CA leader accuses Barrow of politicizing the nationwide tour

By Adama Makasuba

Dr Ismaila Ceesay, leader of Citizens’ Alliance (CA), one of the opposition parties in the country  has caused President Adama Barrow of pursuing his party’ s agenda on ‘meet the people tour’ at the expense of the tax payers in the country.

President Adama Barrow on 7th December started a 30 days nationwide tour as mandated by the country’s constitution.

Dr Ceesay, who also lectures at the University of the Gambia, told reporters at a news conference organized by his party that President Barrow has flouted the constitution by extending what he called a “two weeks tour to 30 days using tax payers’ money and state resources.”

“And everything you see in this tour is not about the country (but) is about the NPP (National People’s Party). So, we condemn the act that the current President is doing especially with regards to the tour, spending millions of tax payers’ money to go on a tour to promote a particular political party’s agenda,” he said.

To him, people crossing carpeting from party to party should not be the agenda of the President’s meet the people tour and “NPP flag being rise and so on shouldn’t be an agenda.”

Consequently, he also hinted that President Barrow’s administration is planning to cheat the 2021 presidential election.

He said: “when you want a credible free and fair election, with integrity that will provide stability in the country, you must plan this election properly ahead. But currently there is no consensus and this government is planning to cheat this (2021 presidential) election on a massive scale and that stealing has started and we concern about that.”

Defending his accusation, his party has seen how President Adama Barrow is using the state broadcaster (GRTS) airtime to pursue his political agenda, despite the fact that GRTS is a public institution that supposes to give equal access to all political parties.