BREAKING: BOAKAI HELPED AWAY FROM PODIUM AS LIBERIA'S PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION STALLS

Read Time:1 Minute, 13 Second

Joseph Boakai, the newly elected president of Liberia, was assisted from the podium by security personnel and seemed disorganized, which led to an abrupt ending to the swearing-in event.

The 79-year-old had already taken the oath of office when he stammered to a stop halfway through his acceptance speech.

Several visitors were fanning themselves during the ceremony, which was aired live on State Television, because it was hot and muggy.

The occasion ended abruptly when an aide took off Boakai’s customary cap and others fanned him before he was led out of the arena.

President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana and his spouse, President George Weah of Liberia and his spouse, Vice President Kashim Shettima of Nigeria, former President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, and President Akinwumi Adesina of the African Development Bank were among the dignitaries present at the event.

Whether he would attend the inauguration ball later in the day was not immediately known.

In the July 2023 run-off, Boakai—a former vice president with decades of experience in politics—defeated Weah with 50.89% of the vote.

He comes into a challenging socioeconomic climate that is marked by high rates of youth unemployment, rapidly rising inflation, and a high crime rate, particularly drug usage among young people who lack education and are unemployed.

It would have been a generational shift of power, with Boakai succeeding Weah, 57, but his vice president, Jerrnai Koung, is 45 years old.