In its address to Liberians, dubbed the “State of the Youth Report,” the Youth Congress of the Alternative National Congress (ANC) delivered a sweeping rebuke of President Joseph Boakai’s administration, citing widespread failures in governance, accountability, and national direction.
The statement, delivered on July 31, 2025, by Alieu Kiadii, Secretary-General of the Indomitable National Youth Congress, painted a grim portrait of Liberia under the Unity Party-led government, accusing it of indifference, mismanagement, and betrayal of the country’s youth and future.
Kiadii began by lamenting Liberia’s trajectory after 178 years of nationhood, describing the current state of affairs as “a nation at the crossroads.” He said rather than progress, Liberia is marked by a leadership that “stares down its people, not with empathy, but with sarcasm, indifference, and broken promises.” He pointed to rising youth unemployment, deteriorating education and health sectors, and a growing sense of hopelessness among young people.
“Our youth are scattered across ghettos, unemployment lines, and political sidelines while elders sit atop thrones of indifference fueled by our public funds,” he said. “I speak not as a politician, but as a Liberian with fire in my heart, truth on my tongue, and duty on my shoulders.”
He referenced the July 17 “STAND” protest against poor governance, which he said was met with mockery by President Boakai, calling it an insult to thousands of Liberians suffering daily. “Mocking protesters doesn’t silence the crisis, it amplifies it,” he asserted.
Highlighting corruption and waste, Kiadii alleged that lawmakers spent $17 million in 2024 on luxuries like pizza and shawarma during public hearings, while the executive used $7 million to court foreign lobbyists that delivered “nothing but photo-ops and empty MOUs.” He questioned why solutions were being sought abroad when Liberians at home had workable answers.
On the growing drug epidemic, the Youth Congress lamented the government’s lack of real action, saying the fight has remained only “on the lips of the President.” Referring to the 2018 SEED report, which estimated 25,000 to 100,000 disadvantaged youth in Liberia, he warned the number has since ballooned and called for urgent investment in rehabilitation and support for the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA).
“The government must act. Not tomorrow, but now,” he warned, announcing a nationwide action planned for August 7 to demand attention to the crisis.
Turning to transparency and natural resource governance, Kiadii referenced the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) report, which he said exposed economic sabotage. He accused companies like China Union and Zwedru Mining Inc. of withholding data and called for the full publication of contracts, stricter environmental enforcement, and prosecution of violators.
He also pushed back against a suggestion by Representative Thomas Fallah to mortgage the Wologizi Mountain to build schools and hospitals. Kiadii insisted that Lofa County’s budget and the extravagant spending on presidential vehicles were more than sufficient to meet development needs.
“Wologizi is not for sale,” he declared. “True leadership means sacrifice. You cannot drive in luxury while your people walk through hardship.”
The Youth Congress also denounced the controversial Liberia Traffic Management (LTM) concession, calling it a “betrayal of sovereignty.” The 25-year agreement, which gives a private company authority over traffic enforcement, was described as “monetized servitude” and a stripping of state power.
“This is not modernization—it is the outsourcing of public duty to profiteers. We are not property. We are a proud people,” Kiadii said. He demanded the immediate cancellation of the LTM concession, not a review or amendment.
Calling on civil society, the Legislature, and every patriotic Liberian to resist what he described as creeping neocolonialism, Kiadii urged young people to rise above tribalism and political puppetry. He called for national unity, sacrifice, and a renewed sense of patriotism.
“You are not leaders of tomorrow—you are leaders of now. You are not a voting bloc—you are a movement,” he said in a rallying cry to the youth.
He concluded by asserting that Liberia cannot be rescued by the same forces that contributed to its decline, but by those “willing to carry her pain and purpose.”
“We are the Indomitable National Youth Congress. And today, we do not beg. We demand.”
