Deadline passes for Jammeh to cede power
Diplomatic talks tried before intervention
DAKAR: Long-ruling Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh, who lost elections last month, had until midday yesterday to hand over power and agree to leave the country or face military action, regional bloc Ecowas said.
However, the deadline came and went with Mr Jammeh staying put.
Ecowas forces were waiting at press time for talks between Mr Jammeh and the Mauritanian and Guinean presidents to end before resuming their military operation.
West African troops entered The Gambia on Thursday to bolster its new President Adama Barrow but the military operation was suspended a few hours later, in favour of a final diplomatic effort to convince Mr Jammeh — who has refused to quit — to exit the country.
Final talks were to be led by Guinean president Alpha Conde in the Gambian capital Banjul, according to Ecowas chairman Marcel Alain de Souza.
Mr Conde first travelled to Mauritania where he met the country’s president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who led the previous round of negotiations on Wednesday with Mr Jammeh.
Mr De Souza said a total of 7,000 troops would be mobilised by Senegal and four other nations, a day after they first crossed into the tiny tourist-friendly country, whose army chief joined ordinary citizens
celebrating in the streets seven weeks after contested polls.
The United States earlier praised the West African intervention. “We understand that the purpose is to help stabilise a tense situation and to try to observe the will of the people in the Gambia,” State Department spokesman John Kirby said.
Mr Barrow was sworn in at The Gambia’s embassy in Dakar in neighbouring Senegal on Thursday after Mr Jammeh refused to step down despite international pressure following his December election loss.
Dressed all in white, 51-year-old Mr Barrow waved to a crowd of thousands of jubilant Gambians at an inauguration ending Mr Jammeh’s 22-year rule.
“This is a victory of the Gambian nation. Our flag will now fly high among those of the most democratic nations of the world,” he said, demanding loyalty from his armed forces.
Shortly after the ceremony, the UN Security Council unanimously backed efforts by Ecowas to force Mr Jammeh to hand over power (without formally authorising
military action).
As Mr Barrow was sworn in, celebrations erupted in Banjul, where tensions have run high over the crisis, especially since a declaration of emergency by Mr Jammeh on Tuesday.
Among the revellers was Gambian army chief Ousman Badjie, who had said he would not order his men to fight the African troops then poised to intervene.
“Freedom has come at last. Tyranny is buried and democracy restored,” said Mr Barrow supporter Lamin Sanyang, who had joined the crowds.
Further dispelling fears of a fight-back by factions loyal to Mr Jammeh, a minimal troop presence was visible near Banjul and soldiers did not stop the jubilant scenes.
But on the ground armed forces including “all means, land air and sea” forces crossed into The Gambia, a Senegalese army officer said, adding that Nigeria, Ghana, Togo and Mali were also involved.
A Senegalese army spokesman confirmed his country’s troops had crossed the border, after Nigerian jets earlier overflew The Gambia to help force out Mr Jammeh, whose mandate expired at midnight Wednesday.
Senegalese soldiers had entered “from everywhere”, said Col Abdoul Ndiaye.
Mr Barrow, an opposition coalition candidate, defeated Mr Jammeh, who had ruled the former British colony since seizing power in a 1994 coup, in a surprise election win on Dec 1.
He initially conceded victory but in a U-turn then refused to step down.
On Thursday night, calls of congratulations flooded in for the new president, including from the UN Secretary-General and Britain.
Mr Barrow, a real-estate agent turned politician, had flown into Senegal on Jan 15 to seek shelter after weeks of rising tension over Mr Jammeh’s stance.
Mr Jammeh had attempted to block Mr Barrow’s inauguration with a court ruling and this week declared a state of emergency.
Mr Jammeh’s former lawyer Edward Gomez, who was arguing cases on the president’s behalf as late as Monday, pleaded with him to step down on Thursday after himself fleeing to Senegal.
“My humble prayer to President Jammeh is to concede to defeat,” he told Senegal’s 2S channel. “Please, let peace continue to reign in The Gambia.”