West African leaders urge Gambian president to step down

Some West African leaders are visiting Gambia today to try to dissuade President Yahya Jammeh from rejecting the country’s election results. Liberia’s President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the current chair of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), leads the delegation that includes Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, Sierra Leone leader Ernest Bai Koroma, and the outgoing president of Ghana, John Mahama.

“We will be asking President Jammeh to respect his country’s Constitution and to maintain the inviolability of the electoral process,” Buhari posted on Twitter.

Analysts and international groups have said Jammeh’s move could have dangerous effects on Gambia if a solution is not reached soon. The leaders will first meet with Jammeh in the presidential office before meeting with President-elect Adama Barrow.

Jammeh initially conceded defeat after the Dec. 1 election results showed Barrow had won. But the president last week said he rejected the results on grounds of some irregularities and called for a reelection.

Jammeh’s electoral defeat would put an end to his 22-year rule that faced accusations of corruption and human rights abuses. The ruling party has said it will file a petition against the election’s results in the Supreme Court, which has been dormant for more than a year and lacks sufficient judges to function. The party can legally challenge the election results up to 10 days after the vote.

Gambia’s electoral commission and bar association have both denounced Jammeh’s move as unconstitutional. A coalition of eight opposition parties also rejected Jammeh’s statement. The coalition said the ruling party’s petition shows it has “no respect or regard for the Gambian people, bent on ignoring their aspirations, and on undermining the transition process.”

Alex Vines, head of the Africa Program at U.K.-based think tank Chatham House, said Jammeh’s rejection of the election is rooted in fear. Some members of Barrow’s team told The Guardian in an interview they would seek to prosecute Jammeh within a year, Vines said. Jammeh also stands isolated since regional and international groups have called on him to accept the result. The president’s declaration has left the country in a state of uncertainty and tension, Vines said.

“Much of the military seems to have shifted back to support Jammeh, and things could get much worse—hence the need for effective mediation now,” he said. Gambia’s security forces today took control of the electoral commission’s headquarters. The commission’s chairman, Alieu Momar Njar, said security forces barred the staff from entering the building.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power described the move as a “very dangerous moment” because some military officials have already sided with Jammeh. The African Union called Jammeh’s rejection null and void, and the UN asked the ruling party to abide by the electoral process.

Vines said a short-term peaceful compromise could be reached if Jammeh conceded defeat and the opposition agreed not to proactively pursue the president.