Ellen prepares for special assignment

President Ellen Johnson – Sirleaf says her appointment on the African Union (AU) Panel of the Wise means she and other appointees will have the chance to go to meeting to be able to do special assignments for the Union.

“I was appointed as one of the five presidents that will be ex-presidents so to speak, [on the] Committee of the Wise that represents the Western Africa region; on that body which mean we will have chance to go to meeting to be able to do special assignments for the Union, that’s it”, Mrs. Sirleaf told journalists on Wednesday afternoon, 5 July upon arrival to Liberia.

Mrs. Sirleaf granted a brief interview at the Roberts International Airport (RIA) in Margibi County, having landed via a Kenyan Airways flight under a troubling weather condition that had slowed landing on Wednesday.

In regards to a standing ovation she received while delivering her farewell statements to her peers as Liberian president at the AU in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Mrs. Sirleaf says the message is that she has been recognized for following democracy.

The AU had endorsed recommendations for the appointment of Mrs. Sirleaf on the AU Panel of the Wise and others including Dr. Speciosa W. Kazibwe of Uganda, and Mr. Armah Moussa of Egypt, responsible for Eastern and Northern Africa Regions.

Other appointees included Mrs. Catherine Samba-Panza from Central African Republic who was named on behalf of Central African Region and Mr. Hifikepunye Pohhamba, former President of Namibia for Southern Africa Region who will serve a three-year tenure.

By Winston W. Parley