Liberia: ‘The President is Well & Healthy’: Minister of State Rubbishes Positive COVID-19 Rumors

Monrovia – The Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Mr. Nathaniel McGill has dismissed reports that President George Manneh Weah has tested positive for the deadly COVID-19 virus. 

Responding to a FrontPageAfrica inquiry Tuesday evening, Minister McGill said: “The President is well and healthy. He had a series of meetings today and he is doing just fine.”

The minister said contrary to what is spreading like wildfire on social media, the President has not been tested for the killer virus.

The news comes after two senior Cabinet ministers – Minister of Justice Frank Musah Dean and Information Minister Lenn Eugene Nagbe both tested positive for the virus.

Minister McGill and at least two other senior officials told FPA that no test has been done on the President who has been in close proximity of some of his officials who have tested positive for the virus.

Nagbe’s Positive Result Triggers Speculations

The speculations comes after two senior Cabinet ministers – Minister of Justice Frank Musah Dean and Information Minister Lenn Eugene Nagbe both tested positive for the virus.

Speculations have heightened since the death last Thursday of Mr. Marcus Soko, head of the Drug Enforcement Agency(DEA). 

Soko was among some thirty government officials who reportedly attended a Joint Security meeting on April 11, 2020. Several government officials who were in that meeting have tested positive. 

The speculation over President Weah’s status heightened after Minister Nagbe’s second test result came back positive Monday night. 

The minister was in close proximity of the president last Thursday, April 23, 2020 when the President addressed the virtual extraordinary session of the Authority of Ecowas Heads of State, focusing on the impact of COVID-19 on member states. 

The minister sat on the President’s left while Presidential advisor Emmanuel Shaw sat on the right. Foreign Minister Gbezohnga Findley, who sat behind the president told FPA Tuesday that he took his test today and is awaiting the results.

The President did not wear a mask but Minister Nagbe, Findley and Mr. Shaw did.

On Monday, Health authorities confirmed the testing of thirty-one senior government officials with three being confirmed positive of COVID-19, many of those were in the April 11 meeting of senior security officials’ briefing on the deadly virus in Liberia.

Speaking at a news conference in Monrovia Monday, National Public Institute of Liberia Director General Dr. Mosoka Fallah said, the thirty-one senior government officials came in contact with the late LDEA boss Marcus Soko, stating that, members of the joint security including their families are currently being tested and monitored.

The meeting presided over by Justice Minister Dean also included representatives from the Ministry of National Defense, the National Security Agency(NSA), the Drug Enforcement Agency(DEA), the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization, the National Security Advisor to the President; representatives from the Armed Forces of Liberia, the Executive Committee on Corona Virus (ECOC), headed by Broh and Senators Steven Zargo(Liberty Party, Lofa), Jonathan L. Kaipay(Liberty Party, Grand Bassa) and Conmany Wisseh(Unity Party, River Gee). Information Minister Lenn Eugene Nagbe was also in attendance.

Three Senators Test Negative

FrontPageAfrica’s legislative reporter reports that all three members of the Liberian Senate; Senators Zargo, Kaipay and Wesseh tested negative.

Senator Zargo told FPA via mobile phone the need for their testing was necessitated by their presence in the April 11, 2020 Joint Security meeting with Mr. Soko, the first high-profile Liberian government official to die from the deadly COVID-19.

Senator Zargo said he and his colleagues participated in a joint security meeting on April 11 and all sat far away from Mr. Soko. “Yeah it was on April 11, but we sat far from Soko. We were tested and our results came back negative.”

Senator Zargo is the Senate Committee chair on National Security, while Kaipay and Wesseh are members of the committee.

FPA reported earlier that Mr. Soko had been symptomatic and ailing for the past week at his home, until he was rushed to the 14th Military Hospital last Thursday night where he was pronounced dead.

A senior security official told FPA early Friday the symptoms prior to Soko’s death indicated COVID-19 but the test results would determine. Those result determined late Friday that COVID-19 was the cause.

Mr. Soko was taken to the 14 Military Hospital late Thursday; but authorities tell FPA that he arrived too late and died before arrival. A doctor who was in the unit reportedly tried to resuscitate him, but it was to no avail.

FrontPageAfrica has learned that Mr. Soko before his demised participated in a number of high-security meetings relating to the government’s COVID-19 response.