Gambian elections: A triumph for democracy in Africa

The Gambian elections of December 4, 2021, took place against the background of uncertainty as there were indications that the supporters of the exiled former dictator, Yahya Jammeh were planning to disrupt the polls. But despite the looming shadow of Jammeh, the elections were conducted peacefully and with a huge turn-out of voters.

A total of 859, 557 voters in all out of the 962,157 registered voters cast their votes in the election, which is about 90 per cent of the voting population.

Incumbent President Adama Barrow of the National People’s Party (NPP) received 457,519 votes, which amounted to 53 per cent of the votes to beat five other candidates to secure another term in office.

In the run up to the elections, there were several developments,which cast a shadow on the Gambian political scene leading to anxiety as to whether the polls were going to be conducted peacefully or not. President Barrow, who was first elected under the United Democratic Party (UDP) in the 2016 elections in which he defeated then- incumbent President Yahya Jammeh fell out with the party. The bone of contention was that Barrow had reneged on an earlier agreement for him to lead a provisional government for a time and then step down to allow for a fresh presidential election where all opposition candidates minus Barrow could then contest. But Barrow decided to serve out his term in office as president, which created tensions in the Gambian political scene. President Barrow’s reasons for doing so was that following the 20-year dictatorship of Yahya Jammeh and the controversial manner of his exit, the Gambia was still not in the frame for another round of political uncertainty, which his exit so soon after Jammeh’s ouster could cause. President Barrow hinged his decision on the need to reconcile a fragile and polarised country that still bears the scars of the brutal rule by Yahya Jammeh.

The tensions in the Gambia were further stoked by the rear-guard political activities of some of Jammeh’s supporters who took advantage of the uncertainty to engage in acts that tended to cause political instability in the country. From his exile, Jammeh has continued to launch fierce criticisms against the Barrow administration accusing the government of all manner of atrocities.

Against this background, there were fears that the Gambia was going to dissolve into another round of political crises with the possibility that the democratic gains achieved with the ouster of Jammeh were going to be lost.

But with the successful outcome of the elections, all these have been put to rest as the Gambia having consolidated on its democratic gains can now look forward to a bright political future.

This salutary political development can be attributed to the political reforms instituted by President Barrow’s administration and the activities of civil society organisations. Since coming to office, President Barrow had opened the political space allowing for freedom of expression and association. Of particular significance is the freehand granted to the Gambian judiciary, which is now independent of the executive arm of government. Unlike what was obtained under the Jammeh dictatorship, the Judiciary in the Barrow administration has often ruled against the government in a number of cases brought before it.

In many ways, the Gambia elections indicate that the Gambian people despite daunting social and economic odds have decided to banish the ugly past of dictatorship and keep the hope of democracy alive. It is a triumph of democratic transition from dictatorship for which the Gambians deserve full commendation. By this development, the Gambia has set a shining example to Africa on how to deepen democracy and rule of law. This is particularly significant in view of the fact that of recent in several African states, there have been reversals in the democratic developments through military coups.

Nigeria specifically can learn from the levels of voter turn-out in that country. With a population of barely 2.5 million people, the Gambia recorded about 90 per cent voter turn-out in the just concluded elections, against Nigeria’s average of about 40 percent in the previous three general elections in 2011, 2015, and 2019. As we commend the Gambians for achieving this near-world record, we urge Nigerians to emulate their neighbours and turn out to vote during any general or off-season elections. A democracy without reasonable levels of voter turnout is but a stunted democracy.

Now that the Gambian people have spoken through their votes, we call on former president, Yahya Jammeh to allow the democratic process, which he did so much to deny the Gambian people, to take root. Rather than continue to subvert the process through his untoward activities, he should join hands with the government of President Barrow to continue the process of democracy and development in the Gambia.

President Barrow, whose mandate has now been renewed, should continue with his commendable reforms, which have enabled the country to achieve this democratic feat. While congratulating him on this remarkable victory, we urge him to continue his reconciliation of aggrieved elements by running an inclusive government of all shades of Gambian society. A lot remains to be done to deepen democracy in the Gambia.

As a recent Amnesty International report on democratic reforms in the Gambia, released in September this year,  noted, “despite Gambian President Adama Barrow’s pledge to reform the country nearly five years ago, oppressive laws curtailing human rights including the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, which were used under former President Yahya Jammeh to suppress peaceful dissent remain operative”.

The same report also said that the Gambian Press Union has recorded more than 15 assaults on media professionals in the past four years under President Barrow. The Gambian Police have also been known to suppress peaceful protests. We urge President Barrow to look into these issues as he gets ready to commence his second term in office. This is the only way in which the Gambian democratic transition can be sustained.