Liberia: Wehyee Elected New Lafasa President, Pledges Inclusive Leadership

Members of the Liberia Amputees Football and Sports Association (LAFASA) have elected Jonathon Wehyee as the organization's new president for a four-year term.

The election was held Monday, June 15, at the Samuel K. Doe Sports Complex in Paynesville, where members gathered to elect a new leadership team to oversee the association's activities and advance amputee sports development in Liberia.

Wehyee defeated Richard Duo, who served as vice president for operations. Duo had led the association as interim president in 2016 after the previous elected leadership remained in the United States following an international trip.

The new president succeeds Samuel T. Tengbeh, who was elected vice president for operations through a white-ballot process during the elective congress.

Wehyee will work alongside Cooper Gbatah, who was elected vice president for administration, while Tengbeh assumes the role of vice president for operations.

Other elected officials include Benedict Kollie as general secretary, Emmanuel Brown as assistant secretary and Morris Quoiquoi as treasurer.

The newly elected President pledged to promote unity, accountability and improved service to members during his four-year mandate.

The Elections Committee, chaired by Marie Wonder Gayflor praised delegates for conducting a peaceful and transparent election and used her closing remarks to call on the new administration to strengthen inclusion by creating a position for female amputee representatives within the association's leadership.

"Our next chapter must include a seat in the office for the female amputee team. Inclusion starts with representation. They must have a voice in decisions that affect them," Gayflor said.

She emphasized that the proposal was not intended to create a separate structure for women but to ensure that female amputee athletes have direct representation in decisions affecting the team and the broader organization.

Gayflor challenged the incoming leadership to make inclusion a priority as it begins a new chapter for amputee sports in Liberia. The election was observed by stakeholders from various sports federations.

Read the original article on Liberian Investigator.