By Fatou Sillah
The Minister of Information, Media, and Broadcasting Services, Dr. Ismaila Ceesay, on Tuesday said that President Adama Barrow’s pursuit of a third term is inevitable and not open to debate, dismissing opposition from civil society groups.
In an interview with West Coast Radio, Dr. Ceesay responded directly to the Never Again Network, an organization campaigning against a third-term bid, asserting that nothing—aside from “nature”—can prevent President Barrow from running again.
“The President is contesting these elections, and nobody, nothing, can stop it except nature,” Dr. Ceesay said. “That should be clear in the mind of every Gambian.”
The minister emphasized that the question of a third term is settled under the law. “There is no debate. People should not create debate where there is no debate. The President is contesting the election; the Constitution gives him the right to contest, and nobody—no initiative, no organization, no individual—can stop the President from contesting that election,” he said.
Dr. Ceesay also advised civil society organizations to redirect their focus toward discussing government development programs rather than opposing the third-term bid. “I would advise the Never Again Network to expend their energy and time discussing and debating the President’s continued and sustained development initiatives,” he said.
He reiterated that the Constitution allows President Barrow to seek re-election and that the decision ultimately rests with Gambian voters. “The third term is not a debate; it is the Constitution. The 1997 Constitution gave President Barrow the mandate to contest any election, and it is for the Gambian people to decide,” Dr. Ceesay said.
Comments are closed.