President Yahya Jammeh has again stressed that the forthcoming presidential, parliamentary and local government elections will be one in which Gambians choose between the path to development and the path to what he called retrogression.
Jammeh, who was speaking Tuesday at State House during a meeting with APRC bigwigs from the West Coast Region, said that it is now left to Gambians to choose between the two.
Noting that the elections will be one of competition among the regions in the country, the Gambian leader said if any regions want development they will vote for him, and those that do not want development will be the ones that vote for the opposition.
“Any region that casts the highest percentage of vote for me will claim my citizenship, come 25th November 2011,” Jammeh said, while recalling that during his recently-concluded meet-the-people tour, all the regions claimed that he is a bona-fide citizen of the region.
Vice President Aja Isatou Njie-Saidy, who also spoke at the meeting, commended the people of West Coast Region for being the first region in the country to recommend President Jammeh to stand for the presidency during the Transition.
Stating that Gambians will never regret their support for the ruling APRC party, VP Njie-Saidy, opined that there exists good road networks, uninterrupted electricity supply and availability of portable drinking water throughout the country.
According to her, all the other regions have their eye on the West Coast Region, and thus urged them to set a very good example, come 24th November.
The Governor of the West Coast Region, Alhagie Lamin Sanneh, speaking on the occasion said the purpose of coming to State House was to discuss with the Gambian leader their plans for the November polls, and to also say a “Big Thank You to President Jammeh” for going out to meet and discuss with the farmers about their problems.
“We are happy for the work you are doing in this country by reducing poverty levels and hunger. Before, it was Kombo that benefited from basic amenities like electricity, portable drinking water and skill centers but now even the remotest villages are benefitting from those amenities thanks to your presidency,” Governor Sanneh declared.
According to the West Coast Region Governor, Gambians cannot repay President Jammeh enough. He said the only way to repay him is for Gambians to cast their votes for him, come 24th November.
Jammeh KK Bojang, West Coast Regional APRC Chairman, who also spoke at the meeting appealed to the APRC selection committee to accept any aspiring National Assembly candidate selected from the grassroots to serve as their representative, and not to reject the choice of the electorate.
“These are some of the main causes of having independent candidates in some constituencies, because the choice of the electorate was rejected by the selection committee,” Bojang stated.
Other speakers at meeting were Abdou Colley, minister of Trade, who is also the APRC party liaison officer for the region, Hon. Borry Colley, desk officer, Paramount Chief Demba Sanyang, and Yankuba Colley, the APRC National Mobiliser, who chaired the meeting.