13/01/2025
𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐄𝐂𝐇 𝐃𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐃 𝐁𝐘 𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐄𝐑 𝐑𝐈𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐃 𝐍𝐀𝐆𝐁𝐄 𝐊𝐎𝐍 𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐅𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋 𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝟏𝐒𝐓 𝐐𝐔𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐅 𝟐𝐍𝐃 𝐒𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐇𝐎𝐍𝐎𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝟓𝟓𝐓𝐇 𝐋𝐄𝐆𝐈𝐒𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐔𝐁𝐋𝐈𝐂 𝐎𝐅 𝐋𝐈𝐁𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐀
𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐉𝐚𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝟏𝟑, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓
Honourable Deputy Speaker, Distinguished Honourable Members of the 55th Legislature, Members of the Press, Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is with a profound sense of honour, duty and commitment, that I play this role in the opening ceremonies of the 2nd Session of the 55th Legislature of the Republic of Liberia, as mandated by Chapter Five, Article 32 (a) of the 1986 Constitution of the Republic. As the Speaker of the Republic, I remain thankful to God and history for this historic responsibility. Today is not only an eventful day, but an important moment for all of us to reaffirm our commitment to serving our people and country with the patriot’s heart. Together, we have the opportunity to redefine our path, strengthen our unity, and uphold the core values that bind us together as a single unit, thus comparing us to execute our responsibilities in the best interest of the Motherland.
The recent challenges we have faced including the leadership impasse in the House of Representatives and the unfortunate fire incident that damaged the Joint Chambers at the House of Representatives, are a clear indication that the responsibility to promote peace, advance unity and restore trust cannot be overemphasized. Therefore, let this session mark a turning point, where we demonstrate our unwavering commitment to transparency, accountability, and equitable development for all Liberians.
This is also a moment to look inward, as the strength of our Legislature lies in its ability to unite and reconcile for the greater good of our 73 districts. Let me urge each of us to prioritize open dialogue and cooperation. By addressing our differences and aligning our collective efforts, we can fulfil the important duties of this great institution which include making laws, providing oversight, and representing our people. It is through such unity that we will meet the expectations of the Liberian people whose mandate brought us here today.
Fellow Colleagues, please allow me to express my profound gratitude for the enactment of the 2025 Financial Budget, amounting to $880,661,874. This is an important milestone! This budget prioritizes sectors that are critical to our citizens' welfare including healthcare, education, road and infrastructure, agriculture and food security and water and sanitation. Actually, this year’s budget seeks to foster economic growth, improve service delivery, enhance social infrastructure, and create opportunities for all Liberians. It is our duty to ensure that these resources are not only distributed equitably, but also utilized effectively to provide meaningful and lasting benefits to the people.
Honourable Deputy Speaker and distinguished colleagues, it is my stern belief that Liberia’s strength is amplified through its relationships with regional and international partners. Therefore, improving our relationships with countries within the sub-region and the continent and with regional bodies such as ECOWAS, AU and the Pan-African Parliament, among others, remain a key component of our leadership. By fostering collaboration, we will definitely reposition ourselves to increase the role we play in ECOWAS and AU and their respective Parliaments. That way, Liberia will be able to actively contribute to discussions on regional and continental peace and security and sustainable development. I like to report to you that as a result of the invitation extended to us by the government and people of the Republic of Ghana, we were able to hold fruitful bilateral discussions with our counterpart in Accra. These discussions will soon witness an experience sharing scheme between Liberia and the sisterly Republic of Ghana, where members of this House will be supported to exchange learning with Ghana. Furthermore, expanding our engagement with global parliamentary networks will reinforce Liberia’s presence in critical global discussions, thus enhancing our influence on issues that matter most to the globe.
Another major challenge we face today is the restoration of public trust and confidence in the Legislature. To be true to all of us here today, our people across the country don’t seem to be happy with us. We need to double up our efforts to rebuild that trust. To do so, we must embrace transparency and accountability and be open and inclusive in our operations. This is why I believe introducing digital voting machines, launching a comprehensive website to provide real-time access to legislative proceedings, and renaming committees to reflect broader mandates are just some of the steps we can take to modernize and make our processes more open, inclusive and transparent. Improving the financial and system audits will further underscore our commitment to transparency and accountability.
Equally important is the need to invest in the people who serve within this Legislature. We need to prioritize the professional development of our members and their staff, as it is crucial for enhancing our capabilities and responding to the needs of our districts in particular and the country in general. I therefore propose that the relevant authority conducts a comprehensive material and capacity needs assessment, in order to identify critical human resource gaps by which capacity-building training programs would be tailored. Moreover, regular engagement with citizens should always remain the cornerstone of our efforts; that is why I personally intend to visit three counties during this session to hear directly from the people we represent and bring their issues back to our chambers for discussion. Of Couse we will work through the Representatives of the targeted constituencies.
Honourable Deputy Speaker and distinguished Members, as we address the immediate needs of our citizens, the need to revisit critical legislative bills must not be overemphasized. Particular emphasis is placed on addressing the needs of vulnerable people such as the women and children, people Living with Disabilities and the elderly through our legislative processes. Revisiting the “Old Folks Bill” and the “Disability Bill” among other things, will be a beautiful beginning and this will ultimately reflect our commitment for the inclusion of every segment of the society. I also believe that Electoral reforms must be prioritized to ensure that our democracy becomes more robust and representative of all Liberians. Additionally, diaspora Liberians are a critical factor to consider in our construction of the Liberian reality. Their contributions to the growth and development of Liberia is huge and their interventions touch every sector of the society. As we open this session, this is my plea to all of us: let us rethink and find a way to include and accommodate them for they have never given up on us.
Lastly, honourable Colleagues, the road ahead is not without challenges, but I am convinced that it is also filled with great opportunities to transform this Legislature into a beacon of hope and a home of integrity. Let us all embrace this moment to build a legacy that future generations will envy and crave to emulate.
Thank you all for your kind attention, and may God bless the works of our hands and safe Liberia.
