By Haddy Touray
Presidential adviser Dou Sano has asserted that the UDP will never rule The Gambia.
“He [Darboe] and the messengers he despatched to soothsayers have been informed on several occasions that he would never be a leader of this country. Let him come out, speak out and tell Gambians that he would not like to squander their precious time. He should tell Gambians that the prophets presaged that he wouldn’t be a leader,” Sano claimed in an interview with The Voice.
He continued: “When Darboe was incarcerated, President Barrow did everything to have him freed. The President even sent Yusupha Cham of Sukuta to a revered elder so that they could pray for his mentor’s release. Do you know what happened when Yusupha Cham went to the venerable elder? He categorically told Cham that he knew about his mission but that the one who financed his trip would ascend to power and the one he was trying to bail out would be jailed. At this moment, President Barrow never dreamt of becoming a President. Yusupha Cham knew very well that that sagacious man’s words were the incontrovertible truths. Maybe, Darboe has other plans for politics such as enriching himself.”
According to Mr. Sano, President Barrow’s return to power in 2026 is a foregone conclusion.
“Gambians reelected President Barrow with a comfortable margin in 2021 because of his development track record from 2017 to 2021. This is why I always say, without any fear of contradiction, that he would be reelected in 2026 with a bigger margin,” he added.
Asked to point out one or two accomplishments of the President that he thought would endear him to voters come 2026, Sano said: “The President’s achievements in development are here for everyone to see. Sometimes, I say to myself whether you journalists are fair to us because we are all in this country. A journalist can become a President of this country and would like his/her achievements to be given the required media attention. Journalists have an important role in enlightening the masses. But very rare that you’ll see a journalist pick his/her gadgets to expose the president’s accomplishments to the public. They[journalists] are excited to dedicate airtime or newspaper spaces to the critics of President Barrow. However, it’s also the right of the President to enjoy adequate media coverage. And, it’s the people’s right to know because they have to know. Let journalists change tact because their role in society is very important. They can cause chaos through peddling misinformation.
“Let them tell the critics that though it’s their right to criticize the President, it’s during his dispensation that we got the Senegambia, Fatoto, Koina and Suduwol bridges as well as the Pasamas and OIC roads. The airport has been redeveloped, Banjul roads built, the electricity supply stabilized in many parts of the country and the President wants to ensure a universal electricity supply in seven years. These are good things that journalists are not highlighting.”
The presidential adviser hinted that people are not talking about the “many feathers on the President’s cap” because they want Darboe to become President.
“People are not talking because they want somebody to be the president and since he did not become president, they decided never to acknowledge President Barrow’s accomplishments,” he pointed out.
“But Gambians are enlightened enough and they know too well what to do. How many journalists have fled this country under Barrow? I respect journalists’ role in society but you can cause chaos if you are not careful,” stated Sano.
For more on the interview, see our subsequent editions.
