Gambia 2016 Elections, News

Gambia’s President-elect Seeks Peaceful Solution To Political Standoff

Adama Barrow

(JollofNews) – Gambia’s president-elect, Adama Barrow, is holding a series of engagements with relevant institutions to facilitate a peaceful and smooth transfer of power.

Mr Barrow, 51, said he does not believes that no one’s personal ambition to power is worth the life of a single Gambian or person and is using diplomacy to find a comprehensive solution to the intransigence.

Tension is high in the Gambia and security officers are put on stand-by after President Jammeh unilaterally annulled the results of the December 1st election which was won by Mr Barrow and called for fresh elections.

Mr Jammeh, 51, who has ruled the Gambia since July 1994 had initially conceded defeat and praised the country’s electoral system as “the most transparent election in the whole world,” adding that he would not contest the result.

He later changed his mind and filed a lawsuit at the supreme court asking it to declare him winner of the elections.

Mr Jammeh said he had pulled more votes in the election than his opposition rival and should therefore be declared the duly elected president of the Gambia instead of Adama Barrow.

Mr Barrow and the international community including the United Nations have rejected Mr Jammeh’s rejection of the election results and have urged him step down.

Nigerian combat ready soldiers

He said the Gambian people have spoken in a clear voice in the December elections and their will must be respected in accordance with the laws of the country.

“Our iron-clad resolve to enforce the will of our people on 19th January 2017 in unison with regional partners and the international community is absolutely irreversible and irrevocable,” said Mai Fatty, a senior member of Mr Barrow’s opposition coalition.

And as the standoff continues, leaders of the West African regional grouping, ECOWAS, Wednesday officially authorised a so-called Ecowas Standby Force (ESF) to intervene militarily in the Gambia and enforce the outcome of the election earlier if defeated President Yahya Jammeh refuses to give up power when his mandate expires on January 18.

According to the resolution signed by Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in her capacity as the current Ecowas chair, the ESF has been mandated to ensure the safety of President-elect Barrow, his inauguration in accordance with the country’s constitution and provide security to other political leaders and the Gambian population.

8 Comments

  1. Rev. Stephen Lloyd Johnson

    Rev. Stephen Lloyd Johnson
    Seattle, Washington

    Our prayers are with all Gambian and West African people. We have to support freedom and compassion in our world. In a few weeks there will be serious change in Gambia. I’m coming soon to watch freedom work……….

    • Yes Johnson, the wind of change has already taken place. New gambia will be spell out in short days and we the children of the world we can learn by samples. Under a dictatorship is not easy but it required patience peaceful solution to get with off it, this is what gambia did on the 1st December 2016.

  2. We are prepared to step in with all our efforts and strategies when Jemmeh refuses to step down. The world is watching you.

  3. we will hear all kinds of stories from your news outlet. stop your false stories and tell the truth. its only truth that can set you free. if you think you can win this battle in your day-dreaming then you also expect to gain your freedom in your fantasy country. if you are real men come home and fight the battle on the ground jammeh will crush all your balls.

  4. Listen to Mr Kandeh Gambia need people with solutions not people who only come with blood,no to war and war makers just say enough to war as you seeing them in Iraq Libya Syria more 10years in same position or worse than 2003 .only Mafias can benefit from the war please no war we don’t want to see our own families lying in the street just because of the chair

  5. Adama Barrow fraudulently President elect

    Hello Fellow Gambian,

    I, Adama Barrow Independent Candidate representing the Coalition of eight parties hereby declare that the planned innaugration schuled for 19th January be postponed until when the ruling can be made on Petition filed by the APRC Party.

    The reason is, i want to go into office with a clean sheet. If i had known that the self exiled Gambians in the Diaspora had bribed the corrupt IEC Chairman Alieu Momar Njie before December 1st election i would have withdrawn my candidature. Democracy is not about cheating its all about being clean and to clean the mess other people left. On that note i am declaring the scheduled innaugration be halted until further notice. No urge for ascending to the presidency when the peace and tranquility of our beloved Gambia can be endangered.

    Many thanks for your cooperarion.

    Yours
    ADAMA BARROW
    Candidate Independent Coalition.

  6. 1971 i had a Great time in the Gambia,i was there working as food and beverage manager in fajara hotel, remembering the nice sundays when we had the president Sir Dawda jahwara and family as guests for Tea.I Hope those peacefull Days will bedste back, bless the Gambian proppe.

  7. Sorry little wrong Spelling

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