By Valentine Amanze, Online Editor
The Liberian government has said that President George Weah was not planning for a third-term in office.
Stressing that a third-term in office was unconstitutional, the president’s Chief of State, Nathaniel McGill, pointed out on Tuesday October 27, 2020 that Weah was yet to finish first term in office.
He said that Weah would not stay in office beyond a second term.
McGill was responding to rumours that Weah would imitate other African leaders and bid for a third-term in office.
McGill, spoke in the capital, Monrovia, while reminding Liberians that their president, who was a footballer, took office in 2018.
The chief of staff had told AFP: “It is not good for one man to be president for a long time.
“The president is not thinking about a third term.”
Speculation had been growing in the West African nation that the 54-year-old Weah would exploit a December 8, 2020 constitutional referendum to extend his stay in office.
The rumours surfaced amid concerns over democratic backsliding in the region, with ageing presidents changing constitutions to bypass term limits.
Recall that in Guinea, 82-year-old President Alpha Conde won a controversial third term on Saturday after pushing through a new constitution, which allowed him to bypass a two-term limit.
Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara, 78, is also bidding for a controversial third term on October 31, after having revised the country’s constitution.
Liberia’s December referendum will ask voters whether to reduce presidential terms from six years to five, according to AFP.
Voters will also decide whether to allow dual nationality — a divisive issue in the poor nation of some 4.8 million people.
Current legislation stipulates that only indigenous Africans can become naturalised as citizens.
The restrictions chiefly impact Liberia’s ethnic Lebanese residents, who play an important economic role in the country.
Liberia was founded in the 19th century with US support as a home for freed American slaves. Its constitution is modelled on that of the US.