NDP Leader Says Leaving NPP Was Necessary to Protect His Life and Reputation

By Seedy Jobe

Kebba Madi Bojang, the former national youth president of the National People’s Party and now leader of the National Democratic Party, has said he left the NPP because he feared remaining in the party could damage his life and reputation.

Speaking Wednesday in an interview with Mengbe Kering TV, Mr. Bojang said conditions within the NPP had deteriorated to the point that he believed leaving was necessary, particularly given his responsibilities as an elder and family man.

“It had reached a point where, if I did not leave the NPP, my life could have been ruined,” he said.

Mr. Bojang said he initially asked the party leadership to dismiss him. When that did not happen, he said, he submitted a formal resignation letter.

His final engagement with the party, he said, came during a meeting with President Adama Barrow and eight other officials, where he presented his reports and made clear that his decision to leave was final.

Since his departure, Mr. Bojang said he has faced criticism over his decision. But he maintained that staying in an environment he considered harmful was no longer an option.

Mr. Bojang has since formed the National Democratic Party, which he said is intended to bring Gambians together, with a particular emphasis on young people.

He said the party’s immediate priority was not electoral politics or campaign spending, but programs aimed at creating economic opportunities for young Gambians.

As part of that effort, Mr. Bojang said he plans to tour the country to identify young people who could benefit from support in poultry farming and other income-generating ventures. The goal, he said, is to help young people build sustainable livelihoods and create jobs.

He also called on other opposition parties to support such initiatives, arguing that efforts to improve the lives of Gambians should transcend partisan politics.

For Mr. Bojang, he said, national development should come before political differences.