Liberia’s Deputy Information Minister for Press and Public Affairs, Jarlawah A Tonpo, has said that Liberia’s President, George Weah, who is seeking a re-election bid for his second term, has done more in less than 6 years that other Liberian presidents did in their time in office.
In an interview with ARISE NEWS on Monday, while discussing Liberia’s upcoming October 10th presidential poll, Tonpo said that the accusations against President Weah were simply “charades” by the supposed elites of Liberia, who he said were afraid that Weah will not let them get into power again.
The former journalist said, “The reasons why you see the oppositions are afraid is because they started this in 2005. They criticized him, they said he wouldn’t have done anything. But when the Liberian people gave him the mantle, the “elite” in our librarian society become to be afraid that yes, this man will never allow the elite again to come to state power.
“So, all the accusation that you mentioned about is just about a charade. It’s just something meant to shoot their own hearing. But I can say that what George Weah has done in 6 years or in 5 and a half years, no certain president, I’m a Liberian, I have been a journalist before, I have covered most of the Liberian presidents, and no president has done what George Weah has done.”
Emphasizing President Weah’s achievements, Tonpo stated that despite the setbacks faced with the COVID-19 pandemic and other issues that the state had faced, Weah had constructed major roads and three major hospitals in less than 5 years. He added that the president also made public education free in the nation.
Tonpo then addressed the allegations which accused Weah of not improving the justice system, which had enabled a lot of people to go unprosecuted for their actions. He said, “President Weah stands on giving justice and peace to this nation, so on the issue of what you said that George Weah stands for, he stands for peace, he stands for justice, and the justice has to be democratically shown, be democratically given to the process that people want it to pass through. You can’t just gather on one morning and say that because you’re a certain president, you want to apprehend somebody, it has to be agreed by the people consult, and then, when they allow him to do what he wants to do, he will certainly do it.
“And I can assure you when George Weah is re-elected, which of course he will do in just 72 hours from now, when he is re-elected, that issue of the justice system, and I hope that people who George Weah have spoken for on his ticket will be elected, because at the legislature, when you have people on your side, you have their authority. When these people shall have given George Weah that mantle, the justice system that the Liberian people will want, those who don’t want to be prosecuted will certainly be prosecuted once that authority is given to George Weah.”
Tonpo then said that President Weah has maintained that after his second term, he will hand over power to another young Liberian to lead the country.
Speaking more on the upcoming election, the deputy minister said, “President Weah, as he has always demonstrated, will go to this election peacefully. He will win on the first round. On the first-round ballot, he will win on the basis of what he has done.”
Ozioma Samuel-Ugwuezi
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