11-8-05,8:30am

MONROVIA, 7 Nov 2005 (IRIN) - UN officials and Liberian residents are worried that turnout might drop for Tuesday's presidential run-off, which pits soccer millionaire George Weah against former finance minister Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf.

Almost 75 percent of the electorate voted in the first round on 11 October, but since then heavy rains have left more polling stations inaccessible, some people who trekked home to cast their ballot cannot afford to make a second journey, and others are no longer interested now that their candidate is not in the race.

'We are very concerned that turn-out will not be as high for this election as for the first round,' said Paul Risley, spokesman for the UN mission in Liberia (UNMIL). 'There has not been the same level of political campaigning and interest.' Thomas Newland is one voter who has failed to be captivated this time around, now that his first choice has been eliminated from the contest.

'I do not have respect for either of the two remaining candidates so I will just stay home and drink my beer,' the street vendor told IRIN on the potholed streets of the capital, Monrovia.

But others, like 48-year-old Samuel Yamah, are desperate to have their say in the second round and just do not have the means to do it.

Yamah is one of thousands who moved to the capital in search of work but registered to vote in his county of origin, because that's where he hopes to return when better times come.

'I paid my own way to go back home and vote in the first round, but this time I can't afford it,' said Samuel Yamah. 'I'm a plumber but it's difficult finding work when most of the country has no running water. So voting in the second round is looking difficult.'

In a last-ditch effort, he was camping outside Weah's party headquarters on Monday, with scores of others, hoping that someone would help him make the six-hour trip up to Nimba County so he could cast his ballot for the soccer legend.

But another thing to reckon with is that the infrastructure has deteriorated in some areas.



A clock outside Liberia's National Elections Commission counts down to Tuesday's presidential run-off

'Following the heavy rains of the last few months, many roads have been badly damaged and more bridges have collapsed,' Frances Johnson-Morris, the head of the elections commission, told reporters.

'This has resulted in an increase in the number of inaccessible sites from 255 to 273.'

Political novice versus political veteran

Some Liberians attribute the change in mood from October –- when truckloads of supporters tooting their horns were a regular sight on the potholed streets of the capital -- to the fact that the stakes are high.

'Then there were 22 candidates and everyone knew that no-one would get an outright majority. This time there's everything to play for and people are more serious,' explained Isaac Dowah, a pastor in Monrovia.

The Monday edition of one Liberian newspaper billed the presidential run-off between political veteran Sirleaf and newcomer Weah as 'Qualification Vs Popularity'.

And it's the way many Liberians see their choice.

'George is a great footballer but he doesn't have the same technical skills on the political field,' said security guard, Amos Siafa.

'Ellen has got the experience that comes from being in the political arena a long time.'

But Shapah Sarnoh, an unemployed 30-year-old, sees the so-called Iron Lady's past political involvement as a bad thing given the mess Liberia fell into and prefers the clean hands of high school drop-out 'King George'.

'We cannot continue to trust the political elite that have been ruling for years. We should try George, it's a new team,' he said.

Weah, the 39-year-old who grew up playing football barefoot in a shantytown suburb before going on to play for European heavyweights like AC Milan and Chelsea, won 28.3 percent of the vote in the first round.

Sirleaf, a 66-year-old grandmother who would become Africa's first elected female president, captured 19.8 percent of the ballots.

Both have pledged to restore water and electricity, get more children in school, improve health services and crack down on corruption in the West African nation, which has enjoyed two years of peace but where much rebuilding remains to be done.