RANDOM THOUGHTS

By: Dr. Abdoulaye Dukule | Liberian Professor, Educator and Public Intellectual

This world we live in…

As we enter the New Year, we all carry hopes and dreams—personal, familial, national, and global. The coronavirus pandemic and the election of Donald J. Trump reminded us that our world is far smaller and more interconnected than we often assume.

Personally, I am grateful simply to be here, surrounded by wonderful children and friends. Their presence remains my greatest source of joy.

Nationally, my focus turns first to Liberia. I hope the UP-led government will finally implement the many policies it has announced but so far failed to execute. Committees have been formed to investigate and advice, yet after months of work, no meaningful results—at least none made public—have emerged. Ad hoc committees cannot substitute for governance. Increasingly, they have become convenient excuses for inaction.

The fight against corruption must go beyond headline-grabbing court cases and confront deeper institutional weaknesses. Restoring the General Services Agency to its original mandate would be a good start. Allowing ministers to negotiate rents and vehicle procurement only invites corruption.

President Boakai has taken two significant steps that his postwar predecessors avoided: establishing a War and Economic Crimes Court and creating the Office of the Ombudsman. Yet both institutions have been undermined. The Ombudsman is constrained from fulfilling its mandate, while the War and Economic Crimes Court remains paralyzed by chronic underfunding. There is much display of intent, but little delivery.

As an American, I welcome renewed warmth in Liberia–U.S. relations. But history urges caution. President William Tubman enjoyed privileged access to the White House. William R. Tolbert was invited to America’s Bicentennial. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf maintained close ties with both Bush and Obama. Yet these relationships remained personal, not strategic. The United States extracted what it needed, while Liberian leaders settled for symbolic visibility. This imbalance reflects not American hostility but Liberia’s persistent inability to assert itself—trapped in dependency and fear.

Globally, we are told we are closer than ever to world peace—a phrase once confined to beauty pageants. Yet conflict rages on: in Palestine, Sudan, the DRC, Ukraine, and now Venezuela. Whether driven by strategic interests or a quest for legacy, President Trump has engaged global conflicts more aggressively than recent predecessors. Used wisely, American influence could help resolve disputes.

Still, people continue to die daily. Must violence remain humanity’s chosen path to peace?

We have rarely been as close as now to resolve all major conflicts… It is possible to make peace.

The bloodshed in Palestine will end only if the West, led by the United States, recommits to the two-state solution it once championed. Instead, it has armed Israel while allowing the destruction of any viable Palestinian state. Recognizing Palestinian statehood while continuing to arm the opposing side is not diplomacy—it is cynicism and hypocrisy, echoing the enduring logic of colonialism.

Happy New Year 🎈