Dual Citizenship in Liberia: Is It About Jobs, Or Sustaining the Economic Viability of the Nation?
Published: 17/Oct/2019
Source: The Liberian Observer
By Edmund Zar-Zar Bargblor
The debate regarding Liberians with dual citizenship status and their participation in the government of Liberia continues to resurface within Liberia and the Diaspora.
The concept of dual citizenship has to do with dual nationality. The concept of Dual nationality is very simply! An individual, who has Dual Citizen Status, is a person who is a citizen of two countries. For example, if you as a Liberian relocate to the United States and become a naturalized US citizen, you have dual citizenship. Dual citizens can carry two passports and essentially live and travel freely within their native and naturalized countries.
On October 3, 2019, the Senate of the Republic of Liberia overwhelmingly approved three constitutional propositions, they are: dual citizenship, reduction of the tenures of the President, Vice President and the date for holding elections in the country.
The Dual Citizenship proposition reads: “A natural born citizen of Liberia may hold the citizenship of another country, but shall not qualify for elected positions, and the following appointed positions: Chief Justice and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Liberia; Cabinet Minister, a head of autonomous agency and nonacademic, research or scientific institution and ambassador.”
This action has the propensity to create the problem of brain drain for a country that is badly in need of specialized professional workers. Many of Diaspora Liberians fall in this category. These native born Liberians who are excluded could be very useful in solving the country’s enormous problems. Instead, the leaders and the Legislature chose to disenfranchise their own countrymen and women in place of other foreigners who have dual citizenship status.