The United Democratic Party (UDP) has issued a strongly worded statement holding President Adama Barrow and his ruling NPP-Kereng Kaffo coalition responsible for the recent political unrest in The Gambia. The party accuses the government of trampling on democratic freedoms and suppressing legitimate dissent through the controversial use of the Public Order Act.
In a press release issued over the weekend, the UDP condemned the arrests of members of Gambians Against Looted Assets (GALA), a civil society group that had planned a peaceful protest demanding transparency in the sale of former President Yahya Jammeh’s seized properties. According to the statement, the refusal by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to grant a permit for the protest directly contributed to the escalating tensions.
“This government’s continued abuse of Section 5 of the Public Order Act is a deliberate attempt to silence voices calling for accountability,” the statement read. “The denial of GALA’s permit and subsequent arrests demonstrate a flagrant disregard for the constitutional right to peaceful assembly.”
The UDP described the Public Order Act as “repressive” and “outdated,” calling for its immediate repeal. Human rights activists have long criticized the law for granting excessive discretionary power to the police to approve or deny public demonstrations.
Standing in full solidarity with the GALA movement, the UDP endorsed the group’s core demands: full disclosure of all buyers of Jammeh’s properties and the public release of all transaction details. The party welcomed the government’s partial release of detained protesters and some asset information but stressed that these actions came too late.
“If the Barrow administration had embraced transparency from the outset, this crisis could have been avoided,” the statement emphasized.
The UDP outlined three key demands:
1. Immediate dismissal of all charges against GALA members and detained protesters.
2. An independent audit of all Jammeh-era asset sales to ensure fairness and accountability.
3. A national conversation on police reform to address abuses of power and protect civil liberties.
In a scathing conclusion, the UDP accused the Barrow administration of replicating the same patterns of corruption and repression it once promised to end.
“President Barrow’s Kereng Kaffo government cannot continue to blame the past while walking in its footsteps,” the statement said. “The Gambian people must remain vigilant and hold their leaders to account.”
