It is a fact that governments engage in certain exercises to pull wool over the eyes of their electorates and the Assets Declaration could be seen as one of those deceptive moves. Let it be noted that declarations in secrecy are contradictions in terms. It would have been better to dub the exercise as an Assets Lodging one taking note of the fact that the lodging does take place as required by law .
As a matter of policy we neither engage in sycophancy nor in negative criticism. This is because we believe that it is only by objective criticism that this nation can forge ahead in a positive way. By indulging in praise-singing there is a tendency for our leaders to be vain, egoistic and self-complacent which is a factor that was mainly responsible for the downfall of the APCÂ in the last elections .
Transparency and accountability are the rationale for the declaration of assets but if the contents of the declaration are secret and known only to the ACC to which it is declared where lies the transparency? What is the guarantee that the documents declared used as a public show cannot be altered and some other documents put in their place by the unreliable ACC? In such a case the public at large finds itself enmeshed in the minutiae of bureaucracy. Are we not being fooled? The convoluted process involved in the declaration smacks of some futile end results .To give an appearance of reality to the pointless exercise even office messengers earning Le 500,000 (Five Hundred Thousand Leones) monthly are required to declare their assets. It was at first a manual filling of forms but this has now been altered to electronic filling. With the new method there is no room for verification that used to be done by Magistrates and Justices of the Peace. Employees can now fill in anything and submit them to fulfill the requirements of the law.
According to law the President has now declared his assets in secret and called on other government officials to do the same but citizens who are patriotic are not amused with this move. It was the outgone APC that added prosecutorial powers to the ACC which is commendable. The SLPP that established the ACC can also do one more modification of the ACC to make declaration of assets public. What is the whole secrecy about? The whole bunch of sturdy rogues in the outgone government have sadly made away with their loot because the useless exercise of verifying whether their ill-gotten gains were commensurate with their salaries was not done by the ACC .
In neighbouring Liberia former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf declared her assets on assuming office and retiring publicly all because she was sure of her genuine possessions .Why do we in this country only copy examples of other countries that suit our kleptocratic purposes and not those that will prosper the country?
President Maada Bio’s new direction should not be seen to be bending towards the old beaten track .Let there be a change in the secrecy of this essential declaration in this country.