Convinced That Soccer Is One Thing And Politics Another, Weah Admits, Crying 'I Can’t Do this Peace Thing all by Myself'; How Soon He Is Going To Start, Is What The Public Wants To Know

Weah says he cannot bring peace to Liberia all by himself

Football-legend-turned-politician George Weah has said that genuine peace in Liberia will remain an illusion if people expect him to single-handedly lead the charge in the country’s search for authentic peace and reconciliation.

“I cannot bring peace to Liberia all by myself. I cannot do it all by myself,” the leader of the opposition Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) re-emphasized, cautioning “actors of what happened to this country in the past” against sitting supinely, expecting that he would, by himself, bring peace and reconciliation to Liberia.

Ambassador Weah was addressing news-gatherers yesterday at the Roberts International Airport (RIA) where he had gone to receive the remains of his deceased mother. The former soccer star’s mother, Anna Moneh Quiwah died recently in Accra, Ghana. She was pronounced dead at the 37 Military Hospitals in Accra following a prolong battle with cancer. She was 64 and had been living in Ghana for the past 16 years

“The actors of what happened to this country should not just sit and say that because Ambassador Weah is peace ambassador, so peace will just come to this country. That is an illusion. In other words, we have to work together. We have to know that the time has come to move forward,” he added.

In a word to non-state actors in the Liberia civil conflict, Mr. Weah cautioned the rank-and-file  not to dream of him bringing peace to Liberia simply because “George Opong Weah is peace-ambassador.”

So, who or what is Weah waiting for? And what has he done so far? He was appointed Liberia’s peace ambassador shortly after Nobel Peace Laureate Leymah Gbowee resigned the post. Weah joyfully accepted his new portfolio in December. That was three months or more ago.

His brilliant soccer career aside, what has Weah done for his country lately, political pundits have been wondering. “How long will he continue trading blows when he hasn’t even attempted launching his brand of the peace and reconciliation initiative and pushing it around the country, across ethnic, gender, religious, social and political lines? Weah ought to start at some point and from somewhere.”

Recently, Weah’s CDC and Nimba County Senator Prince Y. Johnson (PYJ) were locked in a war of words with the CDC threatening to effect a citizens’ arrest of PYJ. The CDC accused PYJ of bad-mouthing the party; branding the Senator a “war criminal.” The CDC also blamed the Senator of accusing the party of being the mastermind behind the planned April 12 demonstration.

But Senator Johnson rejected the claim that he was bad-mouthing the party. According to him, he simply called on the CDC leader, Weah, to play his role as peace ambassador in bringing the protesters and the government to the negotiation table where both parties could iron out things through dialogue. 

The Senator is however on records for saying that "The April 12 demonstration is intended for the planners to loot, gruesomely exploit peaceful citizens and create an unsafe environment for huge investments already being pumped into the country's economy by foreign investors."

The feud was a test case for Weah to prove to the Liberian people that he is indeed a true peace-builder. Unfortunately, as peace ambassador, Weah played no role in that rigmarole between his own party and the Senator. Nor is he known to have played a part in the cancellation of the planned April 12 protest, though he was bereaved over the period.

Meanwhile, the remains of Weah’s mother were yesterday deposited at the Samuel Stryker Funeral Home to be removed on Friday and taken to the Antoinette Tubman Stadium for a night of wake keeping. Burial follows on Saturday.