By: Nyima Sillah
Essa Njie, a Political Science Lecturer at the University of The Gambia said President Adama Barrow’s announcement to go for a third term is a clear manifestation of his government’s failure to deliver a new constitution.
His statement is a reaction to President Barrow’s recent declaration to contest the 2026 presidential elections.
In an exclusive with The Voice newspaper, Mr. Njie said the announcement is a clear demonstration of the president’s failure to deliver a new constitution that should include a term limit as he promised when he came to power in 2017.
President “Barrow going for a third term will also serve as a major setback for the country’s fledgling democracy and just a major betrayal of the Coalition 2016 cardinal principle of putting an end to self-perpetuating rule in the country.”
He stressed that if a new constitution was delivered on time as promised, Barrow would not have been the President by now, or even if he is, he would not be talking about a third term.
Mr Njie argued that this is not the ideal time for President Barrow to make such an announcement because it has generated pointless debate and Gambians should be focused on other things hence the electoral cycle is over, noting politics will continue but the attention should be on more pressing issues in the country.
“Let the government focus on solving the most pressing challenges and problems such as high cost of living, economic hardship, rampant and decentralized corruption, unemployment among the young people and others. While the opposition and civil society are there to hold the government to account and ensure democratic accountability and responsiveness of the government,” he said.
He further said the announcement came at a time when he (Barrow) delivered the SONA. Now, “Instead of people scrutinizing the SONA, talk about the major problematic issues of the SONA, it has shifted attention to his third term intention.”
However, he said it is President Adama Barrow’s constitutional right to contest for a third term for the fact that the Gambians still rely on the 1997 Constitution, which is very unfortunate.
He went on that the rejection of the draft constitution at the parliament, he alleged, was masterminded by President Barrow, saying he had foreseen that if the draft constitution should have passed, thus the draft constitution says 2021 to 2026, it means that would be his two terms, and he would not be eligible to contest in 2026.
Njie articulated that “It was politically calculated on his side (President Barrow) to ensure that this draft constitution was rejected. And now he has the mandate to contest the 3rd term, even the 4th term, as long as there is no new constitution.”