The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dee-Maxwell Saah Kemayah, Sr. has commended and expressed his deepest thanks and appreciation to ECOWAS and all ECOWAS Member States for supporting Liberia’s October 10, 2023 Presidential and legislative elections and the November 14, 2023 presidential run-off election.
Minister Kemayah said, “I wish to inform all of you, my dear esteemed colleagues of this Council of Ministers of ECOWAS, of, and further reaffirm my profound unconditional and unflinching practical support of the stance of, simply put, categorical unreserved universal statesman-hood decision and concession and congratulations of His Excellency Dr. George Manneh Weah, President of the Republic of Liberia, an inarguable Global Grand champion of democracy, good governance, statesmanship, peace, constitutional order, development and comprehensive and integrated human empowerment, to His Excellency Ambassador Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr., President-Elect of the Republic of Liberia.”
The Dean of the Cabinet mentioned that this Ninety-first (91st) Ordinary Session of the Council of Ministers of ECOWAS will be his final and last attendance, in his current capacity as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Dean of the Cabinet of the Republic of Liberia, in view of the imminent change of Government in Liberia (GOL) on January 22, 2024.
“As you may be aware,” Minister Kemayah said, “the President of the Republic of Liberia, His Excellency Dr. George Manneh Weah, recently conceded electoral defeat to the Leader of Unity Party and the opposition, His Excellency Ambassador Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr., Former Vice President of the Republic of Liberia, and now, the President-Elect of the Republic of Liberia.”
Speaking at the 91st ordinary session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers, in Abuja, Nigeria on December 7-8, 2023, the Liberian Chief Diplomat intoned that this gracious and honorable concession and congratulatory call by His Excellency President Dr. Weah to His Excellency President-Elect Ambassador Boakai was done days ahead of the final tally and announcement of results and declaration of the presidential winner of the Tuesday, November 14, 2023 second round/presidential run-off election of the Republic of Liberia by the National Elections Commission of the Republic of Liberia.
Foreign Minister Kemayah used the occasion to thank the Permanent Representative Council (PRC) for deliberating on the memos at its inaugural meeting, held on November 29, 2023 at the ECOWAS Commission, and making necessary recommendations for our consideration.
“I also thank the President of the Commission and Council for our work in establishing the PRC, which includes all our Ambassadors and High Commissioners accredited to the ECOWAS Commission. That the PRC is now an Advisory Organ of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers is a significant milestone that puts it on par with its counterparts at the AU and UN in implementing the peace, security and governance architecture and programs of regional integration of ECOWAS.
“We humbly take cognizance of the leadership and advocacy role Liberia played, and continues to play, in the premise, under the astute Presidency of His Excellency Dr. George Manneh Weah, President of the Republic of Liberia. Further, in the premise, Liberia hereby endorses the recommendation that the Permanent Representative Council, as an Advisory Organ of the Council of Ministers of ECOWAS should henceforth, consider cross-cutting regional issues beyond peace and security,” Minister Kemayah said.
Foreign Minister Kemayah also indicated that the Candidacy of the Republic of Liberia for the UN Security Council Non-Permanent Member Seat for 2026/2027, which was unanimously endorsed by the Executive Council of the African Union in Nairobi, Kenya on July 13, 2023 as the only Candidate for the Western Africa Region, based on the preceding unanimous endorsement of the Republic of Liberia by the Summit of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government on July 9, 2023 in Bissau, Guinea Bissau as the only Candidate of the Western Africa Region for the United Nations Security Council Non-Permanent Member Seat for the periods 2026/2027 as clearly mentioned in the Final Communique of the aforementioned July 9, 2023 ECOWAS Bissau Summit.
