Cllr. Tiawan Saye Gongloe, the human rights lawyer and 2023 presidential candidate, has called on President Joseph Nyuma Boakai to give Liberians a full public account of his 23 days in the United States: who travelled, at what cost, and what the country gained. In a public statement welcoming the President home, Cllr. Gongloe questioned why six cabinet ministers and the National Security Advisor accompanied him, and compared the mission with shorter trips by other African leaders to the same UN General Assembly. He asked the President to publish the delegation list, each member’s assignment, the total expenditure and every agreement signed, with a timetable for implementation. THE ANALYST reports.
Seven Senior Officials
Cllr. Gongloe noted that the President left for the United States on September 13 and returned on October 6, and that the itinerary reportedly included congressional meetings, the UN General Assembly, diaspora engagements and a planned visit to the Liberian Maritime Registry.
“These are legitimate activities. Yet our government is under a legal obligation to explain their duration, cost and benefits to the Liberian people,” he said.
The announced delegation, he said, included Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti, Finance Minister Augustine Ngafuan, Information Minister Jerolinmek Piah, Health Minister Louise Kpoto, Education Minister Jarso Jallah, Gender Minister Gbeme Horace-Kollie and National Security Advisor Samuel Kofi Woods, before counting security, protocol and other staff.
“What assignment required each person’s presence, and for how long?” he asked, adding that the question matters because Liberia is listed among the fifteen poorest countries in the world.
Shorter Trips Elsewhere
Cllr. Gongloe set Liberia’s arrangements against those of other African countries, while acknowledging differences in their circumstances.
Botswana, he said, announced President Duma Boko’s participation for September 19 to 26, with ministers responsible for international relations, health, minerals and energy, and youth and gender affairs, and reported talks on investment and a planned UN Centre of Excellence on Emerging Technologies and Innovation.
Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud arrived in New York on September 21 and was reported home by September 27.
Cape Verde, which he called a particularly relevant comparison because its program also included diaspora outreach, announced a mission running from September 20 to October 1, with Prime Minister Francisco Carvalho and three ministers, Manuel Amante da Rosa, António Duarte and Adélsia Almeida, meeting Cape Verdean communities in Massachusetts and Rhode Island from September 27 to 30.
Rwanda’s Prime Minister Justin Nsengiyumva also met Rwandans in New York on September 25 to discuss investment, while the Democratic Republic of the Congo sent Prime Minister Judith Suminwa Tuluka and Foreign Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner in what was reported as a reduced delegation because of Ebola-related travel restrictions.
He noted that Somalia and the DRC, like Liberia, are non-permanent members of the UN Security Council, Liberia and the DRC for 2026–2027 and Somalia for 2025–2026.
“Security Council membership, therefore, cannot by itself explain Liberia’s delegation size or the President’s prolonged absence,” he said. Cllr. Gongloe conceded that the comparisons “do not prove that every shorter mission achieved more,” but argued that “they establish that Liberia’s arrangements deserve a specific explanation.”
Questions for Government
Cllr. Gongloe acknowledged that Liberia reported substantive activity, including the launch of its Third National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security, and that the Executive Mansion has described diplomatic, investment and diaspora engagements.
He asked what agreements were signed, what financing was committed and on what terms, which investments went beyond expressions of interest, how many jobs are expected and where, and who will follow up on commitments from the diaspora conference.
He also rejected what he called the “at least” mentality. “‘At least the President met investors’ is an inadequate standard for assessing public expenditure. Every dollar spent abroad carries an opportunity cost for schools, hospitals, roads, food sufficiency and other needs at home,” he said.
The lawyer urged the President to publish the complete itinerary, the delegation list, each delegate’s assignment and travel dates, total public expenditure, and the agreements signed with their implementation timetables.
“Accountability helps a government to correct its practices and direct scarce resources toward national progress. It is a duty owed to the people,” he said.
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