How Obj, Kuffour, Mbeki persuaded me to concede defeat in 2005 Presidency-Weah

George Weah

Liberia soccer legend, George Weah, has revealed how some respectable African leaders, which includes Nigeria’s ex-president, Olusegun Obasanjo, Ghana’s John Kufuor and South Africa’s Thabo Mbeki and others, prevailed on him to accept defeat in the country’s 2005 presidential election in the interest of peace and stability.

Weah who played a major role in the peace-building of the country over the years, said he was called on board by the people who gave him their mandate.

Speaking during an interview with Daily Trust, he said, “I created and funded a party called Congress for Democratic Change (CDC), which is today the people’s party, the most popular one in my country. I went to the polls in 2005, and won the first round overwhelmingly but something changed and we had to go for a second round. When we did, the same thing happened.

“But for the sake of peace and stability in our country – coming from many years of civil war – we held discussions with regional leaders and interest groups and we eventually decided to accept the results. We listened to the counsel of respectable African leaders, who I respect a lot, like Nigeria’s then-president Olusegun Obasanjo, Ghana’s then-president John Kufuor and South Africa’s Thabo Mbeki and others, who sat with me and told me that ‘Look, in the interest of peace and stability in your country, let’s make some provisions for the country to move on’. I’m a peaceful man, and my vision is to see Liberia grow. So I listened, kept hope alive, and all the while I continued to work.

“In 2011, I was privileged to be on the ticket of Winston Tubman, as his Vice. We went to elections, and a similar thing happened. Again, we let it slide and continued to hope. I declared my bid for the presidency in April 28, and I would like to tell those who told me to concede for the sake of peace, that for the sake of peace and stability that we’re hoping that there will be free and fair elections.

“We’re hoping that this time everything will be OK, and that interest groups will guide the election, and see it through,” he averred.

Weah, a serving senator who ran for the presidency twice and lost, said he was very young and inexperienced at the time, adding that he had grown in politics.

“But for twelve years now, I’ve been very active. I’m very much into government now. For our rebirth, we’ve been in tune with the intricacies of our nation. We also kept an eye on what the current government is doing, and we speak out when there’s a need. When we need to support them, say to enact laws and such, we do so too in the interest of the people.

“Everyone in the CDC has grown, we have matured. When we speak, we don’t incite. We speak words of wisdom. So much so that when I ran for the Senate, even key figures of the opposition came to us, to join us.

“We’ve also fine-tuned all of the intricacies, like early planning, making sure the ballot papers are monitored and so on. We also collaborated with other parties. Like I said, we have grown. I believe I’m a good leader, with skills and the heart to make a positive difference,” he said.

-Jamiu Yisa