The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has observed that Gambia’s president-elect Adama Barrow will struggle to govern, if embattled President Yahya Jammeh is forcefully ejected by military assembled by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
According to the foundation, a lot of lives might also be lost. Mr. Jammeh, whose mandate per the Gambia’s constitution should have ended at midnight on Wednesday, had that mandate extended by Parliament by 90 days.
Meanwhile, following failed efforts by ECOWAS to have Mr. Jammeh to step down after losing the elections organized in December 2016, the sub-regional bloc has sent troops to Gambia to ensure the restoration of rule of law.
But speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show on Thursday, the Executive Director of MFWA, Sulemana Braimah, explained that lives might be lost through military intervention.
“I will say that at this stage, it may not be the appropriate thing to do to intervene militarily to remove Jammeh…The Gambia has a military force of about 2,500 people…beyond that, I don’t think in terms of fire power they are that strong, so they can easily be defeated, but that wouldn’t mean that they wouldn’t resist.
Resisting would mean that some innocent lives will be lost, infrastructure will be destroyed and even if Adama Barrow were to be put in as president he is going to face a very difficult situation,” he added. Mr. Sulemana also explained that, The Gambia which has a population of about 1.9 million who rally along ethnic lines even in politics.
According to him, due to this situation, the ethnic group where Jammeh belongs to might revolt against the new president if there is any military intervention. “The Gambia is a small country of about 1.9 million people, they are very well bonded around ethnic groups…and these ethnicity and bonding around ethnic lines are quite strong. And politics in the Gambia over the years has also been around ethnic lines.
If you follow development from the international and regional media, there were so many people who were still demonstrating on the streets and social media against what ECOWAS was trying to do…and I think that if Jammeh were to be forcefully removed, the population will be divided and Adama Barrow will have a very difficult situation,” he noted.
Gambia: Barrow to be inaugurated in Senegal Adama Barrow took to twitter to announce that his inauguration will be held at the Gambian Embassy in Dakar, Senegal. “I would like to inform you that the Inauguration Ceremony is going to take place at the Gambian Embassy in Dakar, Senegal,” he announced.
I would like to inform you that the Inauguration Ceremony is going to take place at the Gambian Embassy in Dakar, Senegal. #Gambia pic.twitter.com/ofxlIpJChl— Adama Barrow (@adama_barrow) January 19, 2017
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