Do the right thing, Madam President

Your recent action in fighting the Ebola Virus decease is commendable and I want to join others in commending you on your effort. However, my attention is drawn to your recent strategy – the setting up of a Withholding Center within the West Point community and the AFL recent action also in the West Point area in which a 16-year old boy was killed.

We all in Liberia know for sure that the area of West Point is a cluster community and one that is densely populated. Such a center was not to be set up there in the first place. The recent atrocity committed by the AFL in the same community in which a 16-year old boy was killed worth condemnation and is the reason for my writing this article and wants to join others that are calling for the resignation or removal of the Minister of National Defense.

A Lesson in Leadership

Madam President for good or bad you must make decisions that will continue to mold and shape our beloved country for generations to come. In this you must accentuate the good decisions and find a way to reshape the bad. That in essence is the challenge of effective leadership. John F. Kennedy once noted, “Our problems are manmade . . . therefore, they can be solved by man.” It stands to reason that many of the problems we face in Liberia today can be solved by the application of exactly the quality that has gone missing in our society. If Liberia’s problems can be solve by Liberians, effective leadership must lead the way.

Know that you – and this is true for all leaders – hold in your hand the power to right social wrongs and point Liberia towards success. Effective leaders carry with them the hopes and dreams of many who wish only to become more than they are. And so if you don’t lead yourself, you will always be subject to the winds of societal change, finding yourself more poorly prepared to confront each new assault. The case of Ebola for example.

Madam President, the great need now for the hour is not much talking but action – an action that is positive, constructive, dynamic, creative and effective. We have an epidemic that is ragging, destructive and is a killer. It is a defeat to us that Nigeria, with over 200 million people and ten times bigger than we are has been able to contain the Ebola Virus in less than three months. This is a shame to us as a people and nation. This shows that Nigeria has had a better strategy in fighting the virus than we do. Think about this, Madam President. This is not time to pretend that we are on top the situation when in fact it is glaring to both Liberians and our friends outside that we are failing.

Madam President one of the true tests of leadership is the ability to recognize a problem before it becomes an emergency. Your administration has failed this test. I give Nigeria a 200 percent for fighting an epidemic that did enter into their country unaware but has been able to contain it in less than three months. We were aware as the Ebola Virus was next door and your administration had no strategy and a contingency plan in stopping the virus from entering into Liberia.

Understand that the effective leader has the “insight” needed for any given situation. Know that insight is penetration into character or circumstances with understanding. At the core of leadership is achieving specific, beneficial results through people. This is what all leaders do. The challenge, Madam President, is to increase results in a more consistent, efficient, and effective way.

To contribute more to the overall effort as President of this country, your Administration fight against Ebola and our declining economy, you will need to have certain values . . . integrity, a servant’s heart, and stewardship. To enable members on your team to contribute more to your administration and to Liberia, they must trust you as a leader and themselves, possess a commitment to the cause, and remain loyal and faithful to the effort. But what we continue to see as Liberians is a very little commitment and effort on the part of your Administration and team.

Liberia, with its vast natural resources is one of the poorest in the world, our health-care delivery system is virtually non-existent, prices of commodities are skyrocketing, our educational system lies in ruins and Liberians are dying in large numbers due to your. Administration inability to act decisively. Think on these things, Madam President.

(Chealy Brown Dennis is a consultant and a much sought after motivational speaker and offers training in organizational leadership, and business development concept and planning, creative sales and marketing, strategic planning and team building. He also offers workbooks, on-location and train-the-trainer formats for leaders, managers, businesses and organizations. He can be contacted through email at: dennisbc2011@yahoo.com or on phone at: 0886-264-611 or 0776545394)