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| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Momodou |
Posted - 09 Jul 2026 : 00:36:02
The truth, nothing but the truth
By Baba Galleh Jallow
To all intents and purposes, it is becoming a sad historical reality that President Adama Brrow will indeed seek a third term in office. It seems he will continue to ignore the warnings of well-meaning critics of the harmful idea and embrace the enticing “why not” whisperings of his mind. It seems he will continue listening to those who loudly insist that he has all the right to run for a third term and that those who oppose this idea should seek redress at the national assembly. He will continue entertaining the easy idea that yes, the 1997 constitution permits him to run and so, run he must! So help him power!
Those who insist that President Barrow can and should run because the constitution permits him metaphorically erase the historical context of transitional Gambia under Barrow and replace it with a large image of the 1997 constitution, the same constitution under which the lives, rights and dignities of Gambians were ravaged and trampled upon by the ousted dictatorship. In particular, they ignore the glaring reality that Sir Dawda Jawara’s overstaying in power is what gave us Yahya Jammeh and that Jammeh’s overstaying in power fueled the bitter struggle against his despotism, galvanized a coalition of political forces around Adama Barrow to kick Yahya out, inspired #GambiaHasDecided, and culminated in a transitional justice process that birthed the Never Again spirit and continues to animate the aspirations of a nation for a better, brighter future, a future in which presidents may not become sit-tight dictators who trample upon the lives, dignities and rights of the Gambian people.
Defenders of Adama Barrow’s constitutional right to seek a third term thus miss the point of the argument against his doing so. No one is saying he has no constitutional right to seek a third term. What we are saying is that he has no right to hijack the hopes and historically grounded desires of the Gambian people for presidential term limits. As early as 1994, the Gambian people revealed to the National Consultative Committee that they wanted term limits for the presidency. The recommendation was accepted by Jammeh but surreptitiously excised from the draft 1997 constitution. Term limits were a major rallying cry and a campaign promise by candidate Barrow in 2016, and it was one of his pet topics of reference during the early years of his presidency. He is on record solemnly promising that he would only serve for three years, that he was a businessman, and not a politician; and that he would go back to his business after three years. And he had assured a Senegalese journalist that he would never “wakh wakhet” (break his promise). Sadly, when journalist Fatou Touray of Kerr Fatou reminded him of these solemn promises to the Gambian people, Barrow replied, “If you are campaigning you can say all sorts of things.”
The truth is that Adama Barrow deliberately broke his promise simply because the opportunity readily presented itself, and because, we are sorry to say, and with all due respect, he is not a man of his words or a servant of his cultural and religious beliefs, both of which frown upon people who willingly break their solemn promises. It doesn’t matter how powerful or powerless you feel, you simply can’t deliberately break your promises, especially to an entire nation, and especially concerning a matter of such grave national significance for the long-term peace and security of the nation. Those who oppose Barriow’s third term bid are doing so because the promise he is breaking is no ordinary promise. It is a promise that has lingered in the hearts of Gambians for more than three decades, a promise that holds the key to our nation’s future peace and stability!
When former Senegalese president Macky Sall declared that he was no longer seeking a third term in office, President Barrow posted the following glowing commendation on his Facebook page: “I commend President Macky Sall for his decision not to run for office for a third term. It is a courageous move and will strengthen democracy in Senegal, the sub-region and Africa at large.” The post is dated July 4, 2023. In a televised interview around the same time. President Barrow waxed lyrical about his great love for term limits: “I’m a big fan of term limits,” he declared. “Yeah, big time. I’m a number one fan of term limits. Because it’s good for our institutions. Most presidents overstay in power. Sometimes when you overstay, sometimes you go out of ideas. You don’t have anything again to move things forward. I don’t want that to happen in this country. We don’t want people to overstay in power. We want you to come and do your quota and go. So I’m a big fan of term limits.” Indeed, deciding not to run for a third term is still a courageous move, one, sadly, that Barrow seems not courageous enough to make. Not seeking a third term will still strengthen democracy in Senegal, the sub-region and Africa at large. And yes, term limits are still good for our institutions; and presidents who overstay in power still go out of ideas to move the country forward. And yes, we still don’t want people to overstay in power! So why is the same Barrow now insisting on overstaying in power?
Those who insist that Barrow can seek a third term also ignore the fact that parts of our otherwise successful transitional justice process are in coma simply because Citizen Barrow wants to stay indefinitely on in power. The 2020 draft constitution suffered a stillbirth largely because of controversy over term limits. The Barrow government’s professed political will to implement transitional justice recommendations does not include the will to make sure that no single president can ever again hold the nation hostage by entrenching himself in power, even if it means ignoring the deepest aspirations of the Gambian people and compromising the long-term peace and security of this country. Unlike the fabled six blind men, we cannot afford to insist that the legs of the big elephant in the room are brick pillars and that its large sides are in fact the walls of a large building resting upon the pillars!
We are opposed to President Barrow’s third term bid because we are acutely concerned that it could jeopardize the long-term peace, stability and security of this country. Reality is no respecter of persons, or the whims and caprices of persons. The reality is that Gambians sincerely crave term limits in their national constitution and that overstaying in power could potentially cause political instability and insecurity in this country. This is a hard truth to swallow, but it is the truth, and nothing but the truth. Already, there are ominous proclamations from some of Barrow’s senior advisers that they want him to seek as many as ten terms. A prominent adviser recently declared that Barrow will not hand over to anyone and that, in fact, the presidency will become an inheritance! Certainly, the 1997 constitution does not say this country may become a family fiefdom, to be passed from father to son! And who says all Gambians will let that happen without a fight!
We want to be on record as urging President Barrow, even at this rather late stage, not to seek a third term in office. A victory in the December 2026 elections can only be an illusory victory for him, a victory that will be a stain on his legacy, a victory built upon broken promises and the squashed hopes and aspirations of the Gambian people for long term peace and stability. He may well lose the December elections, in which case Gambians will continue calling for term limits when his successor takes office. #NeverAgain! |
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