President Adama Barrow’s administration has increasingly come under scrutiny for what many view as a misplaced set of priorities. While the country grapples with widespread institutional decay, the government appears more focused on entrenching political power than addressing the pressing needs of the nation’s critical institutions.
One of the most glaring examples of this disconnect is the investment in building political bureaus for the National People’s Party (NPP), while vital state institutions such as the Police Force, the Gambia Immigration Department, and the Armed Forces continue to operate from rundown, dilapidated buildings. These are institutions responsible for maintaining national security, enforcing the law, and safeguarding the country’s sovereignty—yet they are being neglected in both policy and practice.
The contrast is stark and symbolic: political infrastructure is being prioritized over national service delivery. It paints a picture of a government more concerned with its political survival than the well-being and functionality of state institutions. In a country striving for reform and democratic consolidation, this approach undermines public trust and weakens the very structures that should be supporting the republic.
President Barrow came to power with the promise of change and institutional transformation. However, after nearly a decade in office, those promises appear hollow to many Gambians. The realities on the ground—poor working conditions, lack of operational resources, and unsafe office environments for our uniformed services—reveal a government that has failed to prioritize what truly matters.
A truly forward-looking administration would strengthen the foundations of the state: empowering the civil service, investing in national security institutions, and ensuring public servants can work in dignified conditions. Unfortunately, the current trajectory suggests a deepening focus on partisan entrenchment at the expense of national development.
History will judge this presidency not by the number of political bureaus it leaves behind, but by the strength—or weakness—of the institutions it built or failed to build. By that measure, the Barrow presidency is dangerously close to being remembered as a failed one.
