Clause 14 indicates that the Commission shall register a Gambian living outside The Gambia as a voter if he or she satisfies the requirements for registration prescribed under this Act.
“This was a mere declaration of intent. We did not vote against diaspora voting, our stand on the clause is that as a government, we must be responsible and our citizens who are living outside the Gambia deserve respect,” he said.
“What the majority people said was this. Instead of manifesting our intent, which has been settled by the Constitution, and has been equally settled by Clause 13 of the Elections Bill, why don't we develop a framework that will make the clause realistic.”
He claimed that some members who voted for Clause 14 to stand part of the bill argued that
they should have passed Clause 14 so that when the time for elections come, and it couldn't materialize, that wouldn't be their problem.
However, Hon. Fofana flagged that this means the intention of the minority was to mislead the Diaspora. “It was to put the government in a trap, because they know that there is a catch in Section 39 of the constitution.
“If we tell them that you have to vote, the mechanism should be ready, and not to give them false hope.”
He also argued that if the parliament passes
Clause 14, and limits them (Diaspora) only to presidential voting, that contravenes Section 26 of the Gambia Constitution. “Because if you read Section 26, what it embodies is to give the citizen the full and complete right to vote and be represented.
Therefore, if you limit the Diaspora to presidential voting only, then the whole idea of allowing Diaspora to participate in elections is defeated,” he argued.
