By: Kebba Ansu Manneh
Sulayman Dampha, the Public Relations Officer of the United Democratic Party (UDP) Bundungka Kunda Chapter, has issued a passionate call to Gambian voters to reject President Adama Barrow’s anticipated bid for a third term in the December 5, 2026, presidential election.
In an exclusive interview with The Alkamba Times (TAT), Dampha described the current administration as one plagued by unfulfilled promises and misplaced priorities. He urged citizens to evaluate Barrow’s record over the past decade and deny him another opportunity at the helm.
“The Gambian electorate should reject anything associated with President Barrow’s third-term bid,” Dampha stated emphatically. “This is a president who made lots of reform promises to the Gambian people but failed to deliver.”
Dampha highlighted several key pledges made by Barrow that remain unfulfilled. During the 2016 campaign and subsequent visits to various bantabas, the president promised comprehensive security sector, constitutional, and civil service reform. In 2021, he vowed to create over 150,000 jobs annually and to electrify the entire country by 2025. None of these commitments have materialized, according to the UDP official.
He also recalled Barrow’s 2019 promise to construct a bridge linking Banjul and Barra, alongside road infrastructure projects for communities around Bamba Tenda and Yelli Tenda. Instead of fulfilling these infrastructure goals, Dampha claimed the government has mortgaged key national assets, including the Banjul Sea Port and ferry services, to the detriment of ordinary Gambians.
The UDP PRO expressed deep disappointment over what he sees as a shift in the president’s focus. Rather than addressing pressing national issues such as economic hardship, rising food prices, and unreliable electricity supply, Barrow has increasingly turned his attention to attacking opposition figures, Dampha argued.
He was particularly critical of the president’s team of advisers, describing them as “a bunch of failed Gambians” whose primary interest lies in personal financial gain rather than national service. “Unfortunately, the president has more than five advisers who have definitely failed in their mission,” Dampha said. “What we are seeing these advisers doing, contrary to their job, is to attack and insult key opposition figures rather than advising the president on when, where, and how to speak, especially on sensitive issues.
Dampha cited a recent NPP rally in Brikama as an example. At a time when the country was facing a severe electricity crisis, the president reportedly focused his remarks on UDP leader Lawyer Ousainou Darboe. “If he had proper advisers, he wouldn’t have gone so low in times of crisis,” he remarked.
The UDP official concluded by calling on all Gambians, particularly opposition parties, to unite behind Lawyer Ousainou Darboe, describing him as the leader best positioned to rescue the country. He warned that even six terms would not enable Barrow to deliver, given his track record of unaddressed unemployment, soaring prices of basic commodities, frequent power outages, and deteriorating living conditions for families.
