By Buba Gagigo
In a letter dated September 25, 2024, President Adama Barrow, through his legal representatives at Ida D. Drammeh and Associates, has threatened to take legal action against Musa S. Sheriff, the Managing Director of The Voice Newspaper. This action is in response to an article alleging that Barrow has chosen Muhammed Jah as his successor.
The letter from Barrow’s legal team and addressed to Sheriff reads: “We act for His Excellency Mr. Adama Barrow, the President of the Republic of The Gambia and Secretary General and Party Leader of the National People’s Party (NPP), in respect of an article appearing on the front-page and page 2 of the issue of ‘The Voice’ newspaper dated 23d September 2024 under the title ‘BARROW CHOOSES MUHAMMED JAH AS SUCCESSOR AS PRE. WORKS ON EXIT PLAN-SOURCES”. The letter states
Barrow’s legal team described the article as defamatory, highlighting several parts of the story, including:
“President Adama Barrow is working on an exit plan a little more than two years before Gambians return to the polls to elect their next President, NPP officials were quoted as saying. Already, the report that President Barrow has chosen politically little-known Muhammed Jah as his successor has caused consternation and trepidation among some top members of the ruling party.”
“Apparently, the news hit some NPP members and top-brass like a thunderbolt, as it was just a fortnight ago that Mr. Barrow announced his intention seek another five-year mandate in 2026. Reports reaching this medium intimated that ECOWAS has been averse to President’s Barrow third-term ambition at a time when the sub-regional grouping was dealing with the nerve-wracking challenges of coups d’etat and Islamic insurgency in the West Africa sub-region.
“However, according to reliable information, President Barrow had since expressed his desire to relinquish power but was reportedly talked out of it by some NPP officials, who advised him that the unity and longevity of the NPP rested on his shoulders. It has yet to be established whether the President did indeed choose the Q-Group Chairman to replace him at the poll in 2026 but NPP members and executives were passionately talking about the issue last weekend.”
In response, Barrow’s legal team refuted the claims, calling them“ ‘completely’ outrageous and untrue,” asserting that at no point did Barrow consider stepping down or name Jah as his successor. They argued the article implies that Barrow is no longer interested in being president, cannot be trusted by his party, and has already handed over his position to Jah, all of which they say are untrue.
The president’s legal team articulated in their letter that “The natural and ordinary meaning of these words and of the placing of the photograph immediately under the said words, which are highly defamatory of our client, is that:
A. Our client is no longer interested in being President of The Gambia;
B. That he does not intend to be flag bearer of the NPP in the 2026 elections;
C. That his party, NPP, cannot rely on what he tells them;
D. That he is not a man of his word and cannot be trusted;
E. That he has chosen Muhammed Jah as his successor;
F. That he has handed over keys to his position to him;
G. That there was a ceremony where this handover took place;
H. That NPP are unhappy with his decision.
They further asserted that each of these imputations is completely unfounded and that at no point did their client engage in any conversations suggesting that Muhammed Jah was chosen as his successor.
“He did not also at any time indicate that he is no longer interested in being President of The Gambia. A further article in the newspaper of Tuesday the 24 day of September 2024 summarised the libellous allegations above in a discussion of a trip of Mr Jah and a future trip, in a manner that insinuates that it is part of the plan for succession between Mr Jah and our client, and in order to create some veneer of validity to these unsubstantiated claims made by your paper,” they said.
Barrow’s legal team stated that their client’s reputation has been significantly damaged by the publication of “these defamatory allegations,” which they contended are “deeply distressing and embarrassing for him.”
As a result, President Barrow, through his legal representatives, has requested that the Managing Director of the Voice Newspaper take the following urgent actions within 24 hours of this letter:
1. to publish in the next issue of your newspaper a full and complete retraction and apology, in terms to be approved by us on our client’s behalf, on the front page of the newspaper in a position similar to that occupied by the article complained of;
2. to make a full retraction and apology in a statement in open court;
3. to indemnify our client in respect of the costs which he has or will have incurred in this matter;
4. to pay to our client damages for the injury to his reputation and for the embarrassment and distress caused to him.
The letter concludes with a warning that failure to comply with these demands within 24 hours will result in legal proceedings, with Barrow seeking all associated legal fees and costs.
“If the defamatory article is not permanently removed and the above undertakings are not complied with within the next 24 hours of the date of this letter, we will take the necessary steps to institute legal proceedings without any further correspondence. Should it become necessary to institute legal action, our client will also be claiming from you all legal fees involved in bringing this libel action, and any other costs that might be incurred in this regard,” the letter concludes.