This week, Liberia is again debating the age of the President. The debate has grown louder after the State of the Nation Address delivered on Monday, January 26, 2026. 
I understand why the conversation is happening. But I also believe we are missing the deeper point.
Age, by itself, is not a disqualification. President Joseph Nyuma Boakai was born on November 30, 1944, and he is in his eighties.  The question is not whether an older leader can serve. The question is whether the country is mature enough to build a leadership environment that protects the state, protects the President, and protects the stability of the Republic.
At that age, no human being functions at full throttle every day. That is not an insult. It is biology. What matters most for a President is judgment: the ability to process information, analyze options, weigh consequences, and make decisions that keep the nation safe. A President does not have to run up stairs, shake a thousand hands, and prove strength through nonstop public performance. The country does not need constant physical display. The country needs a functioning mind and a disciplined system around that mind.
And that is where our nationalistic duty begins.
The danger is not simply age. The danger is a selfish environment that treats the President as a tool. When people around a President believe there is no future without him, they start to manage him for their own survival. They push him into unnecessary appearances. They schedule him to exhaustion. They use him to make political points. They turn governance into theater.
Even worse, the President himself may feel pressured to prove that he is fit, strong, and tireless. That pressure can push him beyond his natural limits, and in doing so, it can injure the country. Not because the President lacks wisdom, but because the handlers and the political camp lack restraint.
At this stage, managing the President properly is not disrespect. It is national security.
A country that has experienced war, coups, and uncertainty cannot play games with the heartbeat of the state. A health scare or a moment of visible struggle, whether real or exaggerated by rumor, creates fear, speculation, and unnecessary tension. And in politics, uncertainty is gasoline.
So what should a responsible system look like?
1. A realistic schedule built around strength, rest, and preparation, not constant visibility.
2. Serious delegation that empowers ministers and institutions to carry workloads, while major decisions remain guided by the President’s judgment.
3. A disciplined inner circle that does not exploit access to the President, and does not treat his presence as a personal asset.
4. Clear public expectations that the President will govern through planning, analysis, and decision making, not through endless physical performance.
5. A patriotic culture that places the state above faction, and stability above ego.
This is why I say the age debate should not become a weapon. It should become a wakeup call: Liberia must build systems that protect leadership, not systems that consume it.
What I saw around the SONA conversation was not impressive, because too many people are speaking as if the only way to defend the President is to pretend he is thirty years younger. That is not defense. That is denial. And denial is dangerous.
Let us be honest with ourselves, and respectful to the office. Let us stop pushing the President beyond his boundary for selfish gain. Let us give him the space, time, and rest he needs. Let the country understand that a President can lead effectively through mental strength, through careful decision making, and through a well-managed government.
If we do this, Liberia is safer. If we do not, and the country loses faith in the stability of the Presidency, the outcome becomes unknown and unpredictable.
We have struggled too hard to return to constitutional order. This is our opportunity to keep the ship steady, keep the peace secure, and keep the nation focused on governance, not drama.
That is what nationalism looks like. Have a pleasant week