IPNEWS: On Wednesday, November 23, 2022, while speaking on a local radio station on wide range of national issues, River Gee County Senator Conmany Wesseh inferred that from all indications, President George Weah’s prolonged absence from Liberia is a clear indication that the country’s leader is already tired with the presidency just after five years of his six-year term.

Last week, President George Weah in a leaked communication, informed the Senate of plans to return to Liberia on December 18, 2022, contrary to an earlier communication to return to the country on November 23, 2022, following his departure from Liberia on November 1, 2022.

President Weah earlier requested Senate approval for 23 days to travel to France, Morocco, Egypt, Qatar, and the United States. And two weeks later, the Liberian Leader requested the Senate for an additional 25-day extension.

It was rumored, the Liberian leader carried over US$1m for the trip; even though Finance Minister Samuel Tweah denied this on local radio but refused to say how much the President’s trip would cost Liberian Taxpayers.

The Liberian President’s long stay abroad has angered some Liberians, including Weah’s own supporters who are demanding his return home.

According to Senator Wesseh, President Weah’s prolonged absence from the country has justified and demonstrated that he is tired with the presidential job, which he got in January 2018 following his overwhelming victory over his rival, former Vice President Joseph Boakai of the Unity Party in a presidential run-off.

The River Gee Senator indicated that President Weah has shown to the Liberian people and the world that he is incapable to run and lead the country’s affairs. “For how long will he has to do that to express his fatigue? Many people in my county called on talk shows and informed us that the prolonged visit of the President is a demonstration of his tiredness to run the country,” Sen. Wesseh intoned.

Commenting further, Senator Wesseh asserted that he agrees with his people in River Gee County who have called on local radio stations and expressed that President is tired and cannot govern the country anymore.

Senator Wesseh, who is a member of the former ruling Unity Party noted that the presence of a president in a country during a crisis period gives hope to the country and its people because, many citizens and residents generate hope when the president is around and seen in the country. But he noted in the case of Liberia, it is very sad that the country has serious issues relating to the National Population Census process, bad economic situation among many others, the leader of Liberia chose to leave the country for a long time.

“Stay home and you will give hope to your people. Many people feel happy and generate hope when they see their president around and even hear him make statements regarding national issues that tend to trouble the country. But leaving the country without telling the Liberian people about the economic benefits of your prolonged visit outside justifies that you are tired and suffering from fatigue,” the River Gee Senator sturdily believes.

Recounting his time when he worked as advisor and played major roles in the government of some former presidents of Liberia, including Interim President Dr. Amos C. Sawyer (deceased) and former president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Senator Wesseh stated that every foreign mission or trip that Dr. Sawyer or Pres. Sirleaf had to make, it was thoroughly discussed and studied as far as its relevance and economic benefits were concerned and properly communicated.

However, with President Weah the River County Gee Senator indicated he does not see that, which has led to the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) to make lot of mistakes in governing Liberia.

Interestingly, President Weah has extended the period of his trip abroad by additional 25 days. The notice of extension by the Liberian President was contained in a letter he dispatched to the Senate on Tuesday, November 18, 2022.

President Weah previously wrote the Senate, indicating that he will be out of the country from 1 November to 23 November 2022 to hold ‘series of bilateral and multilateral meetings with his counterparts and business executives.’

But on Tuesday, November 22, 2022, a dispatch from Doha, Qatar, where the President is Guest of Honor of the FIFA World Cup, noted the President Weah will not return home until December 18, 2022.

“It has now become necessary to extend my trip abroad due to other official engagements requiring my travel to Monaco, France and the United States of America,” the Liberian leader said in the dispatch.

However, according to Presidential Press Secretary, I. Solo Kelgbeh, on the margins of the World Cup, President Weah is having engagements with partners and the business community in Qatar including a planned bilateral meeting with His Highness, Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani before his departure to Monaco on next week Tuesday, November 29, 2022.

Press Secretary Kelgbeh noted while in Monaco, President Weah will meet the Prince of Monaco and address the Sports for Development Forum.

Following his engagement with the King of Monaco, President Weah will head to the United States of America on December 3, 2022, for Joe Biden’s African Summit.

The President lands in Miami for meetings with some American Investors who are interested in exploring Liberia’s cordial and virgin business environment.

At the end of those engagements, the President heads to New York for a couple of meetings, including a meeting the Head of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Achim Steiner. During that meeting, it is hoped that Liberia and the UNDP will finalize arrangements for community-driven initiatives.

And on December 13-15, 2022, comes the Biden Africa Summit which the opposition bitterly don’t want to see happen with President Weah attending.

In addition to the summit, President Weah is expected to hold bilateral and multilateral meetings with Joseph R. Biden and other leaders attending the Biden African Forum—another nightmarish experience Liberia’s frustrated opposition cannot afford to watch.

Liberians are assured that as the President continues his international engagements, his beloved country, Liberia, reigns prominently on his mind and that he would spend every second of his time to scout for and bring back benefits, as is often characteristic of his travels, for the people of Liberia. Presidential Press Secretary Kelgbeh said.

But as far as River Gee Senator Conmany Wesseh is concerned, “I think the period of the President’s travel is too long. If he remains out of Liberia for this long period, he may not be in the know of what actually has been happening behind him here except that which he would be told by those who are now running the country.”

Since President Weah departed Liberia on November 1, 2022, for series of engagements in several countries in Africa, Europe, the Middle East and North America, there have been mixed reactions over the President’s prolonged stay. For his supporters, he is working in the interest of the country, while the opposition community thinks he has run away from the harsh reality confronting Liberia, and thus he chose to go abroad for a longer period in the name of attending international conferences.

Some of the opposition members noted while the President’s trip to some of those international engagement may yield fruitful results; it is their belief that he should have designated other top government officials to attend those meetings while he attends the most important ones like the President Joe Biden Africa Leaders’ Summit slated for Washington DC in December this year.

But with mounting calls from Liberians for their president to return home and address those issues currently confronting the country, their desire is far from being achieved because President Weah will not return home until December 18, 2022, after the Biden Summit. However, there are reports that hundreds of thousands of United States dollars is reportedly being expended for the President’s prolong stay abroad.