African football legend and current President of Liberia, George Weah has conceded defeat to the opposition leader Joseph Boakai.
Boakai has been in the lead in the keenly contested presidential election.
The results announced indicate that the opposition leader was leading the polls with nearly 51 per cent of the votes in Liberia.
However, speaking as the country’s election umpire continued the result announcements, Weah said that there was no way he could overturn Boakai’s lead.
“The result announced tonight, though not final, indicates that…Boakai is in a lead that we cannot surpass,” Weah said.
“This is the time for graciousness in defeat,” he added.
In his speech, the Liberian president emphasized that despite losing the presidential poll, the people of Liberia won.
Weah added that he had spoken to Boakai “to congratulate him on his victory”.
He said: “The Liberian people have spoken, and we have heard their voice. However, the closeness of the results reveals a deep division within our country.
“Let us heal the divisions caused by the campaign and come together as one nation and one united people.”
Weah, who remains president until the handover of power in January, pledged to “continue to work for the good of Liberia”.
Recall that Weah defeated Boakai in the presidential election to emerge as the president of the country in 2017.
With over 99.5 per cent of the polling units turning in vote tallies after Tuesday’s second round v0te, Boakai had amassed 50.89 per cent of the vote cast, according to the country’s election umpire.
According to Friday’s election data, Boakai had surpassed Weah by 28,000 votes. The two politicians had tied at Tuesday’s poll, with Weah leading with only 7,126.
Weah’s emergence as Liberia’s president in 2017 sparked Liberians’ hope for positive change and development in the country. However, critics have accused his government of failing to keep his election promises and impeding the people’s rights.