Monrovia — Senator Prince Johnson has said Liberians would still vote Unity Party standard bearer Joseph Boakai even if he were in the mortuary.
Responding to inquiries from popular Facebook talk-show host Prophet Key Thursday regarding rumors about Boakai's ill health ahead of the October presidential and legislative elections, Senator Johnson said: "Being 78-year-old doesn't mean you can't lead your people, even if Joseph Boakai were in the mortuary before the October presidential election, Liberians would still vote him."
Boakai's health has become a concern to many Liberians, with many expressing doubts that the 78-old-old would be unfit to lead the country were he to be elected president. But Senator, whose Movement for Democracy and Reconstruction (MDR) party has endorsed Boakai's candidacy, said the Unity Party standard bearer's health shouldn't be a major point for discussion ahead of the election.
"Whether he's ill or not, Liberians love Joseph Boakai, and they are prepared to demonstrate that at the ballot box in October. There are many presidents around the world who have passed 80 years, and medically fit, and still governing their countries well. I believe Boakai can be a better president than a "young and healthy" George Weah who has damaged the country," he said.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the Coalition for Democratic Change Bong County Chapter, Sayblee Weyea, has called on Boakai to clear the air on issues surrounding his health.
Weyea made the call at a news conference on Thursday in Gbarnga. Weyea said the call had become necessary since the health of Boakai had become a major issue of discussion in the country.
He said the request was standard practice across the world, adding that the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change was not in any way antagonizing Boakai by it.
Weyea maintained that the Coalition for Democratic Change was not making any allegation or accession, but that it was only asking Boakai to clear the air on issues concerning his health which had been under discussion for some time now.
"We are not impressed by the fact that Senator Johnson has tried to speak for him on this matter," Weyea said in reference to statements by the Nimba County Senator that Boakai was hearty.
"We would prefer that Boakai himself clears the air and tells Liberians himself that he is not ill.
"The rumor that he is increasingly experiencing shortness of breath due to palpitations (irregular heartbeat) is exceptionally worrying and it is incumbent upon each and every one of us to pray for him if this rumor is true," Weyea said.
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He said that it was vital that full disclosure of the state of Boakai's health was made known to the people, especially in the face of the country's recent history, a reference to the health of the late founding father of Liberty Party Charles Brumskine who died in 2019.
Weyea said that Liberians deserved to know the truth before they would make their choice about who they wanted to vote for as their president, come October 10.
He said that the days of hiding things like a presidential aspirant's health status from the Liberian public were long over, and therefore urged Boakai to acknowledge this fact. "In this day and age, nothing ought to be swept under the carpet. "We are therefore constrained to urge him to prove to Liberians that he is really as fit as a fiddle by taking a brisk walk," he said.
He said this would go a long way in allaying the fears of many Liberians and prove that the Unity Party presidential aspirant was fit, contrary to speculations about his health.
