Weah won 61.5 percent of the votes in December’s election run-off, defeating outgoing vice president , Joseph Boakai who garnered 38.5 percent of the ballot.

According to the election commission, voter turnout, as gathered was 55.8 percent, which translates to over 1.2 million people.

The former world footballer of the year succeeded Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Africa’s first elected female president. Weah, in 2002 joined active politics after retiring from football and contested for the presidency in 2005 losing to Sirleaf.

It would be recalled that the last peaceful transfer of power between two democratically elected presidents took place in Liberia in 1944, when president Edwin Barclay was replaced by William Tubman.

The swearing-in ceremony which took place at a stadium near the Liberian capital, Monrovia was well attended by several African and foreign dignitaries, including heads of state from Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Mali, Ivory Coast and Guinea.

Liberians regard the 51-year-old as a hero for his incredible rags-to-riches tale. He was born in a slum in Monrovia, but achieved fame in international football.

Also, Weah promised to eradicate corruption in the country of four million people and boost the weak economy since Liberia was described as one of the poorest countries in the world with 80 percent of the population living on less than $1.25 a day.

Monrovia, its capital is highly dependent on exports of iron ore and rubber, which have recently dropped steeply in prices. The country is also trying to overcome the effects of the Ebola outbreak, which left more than 4,000 people dead.

The post Ex- international football star, Weah sworn in as Liberian president first appeared on MegaIcon Magazine.

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The senator of Montserrado County who was a retired footballer floored his 73-year-old opponent, Vice President Joseph Boakai in a landslide victory in results announced in Liberia on Wednesday morning.

Weah on Twitter before the results were announced said, “I am deeply grateful to my family, my friends, and my loyal supporters who contributed to our campaign during this extremely long election season,”

With this development, Weah is set to replace Africa’s first female head of state, economist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, and see the West African nation, founded by freed American slaves, hand over power from one democratically elected government to another.

The post George Weah Emerges Liberia’s 25th President first appeared on MegaIcon Magazine.

The post George Weah Emerges Liberia’s 25th President appeared first on MegaIcon Magazine.