President Adama Barrow has strongly endorsed the ECOWAS summit’s stern warning to former President Yahya Jammeh, emphasizing that the regional bloc will not tolerate any attempts to undermine The Gambia’s peace and stability through provocative statements from exile.
Speaking on Monday following the 68th Ordinary Session of ECOWAS Heads of State in Abuja, Barrow reiterated the bloc’s position, citing Jammeh’s ongoing release of audio messages as a direct threat.
“ECOWAS will not accept attempts by former president Yahya Jammeh to disturb the peace and stability of The Gambia,” Barrow stated, referencing the summit’s final communiqué that condemned Jammeh’s actions.
He added a personal warning: if Jammeh persists in sharing such audios, “there will be consequences.” “This is the resolution, it is loud and clear that we have to make sure that we all play by the rules,” the president said.
The ECOWAS Authority, chaired by Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio, deemed Jammeh’s audio pronouncements—circulated via WhatsApp and announcing political interference—a breach of his asylum conditions in Equatorial Guinea and a risk to Gambian social cohesion.
Leaders reaffirmed that the 2017 joint ECOWAS-AU-UN declaration facilitating Jammeh’s departure granted no immunity from accountability for alleged human rights violations during his 1994-2017 rule, including torture and disappearances documented by Gambia’s TRRC.
President Barrow, who attended the summit alongside leaders from Senegal, Ghana, and others, underscored regional unity in safeguarding democracy.
The statement follows Jammeh’s recent audios rallying supporters and claiming a right to return, amid stalled justice efforts and a planned special tribunal for Jammeh-era crimes.
The summit also addressed broader issues: economic growth resilience, delays in the launch of the ECO single currency, historic West African Power Pool synchronization, and condemnations of coups in Guinea-Bissau and an attempted coup in Benin.
ECOWAS pledged enhanced counter-terrorism support and election monitoring, signaling resolve against instability amid mounting geopolitical pressures.
