Gambia’s Independent Electoral Commission said there are no plans to organize early elections in the Gambia. The IEC said it is yet to receive a notice from the Barrow government to convene elections. President Adama Barrow’s Coalition government campaigned for a three-year transition period to defeat dictator Yahya Jammeh in Gambia’s 2016 elections. Barrow told the opposition during his recent meet the farmers tour that elections will be held in 2021, opposed to the three-year transition period he and his colleagues campaigned for to get elected.
For now, all hopes for an early election to be held in The Gambia, have been dashed away. President Adama Barrow said any Gambian, who is interested in vying for the Presidency, should brace up for the 2021 Presidential elections. He told his supporters during a recent meet the farmers tour that he was elected to serve for five years and not three years, as agreed by the Coalition government.
Alieu Mamar Njai is the Chairman of Gambia’s Independent Electoral Commission. He told Freedom Newspaper in an interview that to the best of his knowledge, he is not aware of any plans by the government to convene early elections.
“As far as we are concerned, the law states that elections are held every five years, even though I understand that there was this understanding between the coalition parties that they will have a transition period of three years. But as far as we are concerned, there is no change so far elections are concerned. If we want to have it next year, we are ready,” Njie said
President Barrow, in his annual meet the press weekly interviews said, the constitution of The Gambia, supersedes any agreement reached by the Coalition government. He told reporters that he was elected to rule The Gambia for five years and he is obliged to serve his mandate.
“The three years will expire in December 2019. It is a long way yet between now and then. So, it is up to them to decide whether they are going to have it at that time or not. But as far as we are concerned we are ever ready,” IEC Chairman Njie remarked.
Mr. Njai added that elections in The Gambia are funded by the government in collaboration with the UNDP. Njai also said he has no record of the opposition Memorandum of Understanding, in which they agreed to stay in office for three years. He also says the government is yet to provide them funds to organize elections.
According to Mr. Njai, the IEC is working on extending franchise to Gambians in the diaspora. He said if all plans workout well, Gambian citizens living overseas, should be able to vote in the next Presidential elections.
President Adama Barrow is coming under fire for reneging from his promise to handover power at the end of the three-year transition period agreed by the Coalition government.
Barrow granted numerous interviews shortly after he was elected into office. In one of the interviews he had with the Associated Press Barrow said: “ I am not a politician naturally. I am a businessman. I want to head the transitional period. Parties will contest elections. I will not be part of that. I will just conduct the elections. Anybody who wins, we will handover power. I will live as a private citizen and continue my business.”
The Coalition government is in disarray. Some key members of the Coalition government have parted company with President Barrow. Barrow fired Agriculture Minister Omar Amadou Jallow (OJ), former Interior Mai Fatty, and Vice President Fatoumatta Jallow Tambajang.
Ms. Tambajang was the Chairperson of the Coalition government. She resigned from that post after she was fired by Barrow some weeks ago. She was praised for being instrumental in bringing the opposition together to form an alliance to defeat dictator Yahya Jammeh in the past elections.
The President of Gambia’s Law Society Lawyer Lamin Mboge told this medium in an earlier interview that if Barrow decides to prolong his stay in office, he will be committing a civilian coup d’état.
“ We are not talking about the legality of his appointments or his terminations or whatever he does in his office within the three years; that is constitutional, but if his mandate goes beyond the three years, I am telling you, it would amount to usurpation of power; that is a coup; civilian coup d’état,” Mboge said.
Mboge notes that the three-year MOU agreed by the opposition, is legally binding on the President. He warns that any attempt on the side of Barrow to prolong his stay in office, it will retard Gambia’s democracy.
“He was aware, like all others that the constitutional term limit is five years, but the reason they reduce it to three years is to form a transitional government; a transitional government is not bound by the constitutional term limit of five years. The agreement is for them to create an avenue whereby they will be able to end the dictatorship and the suffering that The Gambian people have been experiencing,” he added.
Lawyer Mboge is leading a campaign for President Barrow to be taken to court for his pronouncement that he intends to stay in office until 2021. He says he is more than committed to represent any group of citizens interested in suing the President.
Mama Kandeh, the Leader of the opposition Gambia Democratic Congress Party (GDC), speaking during a weekend political rally in Foni, called on President Barrow to honor the three year transition period he agreed with his Coalition partners. Kandeh said Barrow will be doing himself a big favor, if he honors the agreement, adding that the rookie President, has no clue as to how to steer the affairs of the impoverished West African nation. He told his supporters that The Gambia is currently stagnant when it comes to development. He said Barrow lacks what it takes to run the country. He also accused Barrow of betraying his Coalition partners by firing them.
Written By Pa Nderry M’Bai
Email: panderrymbai@gmail.com
Tel: 919-749-6319
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