Essa Faal, Party Leader of APP-SOBEYA
By Buba Gagigo
Essa Faal, the leader of the opposition APP-SOBEYA party, has sharply criticized President Adama Barrow, accusing him of harbouring deep mistrust toward the Gambia Armed Forces and maintaining foreign troops in the country out of fear of a potential coup.
Speaking during an appearance on West Coast Radio, Mr. Faal alleged that Mr. Barrow views the national army as infiltrated by loyalists of former President Yahya Jammeh—a perception, he claims, that continues to influence the president’s security decisions nearly a decade into his administration.”Let’s call a spade a spade, Barrow is afraid of Gambia’s Armed Forces. He does not trust them,” Mr. Faal said. “He thinks that it is padded with Jammeh’s loyalists, and therefore he is afraid to be overthrown. That is the truth of the matter.”
Faal further criticized the government’s approach to security sector reform, claiming that the Gambian security forces remain in a state of uncertainty.
“In my book, they are being disrespected because they are being viewed as untrustworthy or incompetent to the extent that we cannot entrust them with the security of the state. Can you imagine almost nine years of a peacekeeping mission in the Gambia, when this country is more peaceful than those countries from which the soldiers who are intended to keep the peace in the Gambia come from? Gambia is certainly more peaceful than Nigeria, certainly more peaceful than Ghana in my book, certainly more peaceful than Senegal in my book. Why must we have their security forces in our country, pretending to be keeping the peace,” Faal remarked.
Faal vowed that, if elected president in 2026, he would prioritize the Gambia Armed Forces, ensuring their role in protecting the nation’s security.
“I’ll have Gambian forces around me. Look, if Gambians would deem me worthy to elect me as their president. I will trust them enough with myself. I will not run away and cower and hide behind foreign forces. I will not do that. If Gambians think that I do not deserve to be in there, let them not put me there. And Gambians include members of the Gambian forces who are very loyal to their country. I do not think there is anyone of us who could claim higher loyalty to this country than members of the armed forces, because they are the ones who decided to wear the uniform and carry the gun for one sole purpose, that is to protect our country for which they are ready to die. How many of us can claim that, so I trust them. I love them, and I’d be happy to be their commander in chief, I’ll be happy to walk hand in hand with them to ensure the security of this country,” he said.