ADHERING TO ACCOUNTABILITY AND DUE PROCESS:
-A PRACTICAL BEGINNING TO NATION BUILDING
Accountability is the unwavering commitment to take ownership of actions we took, decisions we made, and outcomes we have gotten in the discharge of duty. It is the willingness to be transparent, honor our commitments, and accept the consequences, both successes or gains and setbacks as challenges.
Bearing in mind that one day, we would be called to account for our stewardship in the service of public duty, one must make sure to discharge his or her duty with fairness because there are societal phenomenons that always await us at our door post Immediately upon our departure from the position we served. These societal phenomenons are Accountability and Due Process of Law.
What appears to be strange to many Liberians at this point in time of our emerging political dispensation is for this government to hold past government officials accountable for their Stewartship in the court of legal jurisdiction.
The intensity of calling public officials to account for their actions should not be strange to us because we all agreed to travel on this path of democratic governance. This attempt is meant for state resources to be accounted for and for those held liable of malfeasance to pay the prize in keeping with due process of law.
Holding public officials accountable for the malfeasance is not Strange and should not be considered a witch-hunt by other Liberians.
Due process of law is a fundamental constitutional guarantee that ensures the government acts fairly and respects all legal rights owed to a person. That is what we should all be concerned about.
The government must exercise due process because it prevents the state from arbitrarily depriving individuals of their life, liberty, or property and is divided into two main categories.
Delving a little bit deeper into the Procedural Due Process as a product of government studies, I can safely say it requires the government to follow fair and established procedures before taking away someone's rights. This generally guarantees the right to a notice of charges, a fair hearing or trial, and an impartial decision-maker.
The second category is substantive due process, which has to do with Protection of fundamental, unenumerated rights of the citizens such as freedom of speech, privacy, and the right to marry from government interference, regardless of how fair the legal procedures might be.
The issue of ensured due process as well as accountability is a Tripartite arrangement that must be respected and adhere to for sustainable development and admirable democratic credentials that will attract foreign direct investment.
There are consequences for failed due process. When due process fails, it undermines the foundation of a fair legal system, leading to severe individual and systemic consequences. It strips away protections for life, liberty, and property, allowing government or institutional overreach to cause widespread harm. This is why we encourage or caution the state to be more responsive and more careful about the pace of due process and accountability.
