May 7, 2008...10:03 am
Liberia´s World Champion: Taylor beats Mobutu 5 Billion USD to 3.2 Billion USD
Liberia has not had many achievements to be proud of. The claim of being the oldest republic in Africa rings hollow to everyone who has seen the said state of that republic. Being a founding member of the United Nations is likewise tainted by the continuous disregard that consecutive Liberian leaders have shown for even the most basic human rights.
But as the BBC recently reported there is one area where the country hold the World Championship - embezzlement of state funds.
A truly Olympic discipline in which many African leaders have engaged over time and a true democratic past-time, in which both the leaders and the lead participate in.
The World Champion of all time is none other than Charles Taylor, former warlord and President of Liberia, currently on trial at the UN-Special Court in the Hague.
According to a BBC report, prosecutor Stephen Rapp alleged that Mr. Taylor maintained two accounts in the USA. The sum of transactions on those accounts totalled over 5 Billion USD.( news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/7379536.stm)
That Taylor used his presidency to amass a huge personal fortune is of little surprise to anyone. Even before he became President of Liberia, he extracted huge sums of money from “Greater Liberia”, that se parts of Liberia occuped by his forces.
Being a true Champion, Taylor beet even his close rival Mobuto of the DR Congo. What makes his victory so impressive is that he won on both counts. His total embezzlement of 5 Billion USD put Mobuto with 3.2 Billion USD clearly in second place. But the true achievments of Charles “Gankay” Taylor can only be grasped if compared to the relative economic strength of the two countries. The 2007 IMF List of Countries by GDP (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal) shows the DR Congo on position 115 with a GDP of 10Billion and 144 Million USD. Liberia is listed on position 163 with a GDP of 730 Million USD.
So while Mobuto only embezzled a measly 0.32 years of the DR Congo GDP (at 2007 numbers), Charles Taylor privateered 6.85 years worth of Liberia GDP (at 2007 numbers). But his relative embezzlement factor (6.85/0.32) is even more impressive. Here Charles Taylors shows as the true giant of the two. He beats Mobutu by an embezzlement factor of 21.4 times !
Or to put it in other words: His service to his counry was 21.4 times more damaging than Mr. Mobutus efforts in the DR Congo.
I think I will remember these figures when Liberian ask me for assistance next time.
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