Undue economic hardships are the incubators of democracy. Whether we were talking about the origins of democracy in America, Great Britain, Switzerland, France, or the European Union, economic hardships caused by excessive taxation imposed to enrich the political elites are the driving force for systemic change.

Last week, widespread poverty under Nobel Laureate, Harvard-trained economist, and Liberian President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf created a rare opportunity for the birth of democracy, when hundreds of Liberian traders were forced to desert their businesses and organize a three-day strike demanding lower taxes and tariffs.

Clearly, the self-sufficient marketers of Liberia are the only formidable democratic force with the capacity to terminate the source of our economic hardships, which are endemic corruption and a 170-year-old broken system of governance.

As the true leaders and mothers are marching down the paths of history to create national peace and prosperity, let’s join them and help give birth to Africa’s first participatory democracy in Liberia, Africa’s oldest republic.

The Patriotic Entrepreneurs of Liberia’s action deserves our support and involvement because it’s just like the movement that gave birth to American democracy.  Parliament of Great Britain created economic hardships by enacting the Sugar Act in 1764, the Stamp Act, and Tea Act. The economic hardships forced the common people to resist these laws enacted to benefit lawmakers and hurt the economic interest of the people, thus giving birth to American democracy.

Similarly, French citizens demanded change after higher taxes were imposed on June 29, 1789, by the extravagant King Louis XVI. After 170 years of economic hardship, the people must join the Liberian business community to demand an end to economic hardships.

We need to join PATEL because Liberia’s political elites have failed to deliver democracy.

“Sawyer for Mayor” was the battle cry of Liberians yearning for democracy in the late 1970’s. Dr. Amos Sawyer, Liberia’s distinguished political scientist, raised expectations with rhetorical eloquence. Liberians trusted Sawyer and ushered him to the helm of power as interim leader. Sawyer has since dominated the Liberian political landscape for over forty years. Today he heads Liberia’s Governance Commission with a badge of honor including the most undemocratic nation ranking as the fourth poorest country on Earth.

In Liberia, the president, a Nobel laureate and Harvard economist, appoints all governors of political subdivisions, judges of the Supreme Court, ministers of government, heads of all public corporations, traditional chiefs and members of the board of all public corporations. The system is broken beyond redemption. We need a new system that serves, not enslaves the people.

Liberian teachers, nurses, and students have had their day fighting for democracy. Student leaders have come and gone. Alaric Tokpah, Dusty Wolokollie, Tiawan Gongloe, and many others braved the battlefield of democracy to no avail.

Many of the ‘comrades’ soon turned into legislators, ministers, and ambassadors. And yes, the students, teachers, and nurses made their marks but Liberia remains independent politically but crippled economically 170 years on. The system is broken beyond repair. We need a new system!

The pastors and Iman’s have had their chance in brokering peace during the war years. Industrial actions by workers at Liberia’s mines and plantations have caught national and international attention for a season. The religious community and industrial workers did great work but their work did not result in justice, equal opportunities, and economic prosperity. The system is broken. We need a new system, not a new president or senator or representative!

All these great Liberians had one thing in common. They were all employees or people seeking employment or students preparing for the job market. The Patriotic Entrepreneurs of Liberia – Patel, on the other hand, are self-employed taxpayers who create jobs, provide the revenue for the government to operate, pay the salaries of nurses, doctors and teachers, police, soldiers, and provide money for students to pay for their education.

This group of independent, self-reliant, and creative Liberians who are farmers, marketers, and the engine of Liberia’s economy have been discounted as uneducated and not fit to lead by Liberia’s political elites. They are the only ones who feed the nation, transport the population, pay the school fees of our students. We need to join them not just to make noise but to make systemic change and make participatory democracy a reality in Liberia. That is democracy government of the people!

Every mansion our representatives and ministers build rob Liberian youths of libraries and better schools. The thousands of dollars they consume in allowances to travel overseas rob nurses of life-saving medical equipment, thus forcing our lawmakers to seek medical care in Ghana. Their 500-gallon gas slips and new cars have robbed people in Lofa, Nimba, and southeastern Liberia of paved roads for 170 years.

The system is broken! We need a new system designed by the citizens, not politicians – a government by the people.

Without democracy, politicians elected to serve the public will continue to build their mansions with public funds. With a US$555 million budget, they make higher yearly salaries and benefits (Liberian lawmakers’ salaries and benefits are on average US$193,416, compared to US$172,000 for American congressmen on a US$4.2 trillion budget).

The higher taxes and tariffs are not the problems but the symptom of a broken and corrupt system. We need a new system that advances the greater common good of society. That is democracy – government for the people!

Jesus said, “The servants cannot be greater than the master.” If citizens do not join Liberian entrepreneurs to ensure elected officials act like servants, these servants won’t know what to do with our country.

The prophecy of Fredrick Douglass is beginning to ring true and is the best reason why all Liberians must join the marketers: “Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will… Without struggle, there is no success.”

Let us all join PATEL to ensure that elected officials are not obstacles to the will of the people. Instead of begging the president or lawmakers together, let’s demand the birth of participatory democracy – government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

Featured photo courtesy of Zeze Ballah