Liberia President George Weah
George Weah Opens Arms to ‘Foreigners’ in Liberia, Pledges Pay Cut
It was dramatic this morning in Liberia during President George Weah’s first State of the Nation address as he surprisingly called for the removal of a “racist” clause in the constitution which restricts citizenship to black people.
He also pledged to scrap the law which prohibits foreigners owning lands in Liberia.
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The clause was “unnecessary, racist and inappropriate”, the ex-football star said.
Liberia was founded by freed US slaves in 1847 as “a refuge and a haven for freed men of colour”.
In his address in parliament on Monday, Mr Weah also announced that he would be taking a pay cut of 25% because the government and the economy were “broke”.
“Our currency is in free fall; inflation is rising, unemployment is at an unprecedented high and our foreign reserves are at an all-time low,” he said.
He asked MPs to “follow my lead” and agree to a pay cut.
“Let us all remember that we were elected to serve the Liberian people and not to be masters of them,” Mr Weah said in an address that was interrupted by wild applause.
Members of the House of Representatives and Senate earn up to $15,000 (£10,600) a month, along with other benefits.
Weah said the citizenship restrictions introduced at the time were no longer necessary, adding that he also wanted a ban on dual citizenship to be abolished.
“It contradicts the very definition of Liberia, which is derived from the Latin word ‘liber’, meaning ‘liberty’,” he said.
The vast majority of the population live below the poverty line.
Liberia is still recovering from a civil war which officially ended in 2005.
It was also badly affected by the Ebola epidemic, which hit the region in 2014 and 2015.