We also commend the country’s security personnel in ensuring that there is peace throughout the country during the voting and after the election. The Gambia is a country that is known to be peaceful thus we all should jealously guard that irrespective of our political differences.
However, in the buildup to the council election, there were numerous reports of vote buying in different places in the country. Therefore, your government should treat this issue with utmost urgency. There should be no room for vote buying in our country because it has the tendency of causing instability in the country. Security personnel including the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) and political parties should work hand-in-glove in ensuring that vote buying is not only discouraged but those found wanting should be dealt with according to the laws of the country. The government shouldn’t compromise on this issue.
Political leaders should also campaign based on their policies and programmes and what they can do for their electorate when they are voted into office rather than engaging in vote buying and inducement among others.
Mr President, there are certain issues that need not to be put under the carpet or be compromised and among those is the issue of election, caste system problem in upcountry settlements, security, land dispute and corruption among others.
Therefore, your government should be very proactive on these issues with a view to avoiding any confrontation or conflict in the country. We thus expect the Gambia Police Force (GPF) to thoroughly investigate reports of vote buying in the country. Anyone who is arrested as a result of vote buying, the individuals should be immediately taken to court to face the full force of the law. We can’t and shouldn’t in any way allow that trend to continue in the country. If the issues are dealt with accordingly, we believe that such kinds of reports will not emerge in the coming mayors and chairmanship election.
Mr President, this year's voter turnout in the councillor election is also very low and one can attribute that to conducting the election during the Ramadan. We believe it is high time that the IEC conducted election before Ramadan or after Ramadan. This would help eligible voters to go out and vote for the candidates of their choice. Political analysts believe the voter apathy is due to lack of enough sensitization about the importance of the local election. The low turnout has hindered the election process which should be rectified in the forthcoming mayoral and chairmanship elections which is slated for 20 May 2023.
Mr President, the electorates are appealing to you and the IEC to see reason to merge both the local government and mayoral elections, which goes a long way to helping the government save state money and time, as it would also increase voter turnout.
Mr President, another issue that your government should urgently address is the attack on our Christian brethren, especially at their places of worship. As sensitive as this issue is, we believe that your government should immediately hold an emergency meeting over the matter with the objective of addressing the misunderstanding and misconception of people once and for all.
Muslims and Christians have been living in this country for centuries and hardly have you heard people attacking the Christians at their places of worship. We hope the police would do everything possible to ensure that those suspected of attacking and vandalizing the church at Bakau New Town and Tallinding areas are arrested and prosecuted with immediate effect in order to deter others from engaging in such unreasonable act.
Finally, Mr President, Muslims and Christians have been living in the country in an atmosphere of peace and tranquility, thus such a trend must continue. We attend each other's naming ceremonies and funerals. The Gambia, it must be noted, is a secular state hence all religious groups have equal right to practise their faith without being attacked or subject to threats or violence.
Good Day!