State House, Banjul, 1st December 2021: His Excellency President Adama Barrow Wednesday received the Election Observer mission from the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA) at the State House in Banjul.
Speaking to the media after their closed-door meeting with President Barrow, the Head of the mission and former President of Ghana, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, said the team was at the Presidency to pay a courtesy call on the President and discuss the mandate of the mission in The Gambia as the country prepares for the upcoming December 4th Presidential Elections.
President Mahama commended The Gambia for the peaceful conduct of this important democratic process and praised the security forces for providing adequate security for all the candidates.
His Excellency Mahama noted that these measures have helped to prevent violence throughout this period. President Mahama also said the mission held several meetings with other stakeholders including the IEC, the Chief Justice and the Inspector General of Police. He said he is confident that this election will be conducted peacefully and in line with the democratic practices that The Gambia has embraced.
He went on to add that, “the responsibility for peaceful, fair and transparent elections rests on Gambians”. He said this is the first Presidential election since the 2016 impasse and the international community is watching and hopeful that the country will get it right and consolidate its democratic gains.
His Excellency urged all political party leaders, militants and the Gambians, in general, to cooperate with all the relevant stakeholders in ensuring a peaceful electoral process. The EISA Mission will also be meeting with other Presidential candidates as part of their efforts to ensure peaceful, free and fair elections.
