By Seedy Jobe
The National Campaign Manager of UNITE, MC Cham Jr., has rejected Yerro Mballow’s attempt to invalidate the August 8 coalition flagbearer selection, arguing that the former CMC chairman relinquished his authority when he resigned before the process was completed.
In a statement shared with Kerr Fatou on Wednesday, Cham said coalition processes depend on continuity, responsibility, and respect for collective decisions. He argued that Mballow could not resign from his position and later seek to overturn a decision reached after his departure.
“A referee who walks off the field cannot return after the final whistle and cancel the result. In the same way, Mballow cannot abandon the chairmanship, allow the stakeholders to complete their work, and then attempt to invalidate the outcome from outside the process,” Cham said.
According to Cham, the remaining coalition stakeholders continued the process following Mballow’s resignation and ultimately selected Talib Ahmed Bensouda as flagbearer. He maintained that their collective decision carries greater institutional weight than objections subsequently raised by a former chairman.
Cham also challenged allegations of vote-buying attributed to Mballow, saying no evidence had been presented to substantiate the claims.
He said no alleged payer or recipient had been identified, nor had any amount, date, witness, or documentation been provided linking a payment to a vote.
“Serious allegations require serious evidence,” Cham said, arguing that anonymous accounts, speculation, and public statements cannot substitute for proof.
Until such evidence is produced, he said, the allegations should be regarded as unsubstantiated and should not be used to discredit Bensouda’s selection.
Cham also questioned Mballow’s authority to present his assessment of the process as an official coalition report. He argued that after resigning as chairman, Mballow could not turn his personal conclusions into an institutional position without formal authorization from the coalition stakeholders.
Without such authorization, Cham said, any report or statement issued by Mballow represents his personal position and carries no official authority.
The UNITE campaign manager further raised questions about Mballow’s neutrality, noting that he entered the initial coalition discussions as a declared member of APP-Sobeyaa before becoming chairman of the CMC.
Cham acknowledged that Mballow’s political affiliation did not automatically disqualify him from chairing the process, but said it placed an obligation on him to explain how potential conflicts of interest were managed.
“A person questioning the neutrality of an entire process must be prepared to answer reasonable questions about his own neutrality,” Cham said.
He added that accountability must apply equally to everyone involved in the coalition process.
Cham maintained that the coalition process had moved forward following Mballow’s resignation and that the former chairman could not reclaim authority he had voluntarily surrendered.
He said that without formal backing from the coalition stakeholders, Mballow’s subsequent pronouncements should be regarded as personal views rather than an official coalition position.
Cham added that public or media attention could not substitute for evidence, transform an unofficial position into an institutional decision, or restore authority to someone who had already stepped down from the process.
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