By Landing Ceesay
Hon. Seedy Njie, the Deputy Spokesperson of the ruling National People’s Party (NPP) said that all the Mayors and Chairmen of the United Democratic Party (UDP) would lose their seats in the coming Local Government elections.
“We are going to Local governments elections and all his (Darboe) Mayors and Chairmen will lose the elections. So what he wants to do is to cast a sense of doubt within the minds of the Gambian people and also to prepare his supporters for violence. So that comes campaigns and the period of announcement of results that can create violence in this country. And then the country will descend into violence which is very serious,” Hon. Njie said.
Hon. Njie who is also the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly made these remarks in response to the UDP Leader’s Gunjur comment about the upcoming Local government election.
Hon. Ousainu Darboe, Party Leader and Secretary General of the UDP, speaking at an event in Gunjur Kombo South in the West Coast Region said his party will also tabulate the results of the elections and compare them with the results of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC).
Darboe said if their results do not tally with that of the IEC they will publish theirs and allow Gambians to be the judge.
The ruling NPP Deputy Spokesperson took umbrage with this statement and said they found this comment to be very dangerous.
“He (Ousainu Darboe) believed that from 2021 to 2026 is a long time for him. Because he’s 80 years old, and he is so desperate to be in power, that is to render this country ungovernable, to ensure that there is violence and there is chaos in this country. He believes that if that happened, he will have an opportunity to become President. We found this comment to be very dangerous.
“He (Ousainu Darboe) put them at a time when we are going in for elections. The Gambia as a country and also the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) under their protocols of democracy and good governance indicated that they want all political leaders within the sub-region to always de-escalate political tensions when we are heading to elections,” Hon. Njie said.
Hon. Njie said The National People’s Party (NPP), doesn’t believe in engaging in personal sentiment and self-aggrandizement.
Hon. Njie however said the NPP only responds when things are very pertinent and are very alarmingly.
He alleged that the UDP Leader’s wish is to render the “country ungovernable as he made earlier on.”
“We believe most of these comments that are made on social media by the UDP, their leader, or their surrogate, are based on personal sentiment, and personal attack, and for us, we want to set an example. Not everyone thinks that people sit in the comfort of their houses using social media thanks to the democratic nature, of the dispensation to come up with those issues,” he said.
The ruling National People’s Party (NPP) held a press conference to respond to the UDP Leader’s Gunjur comment.
The Press Conference took place at the Party’s Churchill Town Bureau in Serekunda in the Kanifing Municipality (KM).