A good step against corruption

The INSIGHT is delighted over the President’s call for a full investigation into all standing contracts between the Ministry of Public Works and all construction companies in the country.

According to an Executive Mansion release, the President has also mandated all current and past official of the Ministry to cooperate fully with the investigation. The release further stated that the President took the decision to ensure that Government gets the full value of all monies spent on contracts.

The INSIGHT is also delighted over the freezing of the Liberia Telecommunications account and the suspension of the US$ 1million lease agreement between LTA and a Chinese company, Qinjian International, for a building it intends to secure as an office.

We’re delighted in these steps taken by the President because we believe they’re initial steps to a serious fight against corruption.
We would like to commend the President for such actions and we hope that the investigation would be conducted in a non-partial fashion that would expose individuals or construction companies that devilishly siphon national resources for their selfish gains.
The issue of corruption in Liberia cannot be over emphasized. Thievery and corruption appear to have become normal practices in every sector of the Liberian society — from people in government to schools, hospitals, the security services and even at the marketplace.
Corruption deprives the nation of the resources that could otherwise be used for the general benefit of the larger population and has the tendency to discourage businesses, both local and foreign.

It is, therefore, imperative that every step is taken to ensure that this canker is uprooted.
The fight against corruption is not one that should be left to politicians alone. It is a fact that the nature of our society has contributed in no small way to the current state of affairs. We live in a society where political leadership is seen as an opportunity to amass wealth. With such a mindset, it will be difficult to stop corruption without a collective effort.
While the government is taking steps to check unacceptable practices, the INSIGHT is of the opinion that the fight against corruption can be won if we shed ourselves of vices such as heads of schools charging unapproved fees and hospital officials demanding money before attending to patients, even in emergency situations.