Lamin Manneh, the partyโs deputy secretary for External Affairs, said the IEC remains the only institution mandated to conduct the election and officially declare its outcome.
However, he argued that because results are counted and announced publicly at polling stations, political parties, journalists and citizens have the right to collect and independently tally the figures.
โThe IEC is mandated to conduct the elections and proclaim the results at the end, but from the day the legislation was enacted for spot counting, every Gambian citizen has earned the right to publish those results because they are public information,โ Manneh said.
His comments come amid debate over the UDPโs intention to publish its own tally before the IEC completes its official national tabulation.
Manneh said the partyโs tally would rely on results announced at polling stations after voting. Once ballots are counted, representatives of political parties and candidates verify the figures before the IEC presiding officer signs the results sheet.
Copies are provided to party representatives, transmitted through the IECโs official process and displayed at the polling station.
Manneh said the UDP has developed software to capture polling-station results as they are announced and make running figures available to the public. The party has also offered the IEC access to the system so its officials can view the same results collected by the UDP.
He said he expects the partyโs final tally to correspond with the IECโs official figures because both would originate from results certified by IEC officials at polling stations.
โWe are not subverting elections. We are bringing in another degree of transparency. Why should anybody be afraid of transparency in elections?โ
Concerns have been raised that competing announcements could create confusion or tensions before the IEC declares the official result. Manneh rejected suggestions that the UDPโs plan could contribute to violence or disorder, arguing that independent verification would add another layer of scrutiny and strengthen confidence in the electoral process.
He said the party continues to engage with the IEC through stakeholder meetings and other discussions, maintaining that the initiative is consistent with its commitment to credible, free and fair elections.
Manneh stressed that independently reporting publicly available polling-station figures is different from declaring the winner a responsibility he acknowledged remains with the IEC.
