Joseph Boakai said on Thursday that he is in good health, urging Liberians to disregard what he said were false and subversive messages on social media after he recently checked in at the ELWA Hospital in Monrovia.
News of the Unity Party standard bearer's poor health has sparked a flurry of talk in the country that Boakai, 78, was in a "critical" condition at the hospital. Those claims have been fueled by previous rumors of Boakai's poor health illness, following several medical checks home and abroad.
Appearing in public for the first time a week, Boakai urged Liberians "to disregard the subversive messages being circulated via text messaging and the Social Media, saying the fabricated messages are being orchestrated by those who feel threatened by his presence in the pending presidential election later this year.
Boakai said he would not have been able to go on a visit at Unity Party headquarters if he is suffering from ill health. He asked politicians to focus on issues rather than engaging in mudslinging and character assassination.
Boakai was speaking when some partisans of President George Weah's Coalition Democratic Change under the banner "Disenchanted Cicians" endorsed his candidacy.
"I was looking at the birth circle for the age one to six, you are trying to crawl, from the age six to 18 you want to graduate from high school, from 19 to 22 you want to get out of college, from 22 to 30 you want to get a high degree. 26 years of your life gone. Then our retirement age is 65. Out of the 65 when you take off 26 you left with 39. Out of that 30 you luck you can get job in this country. Out that 39, you people have lost six years, leaving you will 33, then Weah them want to reduce it by six more years. They leave with 27," Boakai said as his speech was punctuated by cheers by jubilant party supporters.
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He added: "By the time they leave they will have no country, they will no retirement, they will have nothing. At the end of the day, you will say why did I come to this earth for. And you are dealing with people who are selfish , they don't care, they are mosquitos even if you are dry they will find space to eat."
"You young people, this is no joke, your lives are wasted by heartless people. So we say rescue, this is why we are here for. This why God has brought us. This is a mission, I don't whether you are in some or you are what, I don't even carw. We will make sure this country is fixed"
Meanwhile, Unity Party Chairman, Rev Luther Tarpeh, said that the return of Amb Boakai has should be concerned for the ruling Party, warning that President Weah should be the last try and error leader for country.
He said that the CDC-led government has "destroyed" the country, assuring Liberians that the country will regain its respectable status amongst the international community under a Boakai presidency.
"CDC should be worried, and their partisans' heart should be beating fast because this man, God had destined him to rescue Liberia."
" We are here to let you know, going forward, George Weah will be the last accident for Liberia, he warned.
"He should be the last mistake for the republic of Liberia. Going forward, Liberians will never do try and error with our highest seat in the country anymore."
