Banjul – Former Gambian dictator Yahya Jammeh’s political party has announced a merger with the ruling party, casting doubts on efforts to hold the ex-leader accountable for alleged rights abuses.
The move comes ahead of a presidential poll on December 4 in the tiny west African state.
It also comes before the publication of the findings of an inquiry into Jammeh-era abuses this month.
On Saturday evening, the secretary general of Jammeh’s APRC party announced that it would run on a joint slate with President Adama Barrow’s National People’s Party.
“Our objective is for former president Jammeh to return to this country peacefully and in dignity,” secretary-general Fabakary Tombong Jatta told a press conference in the capital Banjul.
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Jatta did not offer further details about the conditions of the agreement with Barrow’s party.
Gambian human rights groups and victims’ associations have characterised the merger as a betrayal, according to local media reports, with questions arising over the government’s willingness to hold Jammeh accountable.
Jammeh seized power in 1994 as part of a bloodless military coup.
He then ruled with an iron fist until January 2017, when he fled to Equatorial Guinea after losing presidential elections to a relative unknown, Adama Barrow.
The Gambia’s government subsequently established a Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) to investigate the litany of abuses allegedly committed under his 22-year rule.
The panel heard chilling testimony about state-sanctioned torture, death squads, rape and witch hunts.
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The TRRC is due to hand a report on its findings to President Barrow later this month.
While the truth commission has no power to convict, its report is highly anticipated by rights groups to see whether it will recommend pursuing criminal charges against Jammeh.
Supporters of the 56-year-old ex-dictator want him to return from exile.
But many in the poor nation of two million people have also called for him to be returned home for prosecution.
Barrow’s party has not yet issued a statement about the merger.
TRRC chief prosecutor Essa Faal announced a presidential bid late last month.
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Picture: Getty Images
Source: AFP
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