(JollofNews)- The African continent and the larger international community have found themselves dealing with a serious political crisis that not only poses a dangerous threat but sets to create a tragic electoral precedent that would no doubt foster anarchy and undermine recent efforts at strengthening sustainable democracy in the region.
The ongoing election coup in the Gambia, launched by an egocentric dictator, is the most spectacular form of a 21st Century power grab, coming only after a failed one in Ivory Coast.
Gambia’s Yahya Jammeh has for far too long been scorning the international community with sheer disdain and contempt, most of the times getting away with it unstopped. After 22 long years of presiding over a regime that tortured, killed, brutally suppressed dissent and virtually rendered the nation’s civil society cadre ineffective, the longtime ruler was defeated at a crucial December 1st polls that Gambian voters described as “make” or “break.”
For many a Gambian, Jammeh’s excesses had reached an unbearable height of brutality as almost every household is directly or indirectly affected. To put it more bluntly, Jammeh’s outgoing terror regime is considered the most dangerous on continental Africa, coming only third to Uganda’s Amin and Libya’s Gaddafi. No one needs to belabor on the worst human rights records and undemocratic credentials of Mr. Jammeh, whose name is only associated with bad headlines and mysteries. The focus is the challenge Jammeh has now put before the international community.
After graciously making a surprise electoral concession for his defeat on December 2nd (2016), Jammeh seized the national airwaves a week later to reverse course by unilaterally rejecting and annulling the election “in totality.” Aware of this illegal declaration, he is now using his party to challenge the globally credited election results at a moribund Supreme Court that has no judges but one. The international community has been swift with its condemnation and united with a clear call and position that indeed, Jammeh’s dead end was December 1st.
The sub-regional grouping met over the crisis and came up with a strong eight-point resolution to uphold Gambia’s December 1st election by “all means necessary” including a military intervention, endorsed by the African Union and the United Nations Security Council. The peak of Jammeh’s arrogance was snubbing the world’s top diplomat, the immediate-past UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon who said his efforts to reach Jammeh by phone proved futile. It is now apparent that Jammeh would likely not step down honorably and peacefully without a force as he has so far rejected all efforts aimed at peacefully resolving the crisis.
Test for the international community
The fundamental issue is that the task before hands means that the international community must implement its resolution on Jammeh if he fails to yield power at the end of his tenure. The international community cannot encourage another form of coups on the continent. It must be reminded of the fact that the Gambia has weak and partisan institutions including the judiciary that have been deliberately designed to suit the dictatorial propensities of Jammeh.
Dictator Jammeh’s claims of an electoral fraud are baseless, dishonest, fabricated, and a clear attempt to steal a democratic victory that the long-suffering Gambians courageously fought for and achieved. This is a leader who solely appoints all the commissioners and critical staff of the country’s Independent Electoral Commission. He picks and fires whosoever he feels will or not aid and abet him at polls. His control of the electoral body had until 2016 left Gambia’s oppositions at the mercy of easy defeats at the hands of Jammeh’s Alliance for Patriotic Re-orientation and Construction.
Even the current Chairman of the IEC that he is now defaming was closer to Jammeh than the opposition, having appointed him in 2008 as the interim mayor of the Kanifing Municipality. It was Jammeh who commissioned him as a member of the electoral body and made his ministers to praise Electoral Chief Njai as a man of integrity with a proven track record during a ceremony entrusting him with the responsibility.
Jammeh as the incumbent had the entire state machinery at his disposal. Certainly, the playing field was never leveled. It was deliberately designed to keep him in power by all means possible. He used military, the civil servants and the national broadcaster to campaign for him. Even members of Gambia’s judiciary were seen on his side. As a calculated move, Jammeh pre-planned his predicted victory and made to ignore the need to empanel the country’s Supreme Court that had not sat for more than a year. Suspecting that the opposition could likely file a petition at the Supreme Court after his victory, he ignored the empanelling of a Court he now desperately trying to constitute with corrupt judges unrecognized by both the Gambia Bar Association and the Pan-African Lawyers’ Union.
With all these realities, how then could Jammeh fabricate a fart just to try to subvert the democratic will of Gambians who voted him out? Apart from the unprecedented crowd that the opposition coalition pulled nationally on their campaign trail, Jammeh was also blinded by the fact that Gambia’s voting system is secret ballot. Apparently, many Gambians were done with him and voted for a candidate who was associated with Gambia’s long yearned change.
Fast-forward to the challenge before the international community, they must not only protect the Gambian vote, but protect democracy on the African continent. They must rise above compromise and do to The Gambia and Africa what they did for the Ivory Coast. Jammeh is clearly trying to test Laurent Gbagbo style election coup that not only disgraced the latter but landed him at The Hague for presiding over a post-election crisis that slaughtered nearly a thousand Ivorians as a result of his decision to subvert the election results that he lost through a partisan constitutional court.
It is no gain saying that such a bad precedent is a cancer on our civilization. It is dangerous for Africa given the weak national institutions that are designed in purpose to keep corrupt, treacherous, greedy and failed leaders in power for as long as they desire. Those institutions cannot be relied on as judges sitting are appointees of the losing leader. Its ugly head must be cut off for once to put a definite stop to this practice from being mushroomed. It is really heartening that the ECOWAS, AU and the UN are taking a strong unified position on The Gambia – disregarding Jammeh’s legal challenge, insisting he must steps aside and recognizing President-elect Adama Barrow as the legitimate choice of the Gambian people as clearly expressed in the December 1st polls.
Notwithstanding, the international community must maintain its clear position in this difficult test as allowing Jammeh to prevail will be a tragedy for the consolidation of democracy on the continent. Such will mean that election would now be meaningless as leaders would lose at polls and yet copy the Jammeh-Gbagbo Style to subvert the will of their people. Such will mean that countries that have made significant progress in embracing democracy would copy and paste this new form of coup, basing it on the legality of weak courts that are designed to dance their tune.
Africa cannot afford that kind of ridiculousness and retrogressive tendency in this 21st Century of ideas, knowledge, decency and civilization. How can democracy and growth be guaranteed with that new phase of coups? How can the continent metamorphose into permanent stability and socio-economic development with leaders resorting to this new wave of unconstitutional power grab? It is the responsibility of the international community; especially the African Union and sub-regional blocs such as ECOWAS to ensure that sanity prevails to give hope to citizens at polls and eliminate leaders like Jammeh whose actions continue to undermine democracy and sustainable development on the continent.
Today, Jammeh has not only been rejected at polls, but completely isolated by all strata of the Gambian society – Gambia Bar Association, Teachers Union, Press Union, Chamber of Commerce, Labor and Trade Unions, Student Unions of the highest higher education institutions, 12 of his ambassadors, the list is endless. These groups have not only issued strong condemnation of his position and public endorsement of the President-elect Barrow, but they went ahead to show solidarity with the latter at his Kairaba Beach Hotel, the same place where his eight-member opposition coalition was born.
If democracy and Africa’s socio-economic growth is to be guaranteed, this dangerous form of coup must be stopped with Jammeh’s attempt. The world needs to show a final red card to this. And as the U.S. Envoy to the UN said, “Everyone is singing the same sheet of music – that President Jammeh you lost the election and you must step down.”
He should go full stop ,Africa is tired of leaders who don’t want transfer power ECOWAS don’t talk but act .
Dear writer, while l sympathise with your country’s predicament, l however find your view that this is africa’s and the international community’s headache overblown. It wont set ab precedent cause this is nothing new and the unpredictability of african politics lends itself to any outcome. West africa should sort out this mess, as the east africans are sorting out burundi.
The matter is before the courts for determination and you said he should go,go where?
Kalobong, you are either stupid or ignorant. However, I will give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you are just ignorant about the Gambian constitution and a proper understanding of the situation in the Gambia. Therefore I will try to enlighten you a bit about the issue being discussed. It is true that the matter is before the courts and that is Jammeh’s constitutional right. But before taking the legal route, Jammeh first took the illegal route by unilaterally declaring the election null and void and declaring that a fresh election will be held under a new God fearing electoral chairman. It was only when Gambians pointed out to him that that is unconstitutional that he filed a petition with the Supreme Court. In effect Jammeh has made a constitutional coup by showing blatant disregard for the provisions of the very constitution he is now thumping his chest claiming to be defending.
The Gambian constitution gives right to a presidential candidate who has lost an election to file a petition but there is no provision in the constitution that says the winner should not be sworn in because of that petition. In fact the constitution states that the person who is declared as the winner by the electoral commission must be sworn in on the date that the term of office of the incumbent ends. This is regardless of who file the petition. The petition is regarded as a separate issue and cannot stop the winner from being sworn in. There is no provision in the Gambian constitution that allows the president to stay in office a day longer than the length of their term. I will agree with anyone who argues that there should have been a provision in the constitution that could have addressed such a scenario but this is the constitution that Yahya Jammeh presented to the Gambian people to vote on in 1996 and which came into effect in 1997. He had 22yrs to rectify this issue but never did because he never thought that he will ever be caught by it. Now he has two choices (1) respect the constitution and step down and let the president elect be sworn in whilst he, Jammeh pursues his election petition or (2) shred the constitution to pieces and do whatever the heck he wants to do as he has been doing for the past 22yrs. But this time let him be man enough to admit that he is doing what he wants and doesn’t give one hoot about the Gambian constitution instead of being a hypocrite and lying that he is defending the constitution. Let his actions match his words.
Another example to the whole world that many African political leaders are a worthless group of corrupt, self serving, dictators.
Lovemore what have they taken from you?
Kalobong! Yahya should go to hell and probably accompanied by such fools as yourself.He have lost an election that was free,fair and transparent. He petitioned the supreme court for redress, a court that haven’t been constituted for over an year. A court that is discredited by the Gambia Bar Association. Kalobong please shut the fuck up as you are as ignorant as Yahya Jammeh,a man who robbed,raped,killed,imprisoned,harrassed,disappeared our people with impunity. Our brave electorates made a choice and voted him out. So he must go or die.
Jammeh has to go he clearly knows that, and money cannot buy all. You are so corrupt that you have to do it openly. Gambian and the rest of the world are watching your dramma,even make some analysis, analysing your this move whether wise or stupid. Just look from conceded in the eye of the world and praised that the electorate system is the best in the world, from there you make a U turn and say i reject the result and totality of election outcome, so therefore i anull it and we have to go for fresh election. Mr jammeh you did not mention going to surpreme court until you face international pressure, there you decided to consider going court, here you’ve already mess up the court system for about a year by sacking all judges in the hope that if you become declared a winner of the 2016 election opposition will not have a chance to take their petition to the surpreme court. Now instead is you who becomes a victim of no body but yourself, here you said i am going hire foriegn judges so that they can rule in my favor, and this judges will costs you a lot, again you are a fool of yourself. The supreme court will not be recorgnised by law of world bodies hence the claimant is very corrupt person that alone undermined his credibility to justify any outcome of the court verdicts.
Buba Sanyang, go and fuck your mum,he is not moving an inch,come and remove him if you can.I don’t give a shit to you long lecture on the constitution go to hell.
You have just confirm my suspicion. Your resort to insults just show that your lack the capability to make intellectual arguments. I can see that the truth hurts because of all the responses to your contribution, it’s only me that you choose to insult despite the fact that some have been using the very word you use on me. Well I feel vindicated because I have managed to hit you where it hurts with the power of words. I have something on my side that both you and Jammeh doesn’t have, time. The count down for your heartache to intensify has begun.
Marcus Danson,shut your mouth you are as ignorant as a pig,has he ever done all the bad things you mentioned in your silly article to you or any of your relatives?You people are the cause of the problem why he decided not to step down because you keep telling all kinds and manners of lies on the internet.
Listen kolobong, lets us be civil soon this will be over, please readers be civil no need to use foul languages lets be civil soon this will be over notting dont last for ever, this is the way how life is, we lived until our time is up then you go soon this will be over.
Kalobong!
Words will never be enough to describe all the atrocities committed by Yahya Jammeh and his operatives over the last 22 years. I am not surprise that you are not aware of any of those atrocities committed by Yahya and his cronies as you are an uneducated,un informed and ignorant individual who is bereft of all rationality. I can only describe you as a man who doesn’t know and doesn’t know that he doesn’t know,so you are a complete fool,and there is no redemption for your plight.
If my articles were lies,then can you please tell me who killed Chief Manneh, Deyda Hydara, Ebou Lowe,Solo Sandeng, the students, Foday Makalo, Ebrima Koro Ceesay, Daba Marenah,the Mandinka military personnel downed to death at the Yundum Barracks. What about those detained for more than a week without charge,when our constitution forbid any individual to be detained for more than 72 hours with charge. What about the disappeared without trace? Where does the wealth of Yahya Jammeh and his cronies come from? From our national coffers? Yahya Jammeh who single-handedly undermined our constitution to the point that its not even worth the paper its written on.
If you still ignore all these facts that i and many of our compatriots attest to,then Kalobong you are not a patriot. Patriots love their countries irrespective of what, not just a blind trust in a leader who will commit any crime just to stay in power.
Yahya and his apologists like yourself should prepare yourselves for the day of reckoning. Judgement day is imminent and justice will be swiftly meted out. The guilty will be given a just reward as deserved. Yahya will be chased out butchered the same way he butchered our brothers and sisters for the last 22 years.
Long Live The people of The Gambia!
Long Live The Gambia!
Down with the evil dictator Yahya Jammeh!
Down with Kalobong and his ilk!