MONROVIA, Montserrado – Despite earlier information that businesses in Monrovia and other major commercial centers in the country would have remained closed today, less than half the number of businesses appeared to obey the pronouncement.

The Patriotic Entrepreneurs of Liberia, comprising major business organizations, including the Liberia Business Association, the Customs Brokers Union, the transport unions, the Liberia Marketing Association, rice and cement dealers, commercial motorcyclists, petroleum dealers and bar and restaurants, announced a go-slow to take place between Monday, April 10 and Saturday, April 15, 2017.

The group said the action is intended to get national leaders to understand the constraints business owners in the country were facing.

In a release issued over the weekend, PATEL said business owners were being constantly harassed and made to pay unnecessary taxes, as they receive little benefit in return.

“It is sad that our government does not care about the wellbeing of Liberian businesses and is only interested in imposing and collecting high and incidental tariffs from us just to keep up with the fabulous lifestyles and salaries of its officials,” it said.

“This close down action will remain in place until Saturday, April 10, 2017, and may become imperative again, until the relevant stakeholders, including the president of the Republic of Liberia, can speak and take action in addressing the plights of the business community,” it said.

PATEL is calling for the government to take immediate actions to address the continuous hike in the value of the US dollar against the local currency, high tariffs on imported goods, the seizures of goods of petty street traders by police officers, and high municipal and garbage collections fees being charged by the city governments Monrovia and Paynesville.

It also wants the government to give exclusive retailing rights to only Liberian businesses and open Import Permit Declaration to all Liberian businesses for rice, sugar, flour, and frozen foods among others.

The group had earlier given the government an ultimatum to address their demands by February.

PATEL’s National Chairman Presley Tenwah said the current go-slow was a “plan B” and would be bigger and joined by health workers, teachers, petroleum sellers, commercial drivers, and motorcyclists.

However, some stores and businesses were seen open on Monday, while petroleum sellers, commercial transport vehicles, and commercial motorcyclists operated normally.

A store owner in Central Monrovia said he kept his business open because of the warning from the government against businesses that would remain closed.

Fennie Gray, a local restaurant operator in Paynesville said the business is her family’s only means of survival and closing it for a day would mean a lot of setbacks.

“My husband is not working and we have to eat, my children must go to school,” Gray said.

On Saturday, the government issued a statement calling on PATEL and its members to abandon their planned action.

The government described the planned action of the business owners as “disrupting peace and security of the state.”

In a press release issued by the Ministry of Information, Culture, and Tourism, the government accused PATEL of intimidating and threatening business owners across Monrovia as a means of coercing them to join the reported demonstration.

Justice Minister Frederick Cherue advised the business owners and members of the public to stay away from the planned protest.

“We don’t have problem with PATEL members choosing to close their business houses for the next 20 years. All we are saying is that they should not bother others who would want to open their businesses,” Cherue said.

He described PATEL’s position as being politically motivated. But Cherue’s statement bordered on the threatening.

“Those stores that will be closed today should remain closed forever. We will identify every store that will close today to ensure that they are not reopened,” he said on Monday morning.

On Monday, there was also a heavy presence of police officers across Monrovia.

Following the issuance of the government’s press release, the Liberia Chamber of Commerce, a key business lobbying group, issued a statement appealing to its members, businesses, individuals and associations to refrain from engaging in any form of demonstration or violence.

According to the Chamber of Commerce, its position followed a meeting with the Ministry of Justice and other Liberian business organizations upon a communication from PATEL calling on the business community to shut down operations.

PATEL’s three-day protest in February paralyzed normal business activities in and around Monrovia, as most businesses remained closed.

The protest was later cut off after the group presented a petition to the legislature asking for an immediate redress to their concerns.

Tenwah says the conditions for which the February demonstration was held have still not been addressed.

Featured photo by Gbatemah Senah