Economic Predators, Not Solution to Liberia’s Problems

A predator is usually a voracious, greedy, and murderous animal that exploits the helplessness of another to cannibalize. When situated amongst the suffering people of Liberia, a predator adopts a chameleon character by pretending to rescue the people from their economic misery and provide  equitable life, only for the predator’s selfish interest-to live fat and large while the people wallops in extreme poverty. This is the nature of an economic predator-to use and abuse the loyalty of the people without regard to help create opportunities for  improving the living condition of the people.

I am inspired to keyboard this piece considering the moral decomposition which has taken hold of our national voyage. Such creates wrestling thoughts, toward maintaining the sacrifices of the suffering Liberian majority, for peace and stability. No doubt, the so-called Liberian political and educated class has normalized social pathology through unrestrained greed to maintain a deviant and deceptive’s in the cause of the people’s struggles. I am not here speaking just about those serving in big government positions but the general Liberian leadership from the Church, School, Civil Service, Political parties ect. Certainly, in Liberia, positive moral conduct is vilified and discounted for national leadership, under a false claim of “making sacrifices”.

So much so that Minister Amara Konneh was frustrated to publicly query how public officials “are spending” money from the national treasury without proven results to improving the lives of the suffering people. Unfortunately, Minister Konneh’s frustration is wrapped up in the depraved Liberian social pathologies of elitism, educated tyranny, and narcissism, inherited by successive generations of economic predators in the form of religious leaders, degrees achievers, political parties’ leaders, government officials, and even members of the civil service. These banal economic predators have normalized BAD GOVERNANCE-corruption, lack of accountability and transparency- as acceptable socio-political behavior. This moral corrosion in Liberia results from sociopathic and psychopathic characters, groomed as national leaders, thereby crippling national development while BAD GOVERNANCE is incentivized. Sartre was correct; Liberia suffers a national emergency of ‘bad faith” governance. In consequence, the poverty currently unleash on ordinary people, in Liberia, is historically unprecedented. Here is my humble advise to Minister Konneh, watch out for economic-predators.

Compounded is the fact that the democratic experiment ongoing in Liberia, when properly analyzed provides no counsel for the depressing national hopelessness of ordinary people. Electioneering politics, as a pathway to creating an equitable society, lacks compassionate will; and its potentiality for fair competitiveness is radically diminished by the insatiable nature of economic predators. Thus, confusion astounds the conscious mind, even our international partners’ attempt to cultivate a culture for progressive national transformation.

Upon retrospection, one cannot disagree that the penetration of the Liberian pathology-the economic predatory behavior- can be correctly measured by the powerful resistance from the elites, to not just recognize this national tragic, but their active promotion of its narcissistic tendencies. For example, among certain clusters of the much oppressed people, a stimulating CORRUPT urge excuses, deny, and sustain their own discomforting socialization (The people will soon sing praises to bad leaders who provide just a day survival handout). This is a direct impact of the normalization of the social pathologies on the psyche and mental health of a suffering people akin to the Stockholm syndrome, in which the victim feels a sense of bond and gratefulness to their abuser.   

Simply put, the central thesis here is conspicuous; the normalization of narcissism and social pathologies by economic predators is profoundly now embedded in the socio-psychology of Liberians, especially the elites; so much so, that Liberia could be producing a new kind of genetic spices-POLITICRIMINALS. Hence, BAD GOVERNANCE is now a pathway to gain political authority in Liberia, leaving the ordinary majority with suppressed choices.

But it should not be that way, because our human natural constitution-REASON-provides for us to function as autonomous social agents in society while recognizing and accepting that social mobility is affected by socio-economic conditions. Thus, the whole purpose for the social contract was intended to shelter the “pursuit of happiness” for all in society, especially to protect the weak and venerable and create opportunity for equitable upward social mobility.

Therefore, the critical answer Liberians must provide in our forward march lies in these choices:

1. PROGRESS-a new generation, nationalistic, and patriotic leadership assume national leadership.
2. STABILITY- maintaining the national governance system that Minister Konneh himself is combating.
3. REGRESSION-Replacing our current political realities with the past on steroids. Simply put, we cannot remove Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf from power just to repeat the old behavior that we have opposed.

Regression and stability cannot be any choice for the Liberian people. Because, physically changing economic predators and reorganizing the exact social pathologies does not provide social cushion for positive national transformation. Patriotic consciousness must combine nationalistic determination to civilize the crudeness of economic predators.

For “The vast majority of [our fellow citizens are] smothering in an airtight cage of poverty, in the midst of affluent [economic predators]. This demands that we respond to [Minister Konneh’s] “Macedonian call for aid.”

On the altar of Jehovah, I pledge undying resistance to economic predators. Excuse me while I throw out.

Note: This is a revised piece initially publish by this author during the warm-up to the 2011 elections.

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About the Author: Chorphie Charlie is a Social and Political Commentator residing in Philadelphia, USA. He can be reach at Email: gbanapekin@hotmail.com