When the ancient Greeks could not defeat the people of Troy in war, they abandoned their siege and offered a giant wooden horse as a symbol of peace. But the horse was actually a hollow-out cart in which was hidden the best of Greek warriors.

When all the Trojans were fast asleep after carousal over the “gift”, the Greek warriors climbed down secretly, slaughtered the Trojans, and won the war.

The modern-day equivalence of this Trojan experience is giving support to a people in need with distant motives and hidden strings attached.

Recently, ArcelorMittal presented a gift of 100 vehicles to the Liberian Senate and since them, there has been mixed reactions from Liberians: many have hailed the gift as timely and necessary while a few vocal cynics and paranoids fear it may be the steel company’s Trojan horse for softening the waters for the passage of dubious legislations.

“But is it? Are there no rules and agreements guaranteeing adherence to fair tax transactions?” analysts say are the reigning questions.

The Analyst Staff Writer has been looking at just these questions.

ArcelorMittal’s Goodwill

Liberians have reacted varyingly to ArcelorMittal 100-vehicle gift to the government with few vocal cynics playing the rash paranoid, fearing the steel company’s economic stranglehold advantage on the Liberian economy and the Liberian Senate.

Not only did a number of senators and many Liberians welcome the gift and describe it as “appropriate and timely”, but they have also described cynics’ fears as unfounded and a perpetuation of the must-be-discarded old-fashion opposition practices that feed on the fears of unsuspecting Liberians.

Recently the steel magnate, ArcelorMitta Steel, turned over 100 new brand Mitsubishi pickups to the government of Liberia to help ease the travel difficulties of some of its officials.

The government in turn turned the vehicles over to the Liberian Senate, which is believed to be the “hardest hit” in travel difficulties, especially at a time when the 30-member House is finalizing modalities to embark on its usual year-end “agriculture break” that requires travel to remote and sometimes cut-off villages and towns in rural Liberia.

Without official or hidden strings based in law or gentlemanly understanding attached, according to observers, ArcelorMitta Steel’s gift to the Liberian government in response to an SOS believed to have been extended by the Ministry of Agriculture should be welcomed by all sincere Liberians.

Critics’ Cynicism

But the few vocal cynics have been contending that the gift is the worst thing that ever happened to Liberia. Some extremists have even been flaunting the idea that the gift may be a Trojan horse that will in the long run work to the financial advantage of the steel company, rather than the Liberian people.

Recent media reports say critics of the gift are concerned mainly about its rationale and timing at the time the steel company, having already started operations, is expected to increase the number of its workforce, increase investment, and build railroads and other facilities during the period of operations.

They said the gift was typical of non-profit institutions, not a business entity that has just recently won the bid to mine the largest iron ore deposits in the country.  In the view of some, the gift was actually a bribe extended to the Senate to soften the ground for ArcelorMitta Steel’s desire to win the bid for the western cluster mineral deposit in western Liberia.

With the recent disqualification of Delta Mining and Tata Steel from the bidding process  of the cluster that comprises the Bie Mountain and surrounding mountain ranges in Bomi, Cape Mount, Gbarpolu and others mineral concentrated areas stretching to nearby counties, according to them, ArcelorMitta Steel was the only bidder.

An investigation conducted by this paper indicates that skeptics are holding on to this line of argument even though Deputy Information Minister Gabriel Williams told the nation last week that government had approved the gift because it believes the cars would be useful during the agricultural break.

He told the Liberian people that the administration was wary of how gifts were often misused, but he noted that the ArcelorMitta Steel gift was in response to government’s general request and that it would in no way affect the Liberian government adversely in the future. But that explanation did very little to quench cynics’ vilification of the gift.

Notes a recent FPA report: “With Mittal Steel now well positioned to partake in future bidding for exploration of other iron ore deposits in the country, the donation to the national Legislature which is according to the Revenue Code law of 2006 suppose to review and grant investment opportunities to companies having initial investment capital of more 10 million, a category, in which the Indian- British owned Company without doubt falls, is a sticky issue.”

Unquestioned Precedence, Plenty of Safeguards

In deed a sticky issue, but observers say taking in context, the gift should be a non-issue, save, to hail ArcelorMitta Steel for its largesse and apologize for the ingratitude of a few cynical Liberians the mainstay of whose obsession is to question and discourage goodwill towards the Liberian government.

They described the prevailing cynicism as “hypocrisy of the highest order” and wondered why ArcelorMitta Steel’s gift to the Liberian government and people was singled out for skepticism and pull-them-down when since its inauguration, the Sirleaf Administration has been sending out SOS and receiving millions of U.S. dollars’ worth of assistance both in kind and cash.

“In the past two years, since the onset of this administration, the international community has been extending supportive hands to Liberia’s recovery simply because they understand that with an inherited corruption-infested and weak economy, the administration needs these supports in order to cater for the immediate needs of the Liberian people,” said economics scholar Samuel D. Gee.

He said over the period of its existence, Liberia has so far received millions of US dollars in support funds and debt relief without strings attached, besides the requirement to strengthen its economy and reduce corruption.

According to him, no one raised questions about a number of assistance Liberia received in recent months from the U.S., China, EU, Denmark, Germany, France, and Libya even though the business and political interest of these partners were well known and even though some of these partners have memorable question marks about them.

Besides, he said, the IMF Board of Directors approved the re-engagement of Liberia without requiring the country, on its own financial strengthen, to reach the implementation point as required by the Fund’s rule.

“Let no one be deceived, all of these countries now called Liberia’s economic partners have business interest in Liberia. They are only waiting for the country to be stabilized.

So why isn’t anyone crying out about these hidden intentions when they give to Liberia in the so-called bilateral cooperation lending? Is the silence due to the lack of understanding of the thrust and mechanisms of international cooperation or is it due to sheer naivety and eye-service advocacy?” he wondered.

He noted that the gift was been unnecessarily muddied for the sake of vain whistle blowing.

UL Political Science senior Tommie Sunday agrees. He said arguments that because ArcelorMitta Steel is suspected of eying further bidding for iron ore exploration in Liberia it cannot respond to Liberia’s SOS, without secret strings attached, is vain.

 “In my mind, such argument is not only questioning the timing and propriety of the gift, it is also questioning the moral standing of the Liberian Senate. It is questioning the capacity of the individual senators to exercise appropriate judgment on behalf of the Liberian people because someone gave them a Mitsubishi pickup that is everything they ever need in the world.

“This is absurd. It is not about concern for Liberia; it is about disdain and lowly thinking of the legislators of the Upper House of the Liberian Legislature,” said Mr. Sunday.

Analysts disagree that the current debate is solely about debasement of an institution or a group of individuals than it is about blowing the whistle to guide the nation against being waylaid by unscrupulous businessmen.

But Sunday insisted that were those who are currently rejecting the gifts sincere, they would have concerned themselves with how the vehicles will be used to benefit the Liberian people.

“They would have approached the Senate leadership to find out whether the vehicles were the personal properties of the individual senators or the properties of the Liberian government.

“As I speak, some senators are passing the vehicles over to officials in their counties. Who knows whether these so-called county officials are not family members or personal friends? You see, the misuse has already begun”.

“This is the actual question: the perseveration of the vehicles to last long and help the people,” he said.

Sunday said besides consulting the Senate leadership, those now playing the rash paranoid – seeing backlash in every assistance from the business community in Liberia without considering other safety guards already in place – will do well to study the Mineral Exploration Agreement between the Liberian government and ArcelorMitta Steel for clues to their fears.

Another observer, former Capitol Building employee David G. Gbayou, said it was unfortunate that so much noise was being made regarding the ArcelorMitta Steel.

According to him, there were plenty of safeguards to ensure that support of the government in time of need will absolutely have no effect on official business.

“We should be grateful that ArcelorMitta Steel chose to be opened about its assistance to the Liberian government. ArcelorMitta Steel, unlike Firestone and the iron ore companies under Tubman, Tolbert, and Doe, and the River Gbeh Plywood Company, OTC and RTC under Taylor, decided to let the nation know that it was assisting the government free of strings.

“This should be praised, not vilified. The company is in line with the agreement between Liberia and the EITI,” Gbayou said.

He said giving to Liberia in keeping with the rules of EITI does not only indicate that ArcelorMitta Steel has no hidden motive for its gift but also that the steel giant seemed prepared to respect the laws of Liberia and the spirit of international agreements Liberia has signed regarding the extractive industry.

According to him, it was the height of naivety for anyone to think that by rejecting openly a gift a public official has shown hatred or bribery or clean hand.

“How can anyone claiming to be of good moral standing believe that receiving a gift from a company is sufficient to hold allegiance to that company? A good proof of love of country is to receive a gift and yet obey the laws of the country.

Anyone who cannot do that is not worth being a public official. Even in the U.S. congressional officials receive gifts from corporations and yet act appropriately on behalf of their constituencies,” he said.

He said people like David Farhat who said the ArcelorMitta Steel gift would come back several years from now as tax deductions were living in the past where government officials secretly arranged deals with concessionaires to present as gifts in public, part of corporate taxes owed the government.

“We remember situations where companies supplied building materials to government as ‘gift’ only to be converted by public officials without benefit to the Liberian people”.

“The cost of these gifts are then credited to government debt at exorbitant rates and swapped with legitimate taxes owed government. This evil practice ran for a long time at the expense of government’s tax revenue base,” he said.

He did not say why the same practice is not at play in the ArcelorMitta Steel situation; but he indicated that Liberia, having suffered the effects of official corruption and back dealing was not ready to go down the same road.

“President Sirleaf knows the consequence and she will not allow anyone to play the same game. This is why she signed the agreement with EITI,” he said.

Meanwhile,  ArcelorMitta Steel said its conscience is clear about this gift and any future assistance to the Liberian people outside its agreement with the government of Liberia and that therefore rather than been shaken by the criticism of skeptics and critics, it is strengthened by them.

A company spokesperson said had ArcelorMitta Steel intended bribery, it would have secretly met with each of the Senators separately and give according to what each will request to work in the company’s interest.

He said it was laughable that anyone calling himself civil society leader would entertain the idea that ArcelorMitta Steel would impose a single gift on all the senators in order to have them work in its interest as if all the senators have the same desire and aspiration or are so gullible to make a choice.

“This is absurd. It discourages cooperation between the government and the business community. It is not only non-profit organization that must assist the government; we all must do within our strength, especially believing that by such assistance, the government will be strengthened to help the population out of difficulties.

But at the same time, we will not lose sight of our tax obligation to the government and our responsibility, according to the agreement we have reach, to the communities within which we are working,” he said.

Analysts say while the views of critics of ArcelorMitta Steel’s gift are justified in a limited sense, they feed dangerously on fears that lack in facts and bases.

They said those suspicious of the company’s gift vis-à-vis its desire to bid for the Western Cluster deposits must do the Liberia people a favor by obtaining and interpreting the safety guards that are in place to ensure that the extractive industry in Liberia, this time around, will not exploit the nation and leave potholes and impassable roads in its wake.

 “This is the role of the civil society and the critically vocal citizen,” they said