In an exchange, Darboe pushed back against statements attributed to former Interior Minister Mai Ahmad Fatty, who said issuing ID cards abroad was a long standing policy. “Maybe it was the policy of a cabinet I was not part of, but the cabinet I served in never adopted such a policy,” Darboe said.
Darboe stressed that while Gambians abroad deserve access to passports, national ID cards cannot legally be issued outside The Gambia. “The law provides that the registrar must notify governors and local authorities to authenticate applications. Do you have a Seyfo or Alkalo in Mauritania to attest to citizenship? No,” he argued. “Issuing ID cards abroad violates the law.”
Recounting his time as Foreign Minister, Darboe said he personally intervened when Gambians in the UK and other countries faced difficulties renewing expired passports. “I called Minister Fatty to my office, our people were stranded abroad because their biometric passports had expired. I told him we cannot allow Gambians to be undocumented. That was when he agreed to send machine-readable passports to Spain and elsewhere but never ID cards.”
Darboe maintained that he would never approve or condone illegality, insisting any such act was misleading and unjustifiable. He emphasised that any policy that contradicts the law is not a policy; it’s an illegality.
Turning to politics and Diaspora engagement, Darboe revealed that 2025 had been a successful year for UDP internationally, following major fundraising drives in the US and Europe. However, he lamented that most Gambians abroad are still denied the right to vote.
“I’ve convinced many to come home during the supplementary registration in April and May,” he said.
“We’re also bringing them to help manage polling stations. An 18-year-old can be intimidated, but not someone who’s lived in Europe for decades.”
Darboe said the Diaspora’s role must go beyond remittances. “They should now control the economy,” suggesting that Gambians could have formed a consortium to own MegaBank or invest collectively in infrastructure and agriculture. “We have brilliant civil engineers abroad. Give them the contracts. Let Gambians build The Gambia.”
But he admitted that trust in government remains a major obstacle. “Many don’t invest because they see corruption and favoritism. They’ve lost faith. We must restore that trust through openness and accountability.”
