Fatoumatta Jallow-Tambajang, convener of the 2016 Coalition of seven political parties, has said the Coalition leaders will decide today if President Adama Barrow should serve his full five year term or step down at the end of his three year as was agreed in the coalition’s Memorandum of Understanding.

Jallow-Tambajang said a decision was not taken over the weekend when the first meeting was convened due to the absence of several Coalition members including Halifa Sallah of PDOIS, Ousainou Darboe of the UDP and Hamat Bah of the NRP.

President Adama Barrow, the leader of the seven parties Coalition, is not expected to attend the meeting. However, President Barrow has already made his position clear that he intends to serve the full five year and seek re-election at the end of his term in 2021.   

Nonetheless the Coalition leaders have agreed to meet and review the agreement that was signed in 2016. Jallow-Tambajang said they will make their position clear on Barrow’s mandate with the full backing of all the seven political leaders that were parties to the agreement.

“We will look into that today, we had wanted to table it as part of the agenda, it is in the agenda but we couldn’t discuss it because we don’t want to discuss anything in the absence of key leaders. 

“Their team members came but the key leaders were not there and if you decide, it will be undemocratic even though they have sent competent representatives.

“We would rather have them participate in the meeting so that we speak with one voice. And after the review of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), the process we are taking is to take it officially to His Excellency, our flag bearer, discuss it with him and then have a common stand, disseminate it to the media and to the rest of the country.

“However, it is important to note that the outcome of today’s meeting may bear little or no influence if President Barrow chose to extend his leadership.

“This is because The 1997 Constitution of The Gambia supersedes any other law or agreement of the land. And the same Constitution mandates the president to lead for 5 years.”

The 2016 Coalition MOU states that the flag bearer must be an independent candidate and if elected, should step down after three years. The agreement also states that he/she must not take part in the immediate presidential elections after serving three years as president.

However since the 2016 agreements there have been many falling out among the political parties that coalesced to defeat the former incumbent President Jammeh. There have been many sackings and rupture in the alliance.

President Barrow’s former political party, the UDP, have said they were no longer part of the Coalition after several senior party officials including their leader, Ousainou Darboe, were fired from the government.

PDOIS refused to join the Cabinet arguing that they had achieved their aim of regime change. Sources close to the Coalition said PDOIS did not send a representative to the meeting because the party was not formally invited.