Africa-Press – Liberia. The pro-democracy group, Naymote Partners for Democratic Development, has expressed deep disappointment over Liberia’s poor ranking of 25th out of 33 African Countries in a recent parliamentary performance assessment.
The poor performance by the country’s biggest lawmaking body is blamed on the lack of institutional transparency and visibility within the National Legislature.
Speaking at a one-day partnership forum with the Legislative Information (LSO) at the Capitol Building – seat of the Liberian Legislature, Naymote Executive Director, Eddie D. Jarwolo, said Liberia’s position was “embarrassing” given that the country’s lawmakers are among Africa’s best-paid and serve some of the continent’s longest terms.
Mr. Jarwolo, who recently returned from a five-day parliamentary monitoring workshop in Pretoria, South Africa, described it as disappointing for the country and its people.
“When they started counting from number one, I kept asking, ” Where is Liberia? They went down the list until they reached 20, and still no Liberia. Out of 33 countries, Liberia was ranked 25th,” Mr. Jarwolo lamented.
“It is disappointing that our lawmakers earn the best salaries, yet our legislature performs among the weakest in Africa,” he pointed out.
Focus on Individuals, Not the Institution
The Naymote boss criticized the prevailing culture of personality-centered politics, saying the legislature’s image has been overshadowed by individual lawmakers’ public relations efforts, leaving the institution itself largely invisible.
“The problem is that we hear more about individual lawmakers – the Speaker, Senators and Representatives than about the Legislature as an institution. When assessments are done, they are based on institutional transparency and systems, not personal popularity.”
He pointed out that the lack of a coordinated communications structure and poor information-sharing practices have made it difficult for citizens, researchers, and oversight organizations to assess legislative performance.
Naymote and LIS to Launch Transparency Dashboard
In a bid to solve the issues leading to the poor ranking, the Naymote boss announced a new collaborative initiative with the LIS and other partners aimed at improving information accessibility and institutional openness.
The plan includes: Training legislative staff on data management and public engagement; the creation of an online transparency dashboard to make legislative information readily available to the public; building of stronger communication channels between departments and committees and encouraging proactive disclosure of legislative activities and spending.
“We are done with mere criticism. We want to work with the LSO, research department, and all committees to strengthen our national parliament. Together, we can make sure that Liberia ranks higher in the next assessment.”
Legislative Information Service Moves Toward Centralization
Also in remarks, the Legislative Information Service (LIS) – responsible for managing and disseminating parliamentary information, affirms its readiness to move forward toward institutional centralization to improve professionalism and efficiency.
B. McCarthy Weh, II, Director of LIS, expressed gratitude to partners, including Naymote through its Executive Director – Eddie, for providing financial and technical assistance through a “sock grant” initiative, which has helped the service manage operations and upgrade facilities.
“Naymote has been with us during our most challenging times. Their support has helped us to become more mobilized and professionalized as we work toward centralizing the LIS like other legislative departments.”
He maintained that centralization will ensure that all LIS staff are placed on a single payroll, enhancing coordination across the House and Senate.
The ongoing training, Mr. Weh added, will equip staff with the tools to improve public access to legislative information, promote citizens’ participation in lawmaking, and uphold accountability and transparency in governance.
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