With the uncertainty caused by President Yahya Jammeh, Gambia has been thrown into a state of confusion and apprehension with the people not knowing what would happen ahead of the inauguration ceremony.
File photo of Yahya Jammeh, the president of Gambia.
From all indications, the country is most likely to be under the influence of military troops as war looms over Jammeh’s refusal to step down for Adama Barrow, the president-elect.
Gambians are starting to shop and store their houses with food as they do not know how long they may be forced to stay indoor.
Although ECOWAS has intervened in this issue, President Jammeh is not ready to bulge as he is expecting the Supreme Court to pass a judgement on his appeal. Despite the effort of the mediation team led by President Muhammadu Buhari, he is not willing to hand over the reins of leadership to Barrow.
Some Gambians have fled as the streets are gradually becoming deserted while a few shops opened to supply people of what they will be needing pending the time the political tension subsides.
Check out some important facts you need to know about President Jammeh:
1. He is 52 years old
The Gambia president was born on May 25, 1965 and was named Yahya Abdul-Aziz Jemus Junkung Jammeh. He is the second president of Gambia, a small West African country.
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2. He has ruled Gambia for 22 years
On 22 July 1994, Jammeh took power as a 29-year-old Lieutenant in a bloodless military coup from Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara.
He took control of key facilities in the capital city, Banjul along with some young officers who identified themselves as the Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council (AFPRC).
3. He sentenced Ousainou Darboe to prison for staging protests before the 2016 election
President Jammeh founded the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction as his political party and was elected as president in September 1996.
He was re-elected in presidential elections for his
Ahead of the 2016 presidential election, he sentenced Ousainou Darboe and other pro-democracy opposition members to three years in imprisonment for staging protests.
While calling them “opportunistic people supported by the West,” he said that “I will bow to only Allah and my mother. I will never tolerate opposition to destabilize this country.”
4. Jammeh fought for the rights of women and homosexuality
He banned the mutilation of female parts (FGM) in Gambia, insisting that the practice of FGM has ‘no place in Islam or in modern society.’ He also recently banned child marriage.
On 18 February 2014, Jammeh called homosexuals “vermins” by saying that “We will fight these vermins called homosexuals or gays the same way we are fighting malaria-causing mosquitoes, if not more aggressively.
As far as I am concerned, LGBT can only stand for Leprosy, Gonorrhoea, Bacteria and Tuberculosis, all of which are detrimental to human existence”
5. A coup attempt towards him failed
There was a planned coup against President Jammeh some years ago. The plan was thwarted in 2006. He was in Mauritania as at the time the coup took place and this made him return home quickly.
The plot was planned by Col. Ndure Cham, the chief of army staff, who fled to Senegal while other conspirators were arrested and tried for treason.
Some former officers accused of being involved in the scheme were convicted and given prison sentences.Four of them were sentenced to life in prison.
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6. Adama Barrow defeated him in the 2016 presidential election
Jammeh was defeated by Adama Barrow in the election that took place on 1 December 2016 and accepted the result. However, he rejected the result on December 9, 2016 citing it as “unacceptable abnormalities.”
360naze
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