UDP leader Ousainou Darboe has fired a brutal response at critics who claim he cannot win elections and should step aside for younger leaders.

Addressing dozens of NPP and APRC cross-carpeters who recently joined UDP, Darboe hailed their move as proof that doubters were wrong.

The former vice president has contested elections since 1996, except in 2016 when he was jailed by former President Jammeh.

Recently, some party members urged Darboe to step aside.He defied them, contested the flagbearer race, and emerged victorious, though several senior officials resigned afterward.

He challenged critics still pressing him to quit, insisting he has never lost a fair election.

“They say the party cannot lead under my leadership, but those claims are false. Since 1996, all elections I contested were rigged. I have never lost a transparent election,” Darboe said.

On his age, the 75-year-old defended his presidential bid: “They say I am old, but the older you get, the sharper your brain becomes.”

He also slammed critics for cowardice under Jammeh, recalling arrests, torture, and deaths of those who stayed to fight dictatorship.

“If I had not stood against Jammeh’s dictatorship, this country would have been doomed. Many of those criticising me now fled the country back then,” he added.

By Adama Makasuba