Lawyer Ousainou Darboe made the confession in an interview with the Fatu Network over the killing of UDP party's National Organising Secretary Ebrima Solo Sandeng in April 2016 after he and other members of the UDP party took to the streets to demand reforms on the electoral laws during former President Jammeh's reign. He thus described Mr. Sandeng and others who sacrificed for the nation as patriots and selfless citizens.
He stated that the incident always reminds him of the efforts and sacrifices Ebrima Solo Sandeng and other members of the party made to manifest the unfriendly electoral laws put in place by the former government, which he said has ultimately given a free and conducive electoral environment to the country before he was killed by the former regime.
"One of my greatest regret in life and I keep saying this was the moment I yelled and shouted at Ebrima Solo Sandeng to go and check in all our party bureaus, which the Independent Electoral Commission IEC tasked all political parties to have their bureaus established and in proper condition before elections.”
"I called him on the phone to go and bring in the office keys and go along with the IEC officials to check all our bureaus. And when he picked-up the phone, I shouted at him and asked his whereabouts because I knew that any small mistake, the government would put pressure on the IEC to deregister the UDP from contesting the elections.”
"So that was the moment I will ever regret in my life; shouting at him because I did not know he’s going to be taken; beaten and killed by the state agents after he and others protested against the electoral laws," he said.
Speaking on the draft constitution, the UDP leader said it was killed by President Adama Barrow and his government.
"It is the president and his government who killed the draft constitution based on their interest and this I can say was never voiced by any politician except the civil society groups.”
"And to say I boarded the plane to Nigeria for talks on the draft constitution because of fear of comments that people might say against the UDP that we give no regard for negotiating; the return of the draft constitution is never the case. I boarded the plane on the request of the former president Good- Luck Jonathan," he stated.
