Former Liberian President George Weah has urged African leaders to uphold democratic principles, warning that elected leaders who gradually govern like dictators pose a serious threat to democracy.
Weah made the remarks at the opening ceremony of the 2026 Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, where, speaking on the theme, “Beyond Limits,” the former president said threats to democracy extend beyond military coups and defeated candidates refusing to accept election results.
He warned that leaders who come to power through free and fair elections could eventually undermine the same democratic institutions that brought them to office.
“It is also that a leader who arrives in office through free and fair elections can, over time and often gradually, come to govern like the very dictators that ballot was meant to guard against,” Weah said.
He said such leaders could weaken the judiciary and legislature by exerting political influence over institutions meant to provide checks and balances. “A tyrant with a certificate of return is still a tyrant,” the former president said.
To demonstrate his commitment to democratic principles, Weah recalled his decision to concede defeat in Liberia’s November 2023 presidential election before the official counting process was completed.
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The former footballer-turned-politician said he chose to accept the will of Liberians rather than contest every figure until the final vote was certified.
“I chose to concede while the counting was still underway because I have always believed and still believe that the will of the people must stand above the ambitions of any one man in the democratic setting,” he said.
Weah, who served as Liberia’s president from 2018 to 2024, said his decision was guided by his belief that democratic institutions and the people’s mandate must take precedence over personal political ambitions.
The former president called on members of the legal profession to serve as a shield against executive overreach and defend the independence of the judiciary.
He argued that democracy could not survive on elections alone, stressing that strong institutions were essential to protecting citizens and maintaining democratic governance.
“Democracy does not survive on the strength of elections alone… What holds us up? What keeps the roof from collapsing on the people inside it? Our institutions,” he said.
Weah also warned that coup plotters were not the only threat to democracy in Africa, pointing to actions by government officials that could weaken judicial independence.
He criticized situations where the judiciary’s finances were subject to executive control, arguing that courts must be able to operate independently. “A court decision must mean what it says without any political permission,” he said.
The former Liberian leader’s remarks come amid continuing concerns across Africa over democratic backsliding, military interventions and the weakening of institutions designed to safeguard constitutional governance.
CenturyHerald
