Former international footballer, George Weah has stated his desire to run for the position of the president of Liberia for a second time. Mr Weah who was the highest ranking African Footballer in Fifa’s list of greatest players of the 20th century said his vision is to transform his country. During his football career, Mr Weah became a UN goodwill ambassador. Later he turned to politics. He is currently a senator for the western province of Montserrado, which includes the capital Monrovia.
His previous presidential bid, in 2005, was defeated by current president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf but her second term in office will end in 2017 and under the country’s constitution she cannot run again. In 2011 he ran for vice-president under Winston Tubman but did not win. Mr Weah belongs to the opposition Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) party. Announcing his presidential bid in Monrovia, he said he had been a “victim of poverty” like many of his supporters, and said he would boost vocational education.