Mayor Bensouda Says Gambians Should Take Their Anger Over Electricity to the Ballot Box

By Fatou Sillah

Talib Ahmed Bensouda, the leader of UNITE and presidential candidate of Coalition 2026, has urged Gambians frustrated by the country’s persistent electricity shortages to channel their anger into the ballot box rather than resort to violence or destruction.

Mr. Bensouda said the power crisis, which he said had persisted for more than five months, was taking an increasingly heavy toll on households, businesses, and health facilities, with some communities going days without electricity.

“We are urging people to be patient; the election is not far,” he said. “Your anger should reflect on the ballot box, but we are not encouraging people to go out and destroy things.”

His comments followed protests on Monday over prolonged power outages. Mr. Bensouda described the events as unfortunate but said the demonstrations reflected mounting frustration among Gambians struggling with an unreliable electricity supply.

He said the effects of the crisis had become widespread, disrupting businesses, daily life, and essential services, including hospitals.

“This electricity issue is over five months,” he said, adding that the problems had begun before Tobaski and continued through the holiday period, causing significant hardship. “A country cannot go without electricity.”

Mr. Bensouda said electricity should be regarded as a basic necessity and questioned why reliable power remained such a serious national challenge in 2026.

He said the prolonged outages had pushed many Gambians to a breaking point but again appealed for calm, urging people not to damage public or private property in expressing their frustration.

Instead, he said, voters dissatisfied with the government’s handling of the electricity crisis would have an opportunity to register that dissatisfaction in the upcoming presidential election.

“The election is not far,” Mr. Bensouda said, urging Gambians to make their views known through their votes.