Saidou Baldeh
Former vice president and chairperson of Coalition 2016, Fatoumatta Jallow Tambajang has said that in as much as they would want President Adama Barrow to operate within the confinement of the coalition agreement they cannot control what he say or do as the country’s head of state.
“The coalition cannot say that Barrow cannot do or say what he wants to say and we cannot control him after all he is the president of the country.
Our responsibility is to ensure that we speak with one voice and also encourage him to continue supporting the coalition,” Tambajang said at the coalition’s second meeting day at the Kairaba Beach Hotel yesterday.
She added: “We are focusing on our responsibility on the work and mandate of the national coalition executive whatever is happening elsewhere we have no control over that.”
“Things that are happening and should not happen and are not in the interest of the spirit and letter of the coalition when we meet him we will openly discuss with him and express our concerns,” she pointed out.
Madam Tambajang said the meeting has reviewed the MOU and “We have assigned it to the committee to finalize it and distribute it to all the stakeholders and then we shall meet again here on Thursday to have a last reading of it and then move with the endorsement.”
She said the procedure they have is that they cannot tell the press the conclusion and recommendations of the Thursday meeting “because we have to communicate to the president who is the flag-bearer then we will sit with him review it together as an executive and then reach a unanimous consensus. After that the president and the coalition 2016 executive will make a press statement.”
“We had all the parties except PDOIS they have written to us but we don’t want to say what they have said in the letter because of the spirit and letter of the coalition. If we have any challenge or issues in the coalition we try as much as possible to reconcile because this is the moment of reconciliation and it must start with the executive,” she added.
According to her, you can challenge any institution and the spirit of the country is moving forward, as she asked for time for coalition members to work out consensus with PDOIS
“We are focusing on our responsibility on the work and mandate of the national coalition executive whatever is happening elsewhere we have no control over that,” she noted.
On the president’s claims that he will need to consul all coalition members on whether he should stay for five years or not, she said the coalition is a moral issue the constitution takes precedence over any document.
“Constitutionally, he had sworn for five years. I myself as former VP sworn for five years, so you have to give us the opportunity we have to meet as an executive to look at what is the best interest of the country.
People can make statements at different levels but through dialogue and engagement they could see another perspective.
I am sure if the president feels that he has to continue consulting the executive there might be another approach or decision,” she said.
