Sierra Leone Telegraph: 18 November 2023:
Liberians, especially their President George Weah, have today shown President Bio of Sierra Leone that brutality and stealing of the people’s votes have no place in a civilised and democratic nation.
Yesterday, in a welcoming and rare display of magnanimity and grace by an Africa leader, President George Weah accepted losing presidential run-off election held last week, after the first-round results showed that neither he, nor the opposition candidate had won an outright 50% majority at the polls.
Conceding defeat even before all the results had been counted, President Weah who must now be considered for the Mo Ibrahim Africa Governance Award, if not a Nobel Prize Award, said through the Office of the President yesterday:
“The President of the Republic, H.E. Dr. George Manneh Weah has congratulated Joseph N. Boakai as winner of the 2023 presidential runoff election. President Weah called Mr. Boakai via telephone following the announcement of provisional results by the National Elections Commission (NEC) on Friday, November 17, 2023. The Liberian Chief Executive said Liberians are the winners of the elections and called on his support to accept the results.”
In June this year, Presidential and general elections were held in Sierra Leone. The results seen by local and international election observers and verified by the American government, clearly showed that neither President Bio, nor the opposition candidate Dr Samura Kamara had won the election.
But Sierra Leone’s Electoral Commissioner – Mohamed Konneh who is a known financial supporter of President Bio’s ruling SLPP party, went ahead and announced President Bio the winner.
Unlike Mohamed Konneh of Sierra Leone, who is being accused of rigging the elections in favour of President Bio, Liberia’s Chief Electoral Commissioner – Davidetta Brown without fear or favour, had shown moral courage and fortitude by announcing last month that no candidate had won the Liberian presidential election, and therefore ordered a re-run.
Yesterday, Davidetta Brown declared opposition leader – Joseph Nyuma Boakai the winner and next President of Liberia.
In reply, President George Weah did not threaten war or violence on the people of Liberia, nor ordered his Presidential guards to take to the streets along with his well-armed party agents. He accepted defeat gracefully, unlike President Bio who prior to the elections had ordered the killing of dozens of opposition supporters and threaten war if he was not returned winner of the election.
President Weah told the people of Liberia that he has congratulated his opponent – Joseph Nyuma Boakai whom he described as the President-elect of Liberia. Weah has called on all his supporters to accept defeat and go about their normal business, emphasising that “the result is a victory for all Liberians”.
Today is a day for Africa to celebrate democracy and pour shame on the likes of President Bio of Sierra Leone who is willing, capable and has demonstrated time and again, that he can take the lives of poor unarmed citizens (Photo above), whose only crime is to peacefully assert their democratic rights in Sierra Leone.
The international community in Sierra Leone must also be held accountable for their moral failure to hold President Bio personally responsible, for the killing of over two hundred unarmed citizens of Sierra Leone since coming to power in 2018.
President George Weah who came to power after winning the 2018 elections on his manifesto promise to fight corruption in Liberia and tackle the country’s economic woes, has now been rejected by the people of Liberia.
This is no doubt what the people of Sierra Leone have emphatically done to President Bio of Sierra Leone, who has refused to publish the results of the June 2023 elections in order to criminally conceal his defeat.
What a striking moral contrast between President Bio of Sierra Leone and President George Weah of Liberia
The 78-year-old Joseph Boakai (Photo above) to whom Weah has conceded victory, had previously served as vice president for twelve years under former president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. Soon he will be sworn-in as President of Liberia.
With more than 99 percent of the ballots counted, Mr. Boakai has polled 50.89 percent of the declared results, with George Weah polling 49.11 percent. Only 50% is required to win outright.
You can read the transcript of his speech below:
MY FELLOW LIBERIANS, DISTINGUISHED LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:
I stand before you tonight with a heavy heart, but with the utmost respect for the democratic process that has defined our nation. As your President and the leader of the Coalition for Democratic Change, I want to address you on the outcome of the run-off elections held on November 14, 2023.
The results announced tonight, though not final, indicate that Ambassador Joseph N. Boakai is in a lead that is insurmountable. A few moments ago, I spoke with President-elect Joseph N. Boakai to congratulate him on his victory and to offer my sincere commitment to working with him for the betterment of our beloved Liberia.
I extend my heartfelt congratulations to President-elect Boakai, his supporters, and his campaign team. May his presidency be marked by success for all Liberians, and may our nation prosper under his leadership.
Tonight, as we acknowledge the results, let us also recognize that the true winners of these elections are the people of Liberia. Through your peaceful and orderly exercise of your constitutional right to vote, you have once again demonstrated your commitment to the democratic principles that bind us together as a nation.
Under my leadership, these elections were organized with a promise to the Liberian people – a promise of fairness, transparency, and credibility. I am proud to say that, for the most part, we have fulfilled that promise. The Liberian people have spoken, and their choice will be honored and obeyed.
At this juncture, I would like to congratulate the National Elections Commission for a job well done. You have earned the respect of all Liberians, our foreign partners, international observers, and the world at large for completing this difficult task to the satisfaction of all stakeholders, including the contesting parties.
However, the closeness of the results reveals a deep division within our country. As we transition to the new Boakai administration, we must be vigilant to the dangers of division and work together to find common ground. Now, more than ever, unity is paramount for the love of Mama Liberia.
To the members of the Mighty Coalition for Democratic Change, fellow partisans, CDCians, Weahcians, auxiliaries, first-time voters, campaign managers, and party leaders, I understand that this is not the outcome we desired. Although we did not emerge victorious, your hard work and support have been the backbone of our campaign, and for that, I am deeply grateful.
I urge you to follow my example and accept the results of the elections. Go home tonight with the knowledge that our ideals and vision for Liberia remain strong. We are a young movement, and our time will come again. Tomorrow, resume your daily activities in a normal way, and come and join me at our party headquarters to reflect on our journey and plan for our return to political leadership in 2029.
MY FELLOW LIBERIANS, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:
Tonight, the CDC has lost the election, but Liberia has won. This is a time for graciousness in defeat, a time to place our country above party, and patriotism above personal interest. I remain your President until the handover of power, and I will continue to work for the good of Liberia. Let us heal the divisions caused by the campaign and come together as One Nation and One United People.
May God bless Liberia, and may we continue to strive for a brighter future together.
Thank you, and good night.
Thanks to most of the opposition parties in the 5th parliament for resisting “Regime Change” from the international community based on the fact that President “Talk and Do” tore apart most of the sweet heart deals which the APC party had signed which were not beneficial to our country. Honorable Dr. Kandeh Yumkella of the National Grand Coalition (NGC) party, Honorable Emerson Lamina of the Coalition for Change ,all the Independent Honorables and top APC officials (Vice President Victor Foh and Dr. Alpha Kanu) decided to form a coalition against the APC to avoid a RUNOFF and maintain the peace and stability of our nation, which is unprecedented in the world. Most coalition parties are usually formed during the second rounds, but the current “African president of the year “(President Bio) did the unthinkable.
Fortunately, the Electoral Commissioners, Chief Justice, Speaker of Parliament, the Inspector General of Police and the Chief of Defense of the Military never gave in to the unrealistic demands from the APC party calling for their resignations few days before the June 24, 2023 General Elections.
Unfortunately, the APC party also had Marcella Samba of National Elections watch (NEW) who supposed to be an election observer to announce the election results before the constitutionally required electoral commissioner based on their projections rather than counting the raw votes. NEW even announced that President Bio won the first round around 53%, which was even better than the 2018 election victory result , and hoping to create the possibility of a second round so that the APC can continue with more destructive demands which I believe would have created the atmosphere for a military coup.
Let’s hope and pray that the APC party will learn from the opposition Unity Party of Liberia that they should protect and maintain the RRF forms from the Electoral Commission which can be used as evidence to dispute results in the Supreme Court , and also “FAILING TO PLAN IS PLANNING TO FAIL”
In a historic electoral journey, Liberians shattered the status quo, signaling a demand for change. The prevailing notion of a two-term myth in the sub-region is now relegated to history in Liberia.
The opposition’s victory, widely lauded for its fairness and transparency, serves as a beacon for other nations, including Sierra Leone. Contrasting Liberia’s success with Sierra Leone’s recent June 24th elections reveals a stark mismatch in principles—honesty, accountability, self-pride, and nationalism.
Sierra Leone’s electoral landscape cries out for a thorough cleansing to thwart future instances of theft and robbery.
Despite the challenges, Sierra Leoneans, known for their forgiving nature, have transformed forgiveness into a dialogue, fostering national unity and progress. Their resilience and determination not to regress to past turmoil showcase a commitment to a brighter future.
However, the shadow of Mohamed Konneh, presence in Liberia during its first-round elections, looms large. His continued role raises questions about accountability and integrity, urging a swift resignation to uphold the electoral process’s sanctity.
Another looming question of whether President Bio will attend the inauguration of Liberia’s newly elected leader adds intrigue, emphasizing the interconnectedness of nations in the pursuit of democratic ideals.
As we await unfolding events, it is clear that Sierra Leone stands on the limelight, with the Liberian example as a guidepost.
The urgency for electoral reform and a commitment to transparent governance in Sierra Leone, must take center stage to secure a future free from the taint of malpractice.
What a differing tale of two former war-torn countries and thèir two elections commisions. The first below is yet to publish the full elections results months after the event took place.Is ECSL still sanitizing them after those unprecedented and treasonable dirty tricks? The Liberian NEC has done it in less than a week post-voting. It is fitting that the oldest African republic has defied the stereotyping,pigeon-holing and accusations justified or perceived that Africans are incapable of managing any of their affairs- not even one as mundane as organizing a national election to give their people agency and franchise, and capture their mood and say on the state of play in their countries.
https://ec.gov.sl/#
https://results.necliberia.org/
His Excellency President George Weah has done a phenomenal service to Liberia, Africa and the world at large. In defeat he has upheld his patriotism, manhood, integrity and dignity. Through out his presidency he never killed anybody, he never impeded his opponents as they crisscrossed the country to put out their message, he gave the electoral commissioner total freedom for her to do her job in a manner worth copying.
All true Sierra Leoneans should appeal to His Excellency President George Weah to travel to Freetown after formally handing over power to teach Bio and his electoral commissioner (Mohammed Kinneh)not only how to organise voting but how to count the votes too.
Your Excellency President George Weah, you have carved your name into the history books with golden letters for the right reasons for prosperity; they will say that there was a President by the name of George Weah whose love for his country was surpassed only by the love of God.
Interesting article. If allowed, I would like to modify the title of the article to read: “Liberia’s Unity Party Shames Sierra Leone’s All Peoples Congress…”.
Liberia’s electoral exercise serves as a lesson more to Sierra Leone’s All People’s Congress (APC) than to Sierra Leone with different country characteristics. Among other things, the United Party of Liberia has demonstrated that a ruling party can lose power, accept defeat at the polls, go to opposition, respect the tenets of democracy and the rule of law, not wage a campaign of calumny against the ruling party and later robustly challenge and beat the ruling party in national elections.
Had Sierra Leone’s All People’s Congress learned the afore-mentioned tenets of civilized political behavior, it probably could have won the June 2023 elections. But embracing lawlessness and recklessness was too enticing to pass over. Consequently, not only did Samura Kamara, the party’s presidential candidate in 2018 refuse to concede and congratulate Julius Maada Bio, the winner, but he threatened to render Sierra Leone ungovernable. What followed was a pattern of APC lawlessness that included allegations of party operatives using thugs to sabotage developmental initiatives around Sierra Leone.
Fast forward to 2023. We saw Samura Kamara, a man dealing with serious corruption charges in Sierra Leonean courts, violently dislodge other competitors in Makeni for leadership of the APC. But with a lackluster campaign that often sought the help of the violent Adebayor in Holland, Samura knew well that he was going to perform poorly in the elections. Therefore, to save face to the party’s grassroots supporters, he waged a campaign of calumny against the ruling government.
The campaign of calumny has included bogus reports of violence against APC members in SLPP’s strongholds and burning of APC party offices and killing of APC operatives. Yet the fact remains that APC has been so broke over the years that it was kicked out of its party offices in the bigger towns of the Southeast for failure to pay rent. Additionally, with only three million Leones in its coffers as reported by Alfred Peter Conteh when he took over the party, the APC was too broke to hire party agents to represent the party’s interests during the elections. Thus, at the conclusion of the elections, APC did not have an iota of evidence to substantiate its bogus claims that President Bio did not win the elections.
What a pathetic political party. The APC remains in denial over 2018 and 2023, But if it does not learn quickly from the Unity Party of Liberia, APC would again lose by a landslide in 2028.
Bilal Coleman you Nailed it!!!!!!
Congrats to the President-elect-the partly Sierra Leone-schooled Joseph N. Boakai, the outgoing President of Liberia-the 1995 Ballon d’or Winner and only ex-footballer to become a state President George Manneh Weah, the ballsy and gutsy with testicular fortitude female Elections chief Davidetta Brown and the people of the non-colonized and oldest African republic for showing us all that indeed the agency and voting franchise of the people of any country should be sacrosanct and respected even if it means changing leaders at every elections cycle if they do not meet their expectations, aspirations and basic needs. Liberia continues to show its class since the infamy of that cocaine-sniffing Charles Taylor’s “You killed My Ma, you killed My Pa, I’ll vote for you. It is now a case of “you do not perform on the pitch, you are not scoring goals with your professed bag of tricks and skills and you are off”.
Liberia and Sierra Leone have trodden similar paths in our recent Histories but it seems they are now on a different trajectory striving to eschew and shy away from those risk factors that were the root causes of their troubles and Sierra Leone’s troubles. The two neighbouring country’s paths once crossed and converged but they they are now as divergent as ever.
Could you give us a lending hand Liberia and have Davidetta take over from our Kondor Manager cum Chief Electoral Commissioner Mohamed Konneh in Sierra Leone?