IPNEWS: IPNEWS: The use of private jets by the President for international trips has always sparked criticism over its cost to taxpayers, particularly as the country’s economy continues to struggle.
The former President Weah was heavily criticized by the now-ruling Unity Party for this practice when it was an opposition party, but now, as a ruling party, the trend seems to be adopted.
From the onset of the Joseph Boakai’s regime, just a fortnight after the inauguration, Vice President Jeremiah Koung was captured boarding a private jet leaving Liberia. He came under fire for engaging in the acts that they criticized, for which former President George Weah was voted out in the November 2023 run-off election.
Vice President Jerimiah Koung, in his own defense, explained that the private jet was not chartered by him; rather, he was offered a ride by a Ghanaian businessman who was also en-route from Monrovia to Accra. According to Vice President Koung, he was on his way to Nigeria to represent President Boakai at the Bayelsa State Governor’s Inauguration.
The flying of private jets was a major issue during the administration of former President George Weah, who reportedly spent huge sums of money on private jets during his presidency.
Upon his return from the Africa Business Summit in the United States, President Boakai told journalists that he flew commercial because Liberia does not have a plane of its own and he would continue to fly commercial unless someone decides to send a private jet for him.
However, on Wednesday morning, President Boakai was seen boarding a private jet with tail number CN-SYA bound for Guinea Bissau. The Minister of State for Presidential Affairs told reporters at the Roberts International Airport that the President was paying a one-day working visit to the President of Guinea Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, to discuss issues affecting the ECOWAS region.
Later it was established that the plane is registered as a private jet, but the owner’s information remains private. The flight information also revealed that the private jet arrived in Monrovia from Morocco, just about the same time President Boakai arrived from the United States. The plane remained at the airport and then took President Boakai to and from Guinea Bissau while making brief stops in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
on December 21st President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr., departed Monrovia on board an ‘Eco World Airlines Inc.’, chartered plane again, owned by Nigerian Business man, Nelson B. Oniyama’, for week-long visit to Lofa County, marking series of cultural celebrations and engagements with traditional leaders and residents.
While, in Lofa county, President Boakai celebrated with Bong, Grand Gedeh, Lofa, and Nimba Counties on their 60th Anniversary of Attaining County Status back in 1964 at the Unification Park, on Sunday, December 22, 2024, with subsequent visit to the people of Quardu-Gboni District, Lofa County the next day, on December 23.
The Liberian President Boakai, on December 24, broke Grounds for Kioo Radio Station in Foya, Lofa county. Eerier that morning, President Boakai granted ‘Executive Clemency’ to 38 inmates at the Monrovia Central Prison. This decision, rooted in the constitutional authority vested in the President under Chapter 6, Article 59 of the 1986 Liberian Constitution, underscores the Administration’s dedication to upholding the principles of fairness, magnanimity and rehabilitation. The inmates granted clemency include 37 Liberian nationals and one foreign national of Chinese origin.
On December 25, President Joseph N. Boakai, Sr. celebrated Christmas with the people of Foya, Lofa County, and subsequently held talks on peace and reconciliation in the District. Foya City. Thereafter paid a visit at the Dufangadu Elementary and Junior High Public School in Foya District.by President Boakai.
On Thursday, December 27, President Joseph N. Boakai broke grounds for the rehabilitation of the 47 kilometer stretch of road from Foya City to Foya Tengia on to Worsonga through Konkpama Town.
The next day, Saturday, December 28, President Joseph N. Boakai, Sr. departed Liberia for the Republic of Ghana on board another charted flight.
According to the Executive Mansion, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr., visit is a two-day visit to Accra, Ghana, where he will hold consultations with his Colleagues, the outgoing as well as the incoming Presidents of Ghana, Excellencies Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and John Dramani Mahama.
A statement from the Presidential Press Secretary, stated that during President Boakai’s visit, the President will honor an invitation to attend the wedding ceremony of the Daughter of a longstanding friend of his.
“This visit underscores the strong bond of friendship and cooperation between Liberia and Ghana and reaffirms the President’s commitment to fostering regional solidarity and collaboration. Honorable Samuel Kofi Woods, National Security Advisor will accompany the President. While the President is away from the country, the Honorable Counselor Oswald N. Tweh, Minister of Justice, will preside over the Cabinet while remaining in contact with the Vice President and in consultation with the President. The President returns to the Capital on Monday, December 30, 2024.” Government official statement read.
Prior to his election, President Joseph Boakia and the Unity Party criticized former President George M. Weah for using public funds to charter private jets.
Barely twelve months into his presidency, Boakia has been seen arriving in a chartered helicopter to his home county of Lofa, despite a reported $22 million spent on rehabilitating roads without tangible prove.
Critics of President Boakai contents that President Boakai was elected for ‘change’, and not for hypocrisy, by doing the same things which Liberians resisted.
In early May 2028, former Liberian President George Manneh Weah came under serious criticism for chartering a private jet amidst heighten economic hardship and low income for public Health workers and other civil servants.
With mounting pressure, former President Weah confirmed that the private jet was a gift from a friend in Burkina Faso. The former President clarified that claims that the plane has been bought by the government are far from reality, as the government has greater priorities to better the lives of the Liberian people than to commit $30 million (Thirty Million United States Dollars) to purchase a private jet.
“The airplane issue is causing problem. We don’t have a bus, how will we buy a $30 million plane? Where do they get this kind of news from? It is not possible for us to buy a plane for $30 million; we are just coming to office,” the former President quipped.
“The airplane they are talking about is for my friend, who is the manager of a big company in Burkina Faso. He told me to use it anytime I want to travel because he has seen me use planes owned by Ivory Coast and others. He wants me use a plane that is not labeled to boost my moral too,” the Liberian President added.
However, President Weah failed to neither name the friend or the company he manages. Neither did he say what the terms and conditions of the arrangement are.
Article 9.1 of the Code of Conduct Act says: “Public Officials and Employees of Government shall not receive nor encourage the giving of any form of bribe or casual gift in connection with the performance of his or her official duties, whether for himself or herself or members of his or her family or any other benefits that could have any influence on his or her professional approach to issues and the discharge of his or her official duties. This shall not include gifts given during traditional ceremonies and celebrations, and fees paid for Lobbying. The Legislature shall enact laws for the regulation of lobbying activities,”
Former President George Weah further argued that buying plane for the country will not be a bad idea, but such plane will be for commercial purposes to take Liberians to and fro the country, stressing “But the first plane will not be private.”
He reminded Liberians that he is a celebrity who has so many friends that are willing to help him in whatever way they can, adding that when someone decides to help him should not be an issue; as in the case of the private jet.
Back home in the Liberian capital, Monrovia, President Joseph Nyumah Boakai is facing intense backlash from Liberians on social media after it was revealed that he attended a friend’s daughter’s wedding in Accra, funded by taxpayer money. Critics are questioning the president’s priorities as the nation grapples with a host of pressing issues.
Many are puzzled by Boakai’s ability to engage in such extravagant activities while Liberia suffers from severe shortages in healthcare and education. Hospitals are reportedly lacking essential medical supplies, and nurses have gone on strike due to unpaid wages. Civil servants are also facing delays in salary payments, leaving many families struggling to make ends meet. The closure of the University of Liberia has left students without access to education, compounding the challenges faced by the youth.
“Is this the so-called ‘rescue’ our people were promised?” asked one disillusioned citizen. “While the president enjoys lavish celebrations, our hospitals are running out of supplies, and children are out of school.”
The criticism intensified as details emerged about the ongoing legislative battles over the national budget, with allegations that officials are prioritizing personal gain over the welfare of the citizens. “The executive seems more focused on stealing than serving,” another commentator noted, highlighting the disconnect between the government and the struggles of ordinary Liberians.
As daily disasters, including fires, plague various communities, the public is demanding accountability and transparency from their leaders. “What has Liberia done to deserve this punishment from Boakai and his administration?” questioned a frustrated activist. “It feels like we are enslaved in our own country under this 80-year-old administration.”
The stark contrast between Boakai’s current lifestyle and the dire conditions faced by many Liberians has ignited a firestorm of criticism, prompting calls for a re-evaluation of leadership priorities and an urgent response to the ongoing crises.
Recently, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai was once more under criticism for flying a private jet to the 66th ECOWAS Summit in Abuja, Nigeria, sparking accusations of hypocrisy and poor judgment.
Critics, including prominent supported of President Boakai, activist Martin K. N. Kollie, labeled Boakai’s decision as a betrayal of his campaign promise to end wasteful spending under his “Rescue Mission” agenda. In a statement issued on Monday, December 16, 2024, Kollie accused President Boakai of failing to live up to his own standards of governance.
“Flying a private jet amid extreme hardship and unemployment is ultra vires to ‘RESCUE.’ Wrong decision. Poor economic judgment. Waste of public resources. Bad optics,” Kollie wrote.
Kollie revealed detailed flight information, tracking President Boakai’s travel on a Bombardier Challenger 604 private jet, operated by a private owner. According to the data, the jet departed Monrovia on December 14, 2024, at 10:43 AM and arrived in Abuja after a two-hour, thirty-four-minute flight.
Highlighting the contradiction in Boakai’s actions, Kollie reminded the public of the President’s past criticism of former President Weah for similar expenditures.
“You are on record for calling such a lavish precedent ‘wasteful and wrong in a poor country,’” Kollie stated. “We condemned Weah then, and we condemn you now for doing exactly what you criticized.”
Kollie also raised concerns about transparency, calling for full disclosure of the costs associated with the flight. He urged the Boakai administration to reveal who paid for the flight, how much it cost, and whether public funds were involved.
“As an ‘open and transparent’ government, we expect full disclosure. These lavish expenditures only fuel public distrust and deepen economic hardship.”
The activist emphasized the economic struggles Liberians face, including shortages in medical supplies, rising youth unemployment, and thousands of students at institutions like the University of Liberia (UL) and MVTC being out of school due to financial constraints.
“Over 20,000 students are out of school because of no money, but you are traveling on a private jet just for a routine meeting in Nigeria. What returns does Liberia get from this?” Kollie questioned.
Kollie also criticized the optics of the decision, stressing that flying a private jet does little to address Liberia’s economic woes and instead further depletes national resources.
“Traveling on a chartered flight to an ECOWAS meeting does not put food on our people’s table. It only bleeds our national coffers further. The people, most of whom are still jobless and poverty-stricken, are watching.”
The statement concluded with a call for President Boakai to adjust his leadership decisions and live by his campaign mantra of “No Business as Usual.” Kollie underscored that genuine supporters of Boakai’s administration are speaking out not out of malice but from a love for Liberia.
“We supported you because we love Liberia, not politicians. These truths must be told because Liberia comes first.”
In early April 2022, former U.S. Ambassador to Liberia Michael A. McCarthy, in celebration of the life of former Liberia President Joseph J. Roberts, 213 birth anniversary, cause confusion in Monrovia when he wrote a open letter From which highlights the complexities on Liberia’s under development to massive corruption and the don’t care posture by its Leaders to take Liberia to the noblest heights.
From the onset of his nomination as the United States Ambassador to Liberia by ex-president Donald J. Trump, Ambassador Michael McCarthy had it firm in his mind that a greater part of his mission in Liberia would be to stem out corruption, work towards improving human rights and rule of law and that’s what he told Congress on Thursday, August 6, 2020 when he appeared for confirmation hearing.
“Liberia cannot and should not backtrack from the progress it has made to increase transparency and fight corruption, integral to establishing the conditions necessary for foreign investment. Liberia’s growth and development will depend on increased trade and investment, which in turn will require that U.S. and international businesses are confident they can compete openly and fairly and that any concerns will find remedy in an honest and impartial justice system,” he said in his address to the Senators.
In his open letter, titled: “What Would J.J. Roberts Have to Say about Liberia today?”, Ambassador Michael McCarthy reflects how many years ago in the United States before emigrating to Liberia at 20 years old, he asked myself ‘what Joseph Jenkins Roberts would say about Liberia today?
Ambassador McCarthy recounted how more than sixty years after the arrival of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Liberia, 19 years after the end of the civil war crisis, and seven years after the eradication of Ebola, the taxpayers of the United States contributed to Liberia over $110 million per year of foreign assistance, including over $79 million per year donated to the health sector yet nothing tangible is seen in the improvement of country’s healthcare delivery.
Ambassador McCarthy further narrates how an approximately $9 million is specifically for purchasing medications and commodities for the Liberian people and improving the Ministry of Health’s effective distribution and warehousing of pharmaceuticals. Despite those extra support, the government of the United States learned regularly about places like Kolahun in Lofa County and Sanniquellie in Nimba County, where clinics and hospitals must make do without even the most basic drugs.
The former U.S. Diplomate stated that troublingly, the U.S. Embassy investigations indicates that not only are some citizens diverting public medical resources and low-cost drugs for personal gain, but that babies, young children, and birthing mothers are dying needlessly as a result.
SEE FULL TEXT OF ‘What would J.J. Roberts have to say about this?’
As a Peace Corps volunteer, I was blessed to live for two years in villages (without electricity or running water) in West Africa. First thing every morning, each household would take advantage of the cool, early morning daylight to sweep inside and outside and dispose of debris. Villagers then coordinated with the local government to deliver waste daily to a designated landfill.
The state of cleanliness in the city of Monrovia, which is more developed and a far wealthier community, sadly does not compare.
Last month, I was surprised at the words of city leadership on Monrovia Day. A senior official lamented that unlike his previous three years in office, “no donor or external partner is funding the recurrent cost of solid waste collection and disposal,” implying that he was abandoned by the international community. Is there a more basic local government responsibility than the collection and proper disposal of garbage?
Would Liberia’s first president have imagined that, 175 years after independence, foreigners should be held responsible for the removal of garbage in his capital city?
On February 25, we learned that a Rhode Island State Representative, Nathan W. Biah, Sr., is donating electronic voting equipment to the Liberian House. This is not the first of such equipment donated to help make Liberia’s top legislative body more transparent to its citizens.
I have been reliably informed that a previous e-voting system was installed in 2014 by the U.S. taxpayer-funded National Democratic Institute (NDI), but it was never used.
For his part, President Weah said during his December 10 Summit for Democracy speech (https://www.state.gov/official-interventions-the-summit-for-democracy/ ): “Over the next year, we intend to introduce legislative transparency by making all votes public so that constituents can hold their lawmakers accountable for their actions, which is a fundamental element of any healthy democracy.” I hope the legislature embraces this latest opportunity to increase citizen awareness of the actions of their elected officials.
Would J.J. Roberts have believed that in modern Liberia, a constitutional republic where “all power is inherent in its people,” legislators would purposely neglect to use a tool created to educate citizens on how their democratically elected representatives vote?
The United States of America has, no doubt, also failed to live up to some of the aspirations of our first president, but I believe George Washington would be pleased to know that the country he fought to establish would today be working to support democracy and fight corruption both at home and in places like Liberia.
The U.S. House of Representatives introduced Resolution 907 on February 4 of this year, which encourages Liberia to redouble its efforts to counter corruption and advance the causes of human rights. It also urges Liberia to implement critical economic reforms necessary to accelerate sustainable economic growth and human capital development.
Finally, it calls on the U.S. Treasury and State Departments to continue to impose targeted sanctions against those responsible for undermining the rule of law and trust of the Liberian people through corruption, gross violations of human rights, and other acts that threaten the peace and security of Liberia.
Days later, in her address at SKD Stadium on February 14, Special Assistant to the President of the United States Dana Banks stated that “corruption eats away at the democracy you have worked so hard to build. But ultimately, only the Liberian Government and the Liberian people can tackle corruption, fight for accountability and transparency, and move this country forward.”
As these statements indicate, the U.S. Government is sufficiently concerned about corruption in Liberia to sanction individuals. Corruption leads to citizen frustration and has had destabilizing effects on countries in the region. It poses significant risks to peace and democracy.
How would Liberia’s first statesman feel to know that his country’s top ally was compelled to sanction members of Liberia’s government just to preserve rule of law and the democracy he helped establish?
