When the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia generously donated US$2.5 million to Liberia in 2022, it was not an act of political diplomacy disguised as aid. It was a clear, documented commitment to support a struggling nation. Of that amount, $500,000 was earmarked for food assistance, specifically a large shipment of rice, and $2 million was allocated for the restoration of the dilapidated Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This was a gift meant to feed the hungry and restore national dignity. Instead, it has become a symbol of international embarrassment, administrative negligence, and the shameless greed of Liberia’s former ruling elite.
Today, Liberians are asking a painful but necessary question: how did thousands of bags of rice, donated in the spirit of friendship, disappear into thin air? According to the Assets Recovery and Property Retrieval Taskforce (AREPT), over 25,000 bags of rice intended for vulnerable families never reached their destinations. The rice was delivered publicly, not secretly. In a formal handover ceremony, Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Ambassador Mohammed Al-Mubarak presented the donation to then-Foreign Minister Dee-Maxwell Saah Kemayah in full view of the media and officials. There were no secret deals. There was no ambiguity. The aid was real, the documentation was thorough, and the expectations were clear.
Yet three years later, the impact of that donation is nowhere to be felt in Liberian homes or on government buildings. There is no trace of the rice on the market, in food distribution networks, or in the hands of those who needed it most. The US$2 million set aside for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has left no visible mark of restoration. What has been left instead is a dark stain on Liberia’s international image and a profound betrayal of public trust.
The Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), which was in power at the time, bears full responsibility for this shame. The former administration, under President George M. Weah, had every opportunity to show the world that Liberia could be trusted with foreign aid and that its leaders were capable of managing donor resources with integrity. Instead, the donation became just another chapter in a long saga of corruption, mismanagement, and abuse of office.
This scandal is not just embarrassing, it is disgraceful. It exposes the rot that festered in the heart of the previous government. It also raises serious concerns about the internal checks and balances that failed to prevent such blatant theft. How could such a significant donation vanish without a trace? Who signed for the rice, where was it stored, who distributed it, and what records exist to prove that it reached the people? These are not difficult questions. They are the bare minimum of what any functioning government should be able to answer.
The Boakai administration has shown signs of taking the fight against corruption seriously. Cllr. Edwin Kla Martin and the AREPT taskforce are investigating 26 active cases and reviewing over 40 properties believed to have been acquired through illicit means. That is commendable. But Liberians are not just looking for investigations, they are demanding accountability. The stolen rice and vanished funds were not theoretical. They were real. The hunger was real. The diplomatic opportunity was real. And so too must be the consequences for those who exploited it for personal gain.
Justice must not be selective, and restitution must not happen behind closed doors. Liberia cannot build a future of transparency if its past is allowed to be settled in secrecy. The individuals and institutions that orchestrated or benefited from the diversion of the Saudi rice must be named, prosecuted, and held accountable in the public eye. This includes any former officials of the CDC government who were involved.
International donors are watching. Saudi Arabia is watching. And most importantly, the Liberian people are watching. A government that fails to properly receive, manage, and distribute international assistance is a government that risks not only diplomatic disgrace but also the erosion of national confidence.
This is a defining moment for Liberia. Will the current administration pursue justice only when convenient, or will it confront the truth with courage and integrity? The Saudi rice scandal has already shamed us. Let it now be the reason we finally break the cycle of impunity.
