By Makutu Manneh
A spokesperson for Gambians Against Looted Assets said Sunday that the prolonged electricity crisis gripping the country amounts to evidence that the National Water and Electricity Company, known as NAWEC, is unfit to oversee the nation’s power and water systems.
Speaking on the radio program Bitilo, Omar Saibou Camara argued that if the outages are indeed rooted in a technical malfunction, as NAWEC has claimed, the company’s prolonged failure to resolve the issue raises serious questions about its competence.
“What technical issue can’t NAWEC fix after all this while?” Mr. Camara asked. “Do we need the Angel Gabriel to intervene, or do we need to outsource technical experts to come and fix it?”
He noted that during a GALA-led protest on June 19, the organization issued NAWEC a 10-day ultimatum to restore reliable electricity nationwide. The crisis, he said, had already dragged on far longer than the utility company had initially indicated. NAWEC had told the public the outages would be resolved by mid-June, he said, a deadline that passed without relief—prompting GALA’s decision to take to the streets.
“We cannot remain this way,” Mr. Camara said. “In 2026, this country should be thinking about advanced innovations like trains, not struggling with basic necessities like electricity and water.”
He called on NAWEC to take ownership of its responsibilities and ensure it serves Gambians efficiently and effectively.
Mr. Camara also questioned why a country of roughly 2.6 million people continues to rely on electricity imported from Guinea-Bissau and Senegal, arguing that The Gambia should be capable of generating sufficient power domestically, just as its neighbors do.
“The Gambia has sunlight for 12 months; even during the cold season, this country has sunlight,” he said. “What we need to do is to move from normal, outdated generators and think inwards to have solar systems. Just look at compounds with solar in this country; they do not lack power.”
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