Tuesday, January 23, 2024

Liberia's new president fails to end inauguration speech

MONROVIA, Liberia

The inauguration ceremony for President Joseph Boakai ended abruptly after an apparent case of heat exhaustion while delivering his inaugural address.

Boakai, 79, had been speaking for around 30 minutes at his inauguration ceremony when it became clear that he was having difficulty continuing.

He failed twice to carry on speaking, and the ceremony was adjourned.

Some reports suggested that he suffered from heat exhaustion as the temperature reached more than 30C.

Video footage showed a man fanning papers near Mr Boakai's face, before he was taken away.

Dressed in traditional country cloth attire over a bullet-proof vest, President Boakai began to show signs of uneasiness reportedly due to the high temperature.

Prompt action was taken as security officers assisted him to a seated position and fanned him to help him cool off.

Once revived, he attempted to complete the speech while seated. Despite the unexpected interruptions, sources have confirmed that President Boakai is in good condition.

However, due to the incident, the inauguration ceremony could not be resumed as Presidential security had to escort Boakai from the Capitol.

Immediately after the President retired from the event, other Dignitaries began taking their leave.

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