Though the official result of the presidential election has not been announced- at press time- but Arsenal’s manager Arsene Wenger has reportedly congratulated former football star and politician George Weah, as the president elect.
On Thursday evening www.bbc.com reported that Wenger must have been misled by unofficial reports circulating online that the former professional footballer has won the Liberia Presidential Election.
Mr Wenger said: “I would like to congratulate one of my former players, who became president of Liberia.”
Recall that Wenger coached Mr Weah at French club Monaco between 1988 and 1992. The former Fifa World Footballer of the Year has long turned a politician with aspiration to be Liberia’s President.
Mr. Weah who is among 20 presidential candidates seeking to replace President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in Tuesday’s election had contested the race two times in history.
False reports of Mr Weah’s victory have been circulating on social media but it is not clear why Wenger thought he had won.
“It is not often that you have a former player who becomes a president of a country,” Wenger was quoted on the online platform.
“Well done George and I would say just for him to keep his enthusiasm and his desire to learn and to win,” he added.
Official results have still not been announced even though the head of the National Elections Commission (NEC), Jerome Kokoya, had told the BBC that he expected the first results to be announced by 23:00 GMT on election night.
One of Liberia’s leading political parties, the Liberty Party, has called for a halt in announcing results, citing alleged irregularities
THE NATION
