–To Chronicle Major Achievements Ahead of 2023 October Elections
–Top of Agenda: Elections, Economy, Electricity, Infrastructure, Health, Education, National Security, Water & Sanitation, Others
IPNEWS: Later today, Monday, January 30th, President George Manneh Weah will deliver his final State of the Nation Address (SONA) to the 54th Legislature in his first term in fulfillment of his duty in accordance with Article 58 of the Constitution of Liberia.
In keeping with the Constitution of Liberia, the President of Liberia is mandated each year on the forth working Monday in January to present his Legislative Program of the Administration for the ensuring Session and report on the State of the Republic, covering the economic condition of the Nation, including expenditure and income.
The actual fourth working Monday in January 2023 was on the 23rd of the month, but IPNEWS gathered that due to the New Year’s Day holiday celebration falling on the first Monday, January 2, 2023, it was decided that the President’s State of the Nation Address be pushed to January 30, 2023. The New Year holiday was on Sunday, January 1, 2023 but had to be celebrated on Monday, January 2, 2023 since Sunday is already predominantly Christian worship day since the foundation of the country was laid in 1847 in keeping with Christian principles.
The Year 2022 under Review
Since today, Monday January 30, 2023 is going to be President Weah’s last State of the Nation Address to the 54th Legislature, which is also sitting in its final Session before the October 2023 Presidential and Legislative Elections, the Liberian leader is expected to inform the lawmakers and the nation, that in collaboration with the Legislature, how many legislations were passed into law during the period under review, and will definitely remind the Legislature to double up their efforts in the passage of those other legislations are that still before them for passage, with the hope that they can be passed before the conduct of the October 2023 presidential and legislative elections.
President Weah will use the SONA to count on the 54th Legislature to consider the expeditious passage of these pending bills, as well as the other new bills which he will be submitting to them for their timely consideration during this Sixth Session. The President will fervently hope that the Executive and Legislature will continue to work together collaboratively, in the best interest of the Liberian People, to timely execute their Constitutional duties.
Passage of the Dual Citizenship Law
During the 2022 State of the Nation Address, President highlighted to the 54th Legislature the pending celebration of the bicentennial, year of the return, in which he laid keen emphasis on the need for passage of the dual citizenship law.
The President recounted during the Kick-Off program of the Bicentennial at the Providence Island in Monrovia to commemorate the day that the settlers landed here, when he called on Liberians to redouble their efforts to promote unity amongst all Liberians worldwide, and encourage all to make meaningful contributions to the nation-building task of the country. “For …”in union strong, success is sure. We cannot fail…”
President Weah used the time to commend the Supreme Court for its Opinion handed down on 23 December 2019, which found that certain provisions of the Alien and Nationality Law are inconsistent with the Constitution of Liberia.
For instance, the current Alien and Nationality Law provides that “a natural-born Liberian citizen automatically loses his or her citizenship, without any due process of law in a court in Liberia, upon taking up citizenship of another country or acting in some capacity for that country.” This law undermines our quest for unity amongst all Liberians – everywhere! The President said in 2022.
Therefore, as Liberians celebrated the Bicentennial anniversary of the founding of their country, President Weah then called on the Members of the 54th Legislature, in particular the Liberian Senate, to consider passage of the Bill that was before them, which sought to codify the Opinion of the Supreme Court and make it more true that … “once a Liberian – always a Liberian.”
And so, with the passage of the dual citizenship law, President Weah is expected to laud the Legislature for that feat and urge them to pass with urgency other crucial bills before for the betterment of the country.
The passage came after more than four decades of hard pushes, including many tireless advocacies, negotiations, and maneuverings by Liberians living in the diaspora lobbying for their legislators to enact this bill recognizing dual citizenship. The Liberian Senate on Tuesday, July 19, 2022, concurred with the House of Representatives and passed into law the bill granting the wishes of their compatriots— Diaspora Liberians.
Public Expenditure and National Income
The Constitution places upon President Weah the solemn responsibility to report to the State of the Republic, with specific mention of public expenditure and national income. He will report on Revenue collection for 2022, including grants received as compared to the year 2021.
The president will state reason for revenue performance whether it was driven by higher receipts of tax and non-tax revenues, especially taxes on international trade. He will inform the 54th Legislature how much domestic tax was generated and how much external resources were received from the country’s Development partners in the period under review.
For an example, fiscal year 2021 recorded the highest level of domestic revenue performance since the end of the civil conflict. The President will state whether that has changed by going up or it has retrogress downward due to economic factors he will have to explain if that were the case.
On the other hand, President Weah will report to the 54th Legislature the total cash expenditure for the period under review. He will state the percent that was spent on compensation of Government employees, on goods and services, on domestic and international debt, and on Public Sector Investment.
Revise of Fiscal Year as to Calendar Year in Line with ECOWAS Countries
For at least the last five decades, Liberia has had a fiscal year that runs from July 1 to June 30. Liberia has been the only country in the ECOWAS sub-region that has run this fiscal year, which is out of alignment with the rest of the countries in the region. President Weah told the 54th Legislature in January 2022 that Liberia had been encouraged by ECOWAS for nearly two decades since the end of the civil war to revise its fiscal calendar.
With Liberia subsequently revising the Fiscal Year as to the Calendar Year, President Weah will proudly report to the 54th Legislature that the change has finally taken place, and the year 2022 was the First Fiscal Year that is also a Calendar Year for the national budget and other instruments and processes of the Government.
To facilitate this transition, the government had to enact a special transitional budget which was approved by the Legislature in 2021.
Passage of 2022 Fiscal Year Budget as Highest in Country’s History
President Weah will report to the 54th Legislature how the passage of the 2022 budget of US$$785.6 million made it the highest in the country’s history, pending the passage of the 2023 National Budget which is currently before that august body of government.
He will report whether the 2022 budget became transformative as planned by the government, including the realization of the projections made in Domestic revenue and external resources.
In the Fiscal Year 2022 budget government increased capital spending in response to the need for more development. The government put more resources to solving the many development challenges confronting the people in various sectors. President Weah will today report to whether those plans came to fruition in the period under review.
Those capital investments the government increased capital spending in the 2022 budget included roads, electricity, education, national security, health, water and sanitation, transport and several other sectors.
President Weah will also update the 54th Legislature how the US$10 million approved by the Legislature for projects under the County Tour that he undertook have brought relief to the people or not, especially those in rural areas.
The Liberian leader is also expected to update the Legislature on how working with them to limit tax waivers or tax expenditures, which in the last three years alone have cost the government of Liberia more than US$300 million, have either save government money or not. The president said in 2022 while duty free privileges and incentives are important to spur development, he believes that, as a country, Liberians have been too generous with these instruments and must now begin to take a more conservative approach.
President Weah will also inform the 54th Legislature on the update of the significant progress made in restructuring the country’s domestic debt.
The President will also urge the Legislature together with the Executive and Judiciary to continue to show strong gains in the fight against corruption, money laundering and illicit financial flows.
In 2023, he said the Government was strengthening and empowering the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission to prevent fraud and acts of corruption before they occur. The Legislature has already passed the new LACC Act giving a broader mandate to the LACC to fight corruption. And with the passing also of the new anti-money-laundering legislation, which empowers the Financial Intelligence Unit, now Financial Intelligent Agency (FIA) to fight illicit financial flows, such as money laundering, and drug and terrorist financing, President Weah will tell the Legislature the impact of those institutions in the fight against corruption, as his administration spares no effort to bring Liberia within international compliance in the fight against corruption and illicit financial flows.
President Weah is also expected to update the 54th Legislature on the status of the economy, which he said in 2022 had rebound strongly following the setback from the COVID-19 pandemic. “The medium term outlook is favorable and the authorities are committed to steadfast implementation of their macroeconomic stabilization and structural reform program,” the President said in 2022.
It is also expected that the Liberia leader will reaffirm his government’s commitment to the independence and autonomy of the Central Bank of Liberia in support of economic reforms for a stable economy. “Although the year under review was challenging for the economy, my Government was fully supportive of policy implementations from the CBL that have kept the recovery of our economy on course,” President Weah said in 2022. So the lawmakers should a new update in that direction.
In the 2022 SONA, President Weah said in effort to extend the visibility of the Central Bank of Liberia beyond Monrovia, the Bank completed the construction of a modern cash hub in Gbarnga, Bong County, to provide more financial services for our people outside Monrovia, which was dedicated by him in December of 2021. He did say the Bank was planning to commence the construction of an additional four (4) cash hubs in other rural areas of the country that will make it easy to access financial facilities. In this regard, the 54th Legislature is expected to be fully briefed on the status of the CBL expansion exercise in other rural areas.
As part of the currency reform approved by you, the members of the 54th National Legislature, the Central Bank of Liberia brought in the first consignment of banknotes totaling L$4.0 billion Liberian dollars out of the approved L$48.734 billion Liberian dollars in November 2021. The second consignment is expected in January 2022. The first and second consignments are all denominated in 100 dollars bills, only intended to respond to the liquidity demand in December of last year and to commence the replacement of mutilated banknotes respectively.
The bulk of the new currency, which will include coins, is expected in the second half of 2022, while the balance will be coming in 2024. In compliance with the restriction of the Joint Resolution of the National Legislature, there will be no printing or delivery of the new currency in 2023, even though the exchange exercise will continue through 2023.
President Weah is also expected to report on the latest regarding the printing and infusion of the new Liberian bank notes and coins approved by the Legislature two years ago.
In the interest of transparency and credibility, the Central Bank of Liberia ensured that the process was inclusive of the Legislature, media community, the Liberian Marketing Association, the Liberia Business Association, traditional elders and youths, as well as international partners, including the IMF and Kroll through USAID. The President will update the Legislature and the nation about the new bank notes.
Foreign Policy Objectives
In accordance with the guiding principles of Liberia’s Foreign Policy Objectives, which stipulate the maintenance of national security; the preservation of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the country; the promotion of peace and harmony based on the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other states; and the promotion of unity in the international community based on the values of liberal democracy, President Weah will report during the period under review what significant roles the country played in promoting its Foreign Policy Objectives and strengthening its foreign relations at the bilateral and multilateral levels, which targets productive results and affirms the country leadership in the comity of nations.
Consistent with Liberia’s international obligations, President Weah will report its participation in the activities of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN); either virtually or in-person.
It is also expected the President will report to the 54th Legislature all of the international engagements it made with its partners across the globe.
Office of the First Lady of Liberia
It is also expected that President Weah will report to the 54th Legislature progress of the charitable works the First Lady of Liberia, Mrs. Clar Marie Weah initiated, because her Office benefits from the national budget. Key amongst the First Lady’s charitable works are the construction of infrastructure to accommodate some of the less fortunate in the Liberian society. As a result of her passion to help Liberians move towards prosperity in support of the Pro-poor Agenda, she established the Clar Hope Foundation in 2018. One of its major initiatives is the City of Hope, which is a multipurpose complex that will provide quality education to 200 girls between the ages of 3 – 5, as well as serve as a refuge, a home, and a rehabilitation center for destitute Liberians, including disadvantaged youths, orphans, and street girls. The complex is comprised of modern dormitories to accommodate the students and the staff, a vocational training center, two academic school buildings with a 300-student capacity, an administrative building, and a number of guest houses, a conference center, and a clinic. A progress report is expected to be provided by President Weah to the Legislature today.
The Energy Sector and Basic Social Services
President Weah will also report the progress that has been made in the energy sector, with specific reference to electricity, which has always been strong challenge for the government. He is expected to report the level of household connectivity and challenges thereof to expand throughout the entire country.
The Liberian leader is also expected to update the Legislature on status of The Millennium Challenge Compact signed between the Government of Liberia and the Government of the United States of America that came to an end on January 21, 2021, after 5 years of implementation. The Compact provided a grant of $257 million U.S. dollars for the electricity and road sectors. The Compact also contributed $147 million US dollars to the rehabilitation of Mt. Coffee Hydro Power Plant and the increase of connections from 34,000 customers to over 82,000. The Liberia Electricity Regulatory Commission was also established under the Compact which is now empowered to license private operators in the electricity sector.
Additionally, an $18 million U.S. dollars raw water pipeline was constructed which has led to savings of $780,000 U. S. dollars annually on pumping costs. These are only but a few of the projects covered under the Compact. So with the end of the compact, President Weah will report to the Legislature what his government is doing to get The Millennium Challenge Compact which has been so good to Liberia.
There are so many things that President Weah will report on today to the 54th Legislature, including Agriculture, Education, Health, Youth Activities, Vocational Education, Pro-Poor Housing Projects, Climate Change, Environment, Disaster, Investment and Concession, Rural Development, Rural Electrification, National security, Infrastructure, Decentralization of central process, among many others.
In conclusion, it is expected that President Weah will report that it has not been all smooth sailing, as he will definitely highlight the challenges his government encountered and continues to encounter leading to the 2023 October presidential and legislative elections.
Liberians, foreign residents and the international will all be eager to hear what President Weah will report today to the 54th Legislature in its Sixth Session, which is the last ahead of the 2023 October presidential and legislative elections. It is expected at 4:00 pm today, Monday January 30, 2023 President George Weah will deliver his last State of the Nation Address, if he is not reelected, or when he is reelected, Liberians and the world should expect him in January 2024 for his first State of the Nation of Address in the beginning of his Second Term of Office.
