By Lamin Sillah
With profound respect and unwavering love for our homeland, I reflect on President Adama Barrow’s recent pledge to illuminate 90% of Gambian homes by the end of 2025. This promise shines with hope yet invites us to look beyond its brightness and consider the shadows of timing, governance, and our people’s lived realities.
The question is not solely why this pledge is made but why it comes now—so close to election season—after years when such progress could and should have been steadily cultivated. The pattern is familiar across nations, where development is parcelled like breadcrumbs, reserved to sway votes rather than empower lives. Was this an unintentional lapse or a calculated choice? Only time and courage will reveal the truth.
Meanwhile, many Gambians face a harsher reality. Women have marched with empty buckets and beaten their drums to cry out for clean water, a fundamental gift too long denied. Moreover, The Gambia’s perennial vulnerabilities—seasonal floods challenging infrastructure, recurrent power outages disrupting essential services, and the relentless burden of diseases such as malaria—create cascading strains on healthcare, security, and correctional facilities. Darkness, in particular, is a veil behind which crime thrives; thieves and assailants find cover when night falls early or when storms knock out power, emboldening violence that too often turns lethal.
The absence of reliable lighting cripples community policing, leaving families exposed to harm in their own homes and forcing law enforcement to stretch already limited resources. How can we celebrate commitments to illuminate homes when such fundamental pillars of safety, health, and dignity remain precarious?
The energy sector itself, represented by NAWEC, embodies this contradiction. Roughly 475,000 households yearn for reliable power, yet chronic underperformance, opaque contracts, and costly reliance on foreign electricity from Senegal—whose own grid falters—have left the nation dimmed and burdened. Was the procurement process open and competitive? Are Gambian innovators empowered or sidelined by foreign influence and misplaced priorities?
Beyond the immediate concerns of energy provision lies a deeper challenge. More troubling still is the infiltration of our security apparatus by foreign actors, with breaches reaching into our highest institutions—even the presidential residence. The petty theft of condiments nearby symbolises a more profound vulnerability: if onions and oil can be easily stolen, what of our secrets, sovereignty, and safety?
Moreover, transparency surrounding the funding and execution of such landmark projects is not a mere procedural formality but a sacred obligation owed to the Gambian people. The public deserves rightful access to comprehensive risk assessments, mitigation strategies, and financial audits related to these initiatives, within the bounds of legal and ethical frameworks. Without such openness, the very foundation of trust crumbles.
Take the Gambia National Stadium as a case in point: approximately D283 million was allocated for its renovation, yet years after its inauguration, it remains unfit to host international matches. Such considerable expenditures, representing a significant portion of our national development funds, demand the utmost scrutiny. The absence of thorough risk assessments and independent audits obscures the ultimate disposition of these funds, breeding suspicion, cynicism, and public disenchantment.
Similarly, the ferry service—vital for national cohesion and economic flow—has been marked by concerns over procurement integrity and operational safety. The government’s plan to acquire a new ferry for an estimated US$13 million has sparked questions regarding transparency and competitive tendering. The safety risks of passengers, vehicles, and livestock require rigorous professional oversight.
Crucially, these projects raise pressing questions of local engagement and sustainable capacity building. Are Gambian youths being trained and empowered to operate, maintain, and manage these infrastructures? Is there a clear, strategic framework for recruiting and equipping nationals to ensure that skills and knowledge remain within our borders, nurturing enduring sovereignty and economic independence?
Our nation’s progress depends on a resolute commitment to transparency, meritocracy, and dismantling nepotistic networks that undermine collective advancement. Absent a robust strategy for local empowerment, we risk building monuments that serve transient interests while failing to foster the human capital essential for long-term national resilience.
These considerations transcend technicalities; they strike at the heart of governance, dignity, and sovereignty. Without an uncompromising commitment to ethical management and dismantling entrenched nepotism and collusion, projects benefiting private enclaves rather than the common good will persist.
The fundamental questions remain: How will this project distinguish itself from past failures? Who will be held accountable? And what safeguards will ensure that transparency leads to tangible, equitable progress for all Gambians?
Mr Suwareh, your voice shapes the conscience of our nation. I urge you to lead a dialogue that demands these questions be answered openly and fosters leadership that transcends politics to serve every Gambian heart.
To President Barrow and the custodians of our future, I say:
Our ancestors carved this land with courage and wisdom. The mantle you bear is sacred—not only to lead but to serve with humility, integrity, and vision. Your legacy is not the flicker of fleeting promises but the enduring flame of justice, transparency, and empowerment. Invest in transparent energy reforms, root out corruption, fortify security, and foster genuine inclusion. Embrace a vision that lifts The Gambia beyond electoral cycles to the summit of sovereignty and prosperity.
This is a moment for courage to unite all Gambians under a banner of truth and renewal. The path ahead requires unwavering dedication to sovereignty, transparency, and justice. In service of this higher calling, the work will proceed with steadfast resolve and clarity, for our beloved nation’s enduring dignity and prosperity.
With profound hope, respect, and faith in our shared future.
The author is a Security Risk Management Consultant, Protection Group International/Protection Vessel International Alumni Class 2014.
