female reporters, editors or media owners to that of their male counterparts. The guiding principle is to ensure that women media practitioners are assertive and vigorous in bridging the gender gap in the Liberian media.

Let's quickly clarify that this is not anti-men, it is pro-everyone, a drive toward equity, industry-wide. Media practitioners across the country must note that advancing women in this field is not only good for women, but good for everyone. It also does not mean that women are not as smart as men. It is an effort aimed at leveling the playing field for each individual, regardless of gender, but by merit, to navigate their way to the top to make the difference they aspire to make.

Liberia's Oil Company Forks over $8M on Training

NOCAL CEO McClain

After being branded “delinquent” by members of the Lower House for snubbing the just-ended budget scrutiny exercise, Liberia’s Oil Company (NOCAL) yesterday released its 2013/2014 budgetary inflows and outflows.

Responding to lawmakers, NOCAL, at the time, argued that its president, Dr. Randolph McClain was out of the country, and so, the company could do nothing in the absence of its boss.

However, the Oil Company yesterday revealed that as part of its budgetary outflows for fiscal year July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014, at least US$8,029,848.00 would be spent on manpower training and capacity building. That makes up at least 28% of the Oil Company’s total expenditure during the period under review.

Sanniquellie City

The provincial capital of Nimba County and birth place of the Organization of African Unity (now African Union- AU), Sanniquellie, is situated at 35 minutes north of the commercial city of Ganta.  At a higher elevation than the nation’s capital, Monrovia, Saniquellie is partially surrounded by natural features such as mountain range, wetlands and a dense forest which makes the weather in the area a rather cool. The weather is cool all day, as the sun rises over the misty Nimba mountain range just north of Saniquellie.

Liberia Unveils New Woman Minister

Dr. Weeks

Dr. Antoinette Weeks, the director of exploration activities at the National Oil Company of Liberia (NOCAL), a fresh batch of appointees last Friday, August 2, to replace Mr. Samuel Kofi Woods as Minister of Public Works.  The new appointments were made public by President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf late Friday evening.

Former Public Works Minister Kofi Woods recently exited the Sirleaf-Administration. His resignation came days after the demise of his mentor, Archbishop Michael Kpakala Francis. It took the President over a month to final confirm Wood’s departure from her government. According to her, her former lieutenant exited his post to direct his attention to civil society and human rights issues by revamping the Catholic Peace and Justice Commission (JPC).

Wood’s replacement, Dr. Weeks holds a PhD in Civil & Environmental Engineering from Lehigh University, (Pennsylvania, USA). She holds an M.Sc in Civil & Environmental Engineering from Howard University (Washington, DC, USA) and a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering from the University of Houston, (Houston, TX, USA).

166? That’s How Many Slaps Some of Us Need

Residents of Gurley Street were  at the dawn of July 26 morning,  rudely awakened by a band of neighbors who had turned cooking utensils (spoons, pans, plates, pots, etc) into musical instruments.  Those with the instruments were accompanied by a separate band of singers with an accompanying group of dancers.  They claimed they were demonstrating their patriotism as Liberians by jubilantly celebrating their country’s independence anniversary. They looked very beautiful in their colorful display of red, white and blue.

Afraid of Aging? (Part I)

If you are afraid of ageing, then cease to exist!

Women these days are so worked-up over aging; they seem to worry about aging more than men do. A friend of mine has been 25 years old since 2006 up to present. A 30-year-old woman (whom I know personally) posted on her facebook page last week, during her birthday, that she, too, is 25. Hilarious, isn’t it? But it is serious, too.

Nowadays, most young women do not want to go past age 25. That’s the number they all want to be---and no more. Ask one of them this year and she will tell you she is 25. Ask her again next year, she is going to be ‘25’. Try again the following year and she will still be ‘25’. That’s where she wants to be and is determined to remain stuck there forever.

Police, Auction Vendors Face-Off

Some street vendors at the corner of Benson & Mechlin Streets in Monrovia

Police in Monrovia have continued to come down hard on street vending, sometimes confiscating wares and arresting the vendors themselves. But these arrests and confiscations do not go without intense tussles between the officers and the sellers. The police are trying to maintain law and order (or should be) on the one hand, while the road-side vendors are jockeying (maneuvering in order to gain an advantage) for a living, a daily affair in which those doing the policing, seem to have the upper hand.  But the clash between the vendors and the police is only on the surface; competition amongst the vendors competing for consignment, customers and selling space, lies at the heart of the controversy.

MIA to Go after Genital Snatchers

Interior Minister Morris Dukuly

The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has said that its attention has been drawn to reports of physical attacks and forceful initiations of young women and girls into cultural and traditional practices. The initiation of girls into the Sande Society have been reported to be rife in several counties. The Ministry has reminded genital mutilators of General Circular No.12, issued in January 2013. Count #3 of the Circular prohibits the use of any tactic, force, to intimidate or compel any person to yield to ritual or traditional practices, especially the forced and often unwanted removal of female genitals.

Travel around rural Liberia today and you will find that parents have devalued education and are now extolling the virtues and efficacies (values, worth, effectiveness) of the traditional methods of the Sande/Poro Societies (bush schools) over formal education for their daughters. They prefer to send their girls to the Sande bush instead of putting them in the modern school system. Were to visit the schools, you would find that most of the teenagers who should be in those class-rooms sitting at home or in training in the bush schools.

Police in Liberia, Sierra Leone 'Most Corrupt'

To The Top Of The Corruption Heap, That Is; And The Two Might Not Be Stepping Down Any Time Soon, Global Survey Suggests

As though fighting for an enviable spot in the sun, Liberia and Sierra Leone have positioned (located, placed) themselves atop the global corruption heap, laying claim to the highest level of corruption reported from around the world. And as a result of their enterprise, more than 75% of respondents surveyed by Transparency International said they can do little but to paying a bribe when accessing public services and institutions.

Sawyer Proposes Borderless Africa

Dr. Sawyer

Former interim President Dr. Amos C. Sawyer is of the strongest conviction that Africa needs no borders, as they restrict the free movement of people, which, he believes, also retards development and civilization.

Making specific reference to West Africa, Dr. Sawyer said a borderless region would create markets, enhance civilization through the movement and interactions of diverse (assorted, various) peoples from different parts of the sub-region. This, he added, would also promote diversity and minimize the unnecessary challenges to constructive identities that people face as a result of moving from one point to the other.

A borderless West Africa, according to Dr. Sawyer, will provide an economic benefit to border areas currently hindered in their development by border formalities. He also believes that this will facilitate the movement of people and goods within the region without lengthy delays at borders because of passport/laiser passer formalities.

Liberia: Sirleaf Fires Many for Corruption

Pres. Sirleaf

Robert Kilby, auditor-general of the General Auditing Commission (GAC), has been fired by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. Dismissed along with him, was his long time friend, the director-general of the General Services Agency (GSA), Ms. Pearine Davis-Parkinson. The duo was dismissed “for non-compliance with, or violation of, public financial management and procurement laws.”

The pair ran out of luck early last week when an act of impropriety on their part was exposed during the ongoing budget hearing at the Capitol. It all started when Parkinson admitted to the budget committee that the GSA, under her command, signed a US$220, 900.00 contract with Kilby’s private accounting firm, Independent Software Certification Institute (ISCI), to carry out asset and fleet management, tracking and reporting system at the GSA. An additional contract entered into by the pair was a US$97, 680.00 deal for the development of a catalog system. But following further review by the Public Procurement and Concessions Commission (PPCC), the Commission found “an undisclosed conflict of interest issue, as the ISCI is owned by Mr. Kilby.”

The Time Is NOW!

President Sirleaf's clarion call must claim every woman's attention

Women leaders have been told that is it up to them to become the advocates, the promoters, the facilitators, to ensure that Goals 2 and 4 of the High-Level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda are fully adopted and implemented.

Chairing the opening ceremony of the 2nd High-Level Meeting of the GlobalPOWER Women Network Africa (GPWNA), in Abuja, last week, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf declared: “The time is now! If not now, when? If not us, who?”

This is very true. But before going into that, let us see what these goals are:

Empower Girls and Women and Achieve Gender Equality serves as the second goal (Goal 2) of the Panel’s Report. It focuses on preventing all forms of violence against girls and women; ending child marriage and ensuring the equal right of women to own and inherit property. This goal also seeks to furnish the female gender with the power to sign contracts, register a business and open a bank account; and eliminate discrimination against women in political, economic and public life.

At the same time, Goal 4, “Ensure Healthy Lives,” would end preventable infant and under-5 deaths; increase the proportion of children, adolescents, at-risk adults and older people that need to be fully vaccinated; continue to decrease the maternal mortality ratio; ensure universal sexual and reproductive health and rights; and reduce the burden of disease from HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, neglected tropical diseases and priority non-communicable diseases.

We must commend President Sirleaf for this clarion call to the women’s world. Just in case you (women leaders) were still fast asleep while this fight for women’s emancipation continued to heat-up, better get out of the way now. In this fight for gender parity, if you can’t lead, we will throw you out of the way and the corridor cleared for those who are willing and ready to lead the charge.

Put a Ring on It

Do have a blissful marriage!

Ask a girl today how she met her man (partner) and she’ll probably tell you, “Oh, we met through a friend.” Not much of an answer, right? But it is truer than we think.  Meeting through a mutual friend turns out to be the most popular answer given by ladies these days. The thing is this, these women feel more secure opening their hearts to such relationships because it is assumed that friends (usually, the true one) won’t set you up with a bad person.

It is believed that there's a sort of a natural screening system in place that makes for better potential matches.  And so, setting you up with means that they are vouching for that person and strongly believe that chances for a good match---be it  for a boyfriend, girlfriend, husband or wife---are pretty good.

And this is exactly what happened in the case of Mohammed Kanneh and Haja Mandjee Sannoh. They met through a mutual friend and the story is told that Mohammed fell head-over-heels in love with her the second he laid eyes on a photo of hers, sent to him by a mutual friend. The gesture was backed by an avalanche of good and encouraging things said about Haja. Barely three months later, the duo upped and got hitched in a traditional ceremony. Last Sunday, June 30 marked their formal marriage, graced by at least 300 persons from all walks of life.

Prince Johnson Fails to Show His Face

Wow, after all the loud talks last Wednesday,  there were no trace of Nimba County Senator Prince Y. Johnson or his “150 strong and able guys” at the Grand Bassa convention last weekend.

The National Union for Democratic Progress (NUDP) of Nimba County Senator Prince Johnson has elected a kinsman, Representative Ricks Toweh, as its acting torchbearer; kicking out the embattled Senator. The party’s newly elected national chairman, Victor G. Bannie, told reporters in Buchanan that the election of Rep. Toweh as the party’s acting political leader was based on the “overwhelming resolution endorsed by the 90 delegates, who attended the convention from across the country.”

Those elected will run the affairs of the party until 2017 at which time, the party will choose a standard-bearer. This means former warring leader Prince Johnson, now Nimba County Senior Senator, has been officially dumped by the NUDP. Senator Johnson founded the NUDP ahead of the 2011 general and presidential elections and came third in those national elections.

Ahead of last weekend’s convention in Buchanan Senator Johnson and officials of the NUDP locked horns in a war of words when Eric Gbemie and Meddricks Gontee bluntly stated that the Senator would be wasting his time attending the convention because he would be an uninvited guest there. They vowed that Senator Johnson would be denied any meaningful participation and will not command any respect from partisans during the convention because he is no longer a member of the party.

 “I am a man of peace but if you bring me trouble, I will teach you sense. I am going to that convention with 150 strong and able guys to protect me,” the Senator had said.

BUT HE FAILED TO SHOW HIS FACE!!!

PYJ Labels Weah’s Strategy a ‘Missed Kick’

Weah believes his ballon d'Or is a unifying symbol

Peace Ambassador George Weah’s approach to peace-building in Liberia---preaching peace through sports to heal a brutally wounded country – has come under serious criticism from Nimba County Senator Prince Johnson; a veritable miss-kick was what Weah’s soccer jamboree amounted to, as far as what this prominent Nimba County spectator says he saw, watching the show from the sidelines.

Liberia: Rejected by NUDP; Prince Johnson Vows to Crash Party Convention with 150 Bodyguards

Johnson says he will march on Buchanan with 150 bodyguards

Nimba County Senator Prince Y. Johnson has dared any member of the National Union for Democratic Progress (NUDP) to attempt barring him from participating in that opposition party’s convention slated for this weekend in the port city of Buchanan, Grand Bassa County.

Senator Johnson and officials of the NUDP yesterday locked horns in a war of words when Eric Gbemie and Meddricks Gontee bluntly stated that the Senator would be wasting his time attending the convention because he would be an uninvited guest there.

Liberia Again Blunders in WASSCE

Liberia has again performed miserably poor in the regionally administered West African Senior Secondary Certificate Exams (WASSCE), formerly known as the West African Examination Council (WAEC) exams annually-administered to senior secondary schools across Anglophone West Africa. This was disclosed by a team of foreign examiners who spearheaded this year’s tests in Liberia.

The Sierra Leonean, Ghanaian and Nigerian examiners blamed the massive failure on the lack of requisite instructional materials. They made the disclosure at a dinner reception held in their honor earlier this week.

According to the examiners, the success of Liberian students depends largely on what they are being taught. Against this backdrop, the team of foreign examiners recommended that the required instructional materials be made available in the country; adding that if Liberian students must do well in these annually-administered tests and be on par with their regional peers, government, through the Ministry of Education, will have to invest in making available and accessible much-needed instructional materials for schools and students.

They expressed optimism that Liberian students have the potential of performing well once the right things are done.

The foreign examiners however admonished their Liberian colleagues to make sure the integrity of the exams is held high. They also encouraged their peers to be ethical and stop taking money from students under the pretext of helping them sail smoothly through the tests. 

From time immemorial proctors have been accused of helping to foster malpractices during the annually-administered WASSCE, formerly WAEC exams, for junior and senior secondary schools across the West African sub-region. Some exam monitors have been accused of collecting what is referred to as “flexibility” fees from candidates, pledging to sneak in answers while the tests are being administered.

For its part, the local WEAC office welcomed suggestions put forth by their foreign colleagues; pledging to protect the integrity of the exercise at all times.

This year’s exams were administered under tight surveillance. Both candidates and proctors were all subjected to going through screening by metal detectors. The goal was to ensure that the exams were completely fraud-free. As the metal detectors blew alarm on students with mobiles, calculators, text books, among other prohibited items, it did so, too, for the proctors.

A total of 15,171 male candidates and 17,349 female candidates are also participated in the exams, bringing to the figure for both male and female candidates in the senior high division to 26,992. The weeklong exams ran from June 3 through June 7.

In Montserrado alone, there were testing centers in 87 schools. In total, there were 178 testing centers and 416 school building were used in the process.