Darboe Says Upcoming Election Is for All Gambians, Not Any One Tribe

By Seedy Jobe

United Democratic Party leader Ousainu Darboe has urged Gambians to look beyond ethnic identity in the upcoming presidential election, saying the vote should be about the country’s collective future rather than any particular tribe.

Speaking in Jababa in the Lower River Region, Darboe said the UDP had come to the community not simply to hold a political meeting, but to place its trust in residents and seek their support.

“This election is not a Mandinka election, not a Fula or Sarahule election,” Darboe said.

He said every candidate seeking public office must earn the trust of voters, and that Jababa is among the communities where the UDP is seeking that confidence. He added that the party’s political goals could not be achieved without the participation of ordinary Gambians.

Darboe said the UDP was not seeking power for personal benefit, but for an opportunity to serve the country.

Referring to remarks made at the gathering by Fatoumatta Camara and Chairman Sanneh, Darboe argued that votes previously cast for the ruling party had contributed to some of the problems Gambians are now raising. Had voters made a different choice, he said, some of those concerns might not exist today.

Darboe described The Gambia as having “one wound,” saying the remedy rests in the hands of Gambians through the power of their vote.

He said the election should transcend ethnic divisions because the challenges facing the country affect Gambians regardless of their background. He pointed to problems in health care, agriculture, and education as examples of issues that cut across ethnic lines.

“When we all go to the hospital, we find the same thing there,” Darboe said. “The agriculture sector has been affected. Education has been affected. So this is not an election where you will say this is Darboe or Sanneh. This election is to rescue The Gambia.”

Darboe urged residents of Jababa to use their votes to bring about political change and give the UDP an opportunity to govern, saying voters have the power to determine the direction of the country.

He warned that the problems facing The Gambia would persist if voters did not use that power effectively.

Darboe also addressed irregular migration, commonly known as the “Backway,” linking the departure of young Gambians and deaths at sea to what he described as a lack of opportunity and hope at home.

He said many young people embark on the dangerous journey because they see few prospects for building a future in their own country.