The Perspective
Atlanta, Georgia
February 12, 2021

Archbishop Michael Kpakala Francis

Between 1998 and 2001, I was serving in an office on the 10th floor of the Ministry of Finance when news about a scandal at the Revenue Department broke out. Major newspapers in Monrovia reported it on their front pages. The reports were so revealing and damning that the scandal captured the attention of people in high places. It became the talk of the town.

As a way of covering up the incident, authorities at the Finance Ministry ostensibly apprehended the director of that unit and other suspects of the corruption scandal and forwarded them to the Justice Ministry. But that did not solve the problem, and stealing public funds in government official circles (i.e. Corruption) continued unabated.

In the wake of the scandal, during a regular Sunday Mass, the late Archbishop Michael Kpakala Francis decried corruption in government offices. The Catholic prelate wondered why, after a brutal civil war, people would not change their attitudes. He wondered why government officials still engaged in acts of corruption, ills for which the previous government was battered and brought down. 

The Archbishop's exhortation on official corruption in the postwar Taylor administration, of course, did not go down well with the then officials at the Ministry of Finance. In a very glitzy way, they launched a vicious vendetta in the media to malign the Archbishop. Using government resources, they bought favor from major newspapers, including the Inquirer. Instead of addressing the scandal as reported from the Ministry, the media massively scolded the Catholic prelate simply for speaking out against pervasive official corruption.

The officials snootily cautioned Archbishop Francis to focus on cleaning up the church. The finance Ministry invariably referred to him disrespectfully as Michael K. Francis, inciting and referring him to a biblical verse: “Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” (Matt. 7:5)

The late Archbishop Francis was, perhaps, not a perfect Priest, but he tried to be a good person like each and every one of us. With his training and vow, he walked some fine lines. He was serene in dealing with the vicious media attacks on his person to the end, and the issue eventually subsided.

Archbishop Francis was entrusted with the Liberian Catholic Church. His responsibility was to provide for the people, teach and sanctify the faithful. With commitments to his priestly vows, Archbishop Francis lived up to these bishopric responsibilities. He exuded moral authority during his leadership of the church. In so doing, his flock, including the clergy and the laity, were loyal, happy, and proud of the church.

However, the role of the church in society, as envisioned and fostered by Archbishop Francis, may be diminishing. Indeed, the future of the Liberian Catholic Church is apparently grim following his demise. Although Bishop Andrew J. Karnley of the Cape Palmas Diocese is credited for his effort towards keeping the vision and dream of Archbishop Francis alive, the church is grossly failing our society.

Time has changed since the passing of Archbishop Francis, but all sorts of things are happening. In fact, too many strange things are happening in Liberia--the pervasive murders of young professionals, and the raping of children, just to name a few. In this situation, the church stands morally obliged to confront this pestering evil in society--in the spirit of Archbishop Francis. It must be assertive and steadfast, affirming its role as the voice of the voiceless. In doing so, it must focus on advocacy and the propagation of faith while winning souls to God’s kingdom. 

Over the years, the church, with Archbishop Francis and others providing leadership, stood the test of time and rallied to the cause of human dignity and the sanctity of life. It effectively stood on the side of the voiceless and oppressed and loudly spoke against societal ills. In its advocacy, the Church spoke loudly about problems in society, including bad administration, misuse of public resources, abuse of power, misapplication of justice, etc. The clergy used homilies/sermons, consistently and persistently advocating for the voiceless. Other churches and religious groups too were on the frontline advocating for the poor masses. 

The Catholic Church, as we have been taught in school, has certain fundamental principles relative to the dignity and wellbeing of mankind. The teaching of the Gospel and thereby the winning of souls are as critical and crucial entirely in developing the human potential. It is, therefore, the responsibility of the Church to ensure that every member coming through the door is exposed to available opportunities. The church must ensure that people have access to quality education as well as affordable and quality health services because all these contribute to quality of life.

Cognizant of the role of the church to serve humanity, Catholic missionaries have over the years labored to strengthen our society, catering to the needy and empowering them to reach their potential. Through missionary endeavors, the church has been in the vanguard of providing quality education at a modest cost. Missionary priests helped enhanced and facilitated the delivery of good education. Some priests taught various subjects, including mathematics, physics, chemistry while imparting moral principles. 

This longstanding good and remarkable education program is being gradually eroded. The standard of Catholic education that used to be cheap and was catering to rural and urban poor, struggling families, has become very expensive for an average Liberian family. Parents have to now scratch and scrape everywhere annually to meet up with the rising cost of tuition in Catholic schools. Yet, while parents endeavor desperately to maintain their kids in these facilities, the academic output of students continues to decline at an alarming rate--to the point that Catholic students are finding it difficult to make a pass in WACSS. Teachers and administrators continue to complain of poor benefits, including remuneration. 

Yet, news coming from the Education Secretariat of the Catholic Archdiocese of Monrovia headed by an ordained Priest is very troubling. It has been reported that Catholic school teachers go on strike for salary arrears and other benefits. The reports gravely cast doubts about the Mission of the Liberian Catholic Church as far its educational program is concerned. These kinds of reports are unprecedented in the Church’s many years of providing quality education and other services in Liberia. It is public knowledge and very that the Church has played a very significant role in Liberian society, especially in the educational sector. The Church is credited for its good and well-organized educational system characterized by uncompromised discipline. There is no trace of records where Catholic teachers have ever gone on strike for salary arrears. The Missionary priests, who ran the schools, handled everything in very professional ways. All issues were handled according to an established code of conduct. As a result, Catholic schools attracted students from all backgrounds, including Muslims and others.

As we begin 2021, we hope the Church will carefully take stock of its activities, especially in its education sector.  Let’s try to keep the dream of Archbishop Michael K. Francis alive, not only the church, but also in the entire nation. In so doing, the Church and other anti-corruption entities must exert more energies and never get bored of advocating for social justice and quality education.