Barrow says inauguration will go ahead on ‘Gambian soil’

Gambia’s Jammeh clings on as tourists flee, Vice President resigns

Banjul, Gambia | AFP |

Gambian President Yahya Jammeh looked determined to cling to power on Wednesday as his mandate came to an end, prompting neighbouring Senegal asking the UN to back regional actions against him.

Jammeh has announced a state of emergency which he said was necessary due to interference of foreign powers in the West African country’s December 1 election, which the president of 22 years lost to opponent Adama Barrow.

Barrow, who is currently sheltering in Senegal, maintains his inauguration will go ahead on Thursday on Gambian soil, putting the country on a collision course.

My dearest Gambians — the presidency of Yahya Jammeh is officially over. The new era of Gambia is here at last. #NewGambia

— Adama Barrow (@adama_barrow) January 18, 2017

Senegal on Wednesday presented a draft resolution to the UN Security Council seeking support for west African efforts to press Jammeh to step down, diplomats said in New York.

But the text does not explicitly seek council authorisation to deploy troops to The Gambia, they added.

Jammeh’s declaration immediately triggered travel advisory warnings by Britain and the Netherlands, with around 1,000 British tourists expected to leave on special flights on Wednesday alone.

The 15-nation Economic Community Of West African States (ECOWAS) has repeatedly urged Jammeh to respect the outcome of the vote and step aside, a call backed unanimously by the international community.

The exact location of the inauguration was “in the hands of ECOWAS,” said James Gomez, the inauguration’s head organiser who said he had spoken with Barrow twice on Tuesday.

Gomez said that plans for the transfer of power in a huge stadium outside the capital Banjul were now cancelled, but added “there will be a big celebration” despite the state of emergency.

A source at Nigeria’s military HQ told AFP a deployment to Senegal, whose territory surrounds The Gambia, would happen “very soon”, ramping up expectations of a possible military intervention.

Under the Gambian constitution a state of emergency lasts up to 90 days if the national assembly confirms it — which the legislature did late Tuesday.

The country’s vice-president Isatou Njie-Saidy resigned Wednesday, family sources said, along with environment minister Pa Ousman Jarju, the latest in a mass string of cabinet members deserting Jammeh’s government.

#BREAKING: #Gambia‘s Vice President #Isatou Njie-Saidy resigns from Yahya #Jammeh‘s Cabinet few hours before mandate ends tonight pic.twitter.com/ri2cMGAIii

— Alhagie Jobe (@freejobe39) January 18, 2017

#Gambia‘s airport full of western tourists returning home as country on brink of war amidst political impasse pic.twitter.com/3vYU2ugbkA

— Alhagie Jobe (@freejobe39) January 18, 2017

– Tourist disappointment –

Tourists were streaming out of the country, leaving the small airport near Banjul struggling to handle extra flights.

Brian and Yvonne Souch, a couple from Witney in southern England, told AFP they were unaware of the potential risk of flying to the country 10 days ago and felt tour company Thomas Cook should have kept them better informed.

“We didn’t know anything until we came down for breakfast,” Brian Souch said, sitting in shorts and sleeveless T-shirt in the lobby of a hotel in the Kololi tourist strip as he awaited a bus to the airport.

Thomas Cook said in a statement Wednesday a programme of additional flights into Banjul airport would bring home the 1,000 package holidaymakers it has in The Gambia, followed by up 2,500 more at the “earliest possible flight availability”.

Holidaymakers were told that Thomas Cook flights would stop completely in a few days time, leaving them at risk of being stranded.

The Dutch travel firm TUI Nederland told AFP Tuesday it would repatriate “about 800” clients.

Some tourists were unfazed by the news as the state of emergency, however, as their countries have not issued travel alerts.

“We have over two weeks left and we are staying,” said Mariann Lundvall, who flew into Banjul to escape Finland’s freezing winter.

“If the Finnish government decides we go, then we go,” she added, but with a pained face added “the climate in Helsinki… it is so cold now!”

The panic caused by the state of emergency could prove devastating for the country’s economy, which experts say relies on tourism for up to 20 percent of the economy.

– Stockpiling –

Gambians were taking precautions and stocking up on food and supplies in the few shops that remained open in districts near the capital, with roads quiet and street hawkers notably absent.

A source told AFP that patients at Banjul’s Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital, which sits opposite Jammeh’s seat of power, were removed for security reasons. Only those in intensive care remained.

Fatou Sarr, a resident of the fishing community of Old Jeshwang, said: “Only a few shops had bread this morning and they ran out of stock very early. If this stalemate drags on for a week or two, the country will run out.”

Citizens continue to pack their bags and stream out of Gambia — a small, narrow enclave of Senegal except for its coast — by road and ferry heading for Senegal, Guinea-Bissau and Guinea, taking as many possessions as they could carry.

“My two children and I are staying with my aunt. We don’t know what will happen tomorrow,” said a 50-year-old woman who recently took shelter in Senegal, adding that she hoped to return home soon.