Political parties have been accused of politicising the country’s coronavirus pandemic instead of rallying together to fight against the deadly virus.

“We feel that the state of emergency is being politicised. We believe failure to follow health guide lines is responsible for the surge in Covid-19 cases. A law should be respected by everyone or else it will be useless,” the Manding Network Association said.

The civic group, which was formed to tackle the issues of tribalism in The Gambia, said all political campaigns and meetings should be suspended amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

“No political party should be exempted from these regulations…no one is above the law. Covid-19 is deadly and must be treated as such without any reservations.

“We condemn all political parties that bend on holding political meetings during these trying times, it will be meaningless and useless for the rest of the population to follow government orders while political parties that are expected to lead by example are doing otherwise. 

“We urged all political parties to stop gathering people for whatever reason.” 

The group’s call comes amid a sharp rise in coronavirus cases and deaths in the country. 

Reporting by Adama Makasuba