30 December 2017

LIBERIA MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

ANC Presidential Candidate, Alexander Cummings Congratulates George Weah On His Election As Liberia’s Next President, Source: GNN Liberia

The Alternative National Congress (ANC) 2017 presidential candidate, Alexander Benedict Cummings has congratulated the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) for the election of its presidential candidate, Senator George M. Weah as Liberia’s next President following the December 26 runoff election. Read more

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA ON LIBERIA

George Weah confirmed as Liberia's president, Sources: Agence France-Presse, The Telegraph, and The Washington Post

Liberia’s elections board on Friday officially certified former international football star George Weah as the winner of the nation’s presidential election, following a tally of all results. In the West African country’s first democratic transfer of power after two devastating civil wars, Weah beat Vice President Joseph Boakai in Thursday’s run-off vote, gaining 61.5 percent of the ballot against 38.5 percent for his rival and winning in 14 of Liberia’s 15 counties. Weah’s CDC party won a total of 732,185 votes against Boakai’s Unity party, which garnered 457,579. Read more

Liberia's Weah under pressure to deliver after election win, Source: Reuters

Now that George Weah has emphatically won Liberia’s presidency, an even more daunting task awaits: delivering tangible benefits to expectant supporters in the face of a gutted economy and waning donor support.

Weah was met by hundreds of screaming supporters on his arrival at his party headquarters on Friday. Many have waited over a decade - since his failed bid for the presidency in 2005 - to see a man they consider their own come to power.

Those supporters come with high expectations that the former soccer star may have to carefully temper if he is to keep his widespread support, particularly among the West African country’s disaffected youth.

In a farewell address on Friday to the senate, where he has served since 2015, Weah struck a unifying note but steered clear of policy specifics, as he did throughout the campaign. “We all are colleagues, we are Liberians. It is time for us to work together to move the country forward,” he said. Read more

Free and fair elections 'confirm Liberia's steady march towards lasting peace,' says UN chief, Source: UN News Centre

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday congratulated George Weah on his election as the next President of Liberia, and commended Vice-President Joseph Boakai for conceding defeat.

In a statement issued by the UN Spokesperson welcoming the announcement by the National Elections Commission on 29 December of the final results of the presidential run-off election in Liberia, the Secretary-General applauded all Liberians for the successful completion of the elections process, which was conducted in a peaceful environment. “[Mr. Guterres] commends the work of the national, regional and international electoral observation teams,” said the statement

The statement went on to express the UN chief's appreciation for the efforts of former President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, a member of his High-level Advisory Board, and welcomed the steadfast good offices of his Special Representatives Farid Zarif of the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) and Mohammed Ibn Chambas of the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS). Read more

UN chief congratulates Liberia's next president, Sources: AFP and Modern Ghana

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday congratulated George Weah on his victory in Liberia's presidential election and praised the peaceful conduct of the vote.

Guterres "applauds all Liberians for the successful completion of the elections process, which was conducted in a peaceful environment," a statement from the UN chief's spokesman said.

Liberia's election board certified Weah as the winner of the election on Friday, marking the country's first peaceful transfer of power after two civil wars.

Weah, a former international football star, defeated Vice President Joseph Boakai in the run-off vote. Weah is due to be sworn in on January 22, following Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who in 2006 took over the country founded by freed US slaves. Read more

White House: Liberia transfer of power a 'major milestone', Sources: Reuters and The White House News

The White House on Friday congratulated Liberia on its recent presidential run-off election, calling the nation’s first democratic transition in more than 70 years “a major milestone.”

“This is Liberia’s first peaceful transfer of power from one democratically elected head of state to another in decades, and represents a major milestone for Liberia’s democracy,” the White House said in a statement, referring to President-elect George Weah’s victory.

Nigerian leader hails Liberia's peaceful presidential run-off, Source: Xinhua

Nigerian leader Muhammadu Buhari has described the widely acclaimed peaceful conduct of Liberia's presidential run-off election on Tuesday as "another plus on Africa's democratic scoreboard." In a statement on Friday, Buhari commended the Liberian people on the peaceful conduct of the historic presidential run-off election, marking the first peaceful transfer of power since 1944.

Buhari congratulated George Weah, winner of the Liberian presidential election and equally applauded the efforts of the National Election Commission of Liberia, as well as regional and international observers who have contributed immensely to the electoral process and the strengthening of post-conflict democracy in the West African country.

The Nigerian leader described Weah's victory as "an affirmation of the will of the Liberian people to remain united, peaceful and prosperous." Read more

Liberia has made ECOWAS proud – Mahama, Source: Ghana Web

Former President John Dramani Mahama who led Head of the ECOWAS Election Observation Team to Liberia for the run-off on December 26, 2017 has disclosed that the country has made itself and the entire sub-region proud. He tasked both the victor and vanquished to see the building and development of the country as a collective patriotic responsibility.

Mr Mahama congratulated leader of the opposition Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) Senator George Manneh Weah, President elect and Unity Party’s Joseph Boakai for the great sportsmanship exhibited in a facebook post. Read more

Manchester City star Yaya Toure leads congratulations to Liberia's new president George Weah, Source: Mirror

Manchester City's Yaya Toure has congratulated football legend George Weah on his election as the new president of Liberia.

Weah - the only African player to win the Ballon d'Or - was elected president on Tuesday, winning the popular vote with over 60 per cent after a run-off, ahead of opponent Joseph Boakai.

The victory led to jubilant scenes in the Liberian capital of Monrovia, with the 51-year-old promising to being change to the west African nation of approximately 4.5 million people.

"My fellow Liberians, I deeply feel the emotion of all the nation," Weah wrote on Twitter after the win. "I measure the importance and the responsibility of the immense task which I embrace today. Change is on."

And Ivory Coast star Toure was among plenty of footballers to congratulate the new president, who had spells in the Premier League with Chelsea and Toure's club Manchester City. Read more

Disclaimer
 

This media summary consists of selected local media articles for the information of UN personnel. The public distribution of this media summary is a courtesy service extended by UNMIL on the understanding that the choice of articles included is exclusive, and the contents do not represent anything other than a selection of articles likely to be of interest to a United Nations readership. The inclusion of articles in this summary does not imply endorsement by UNMIL.

 

 

 

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