By Omar Bah
Professor Yero Mballow, the chairperson of the Coalition Taskforce Mediation Committee (CTMC) yesterday confirmed to The Standard that a delegation from the committee will meet the United Democratic Party (UDP) leadership today following the party’s abrupt decision to leave the talks on Saturday.
The UDP pulled out of the negotiations, citing disagreements over the trajectory of the coalition talks and specifically on how the alliance should choose its presidential candidate.
Sources at the talks said UDP delegates Lare Sesay and Lamin Manneh declared that the party’s position was no longer aligned with that of the other parties involved in the talks. Manneh was quoted as saying that the decision to quit the talks was taken by the UDP leadership.
Contacted by The Standard yesterday, Manneh disclosed that the party is expected to discuss the issue today after which he would be able to provide more details.
“We were just messengers delegated to represent the party at the talks,” he clarified said.
Mballow confirmed to The Standard that the UDP representatives at the talks asked to be given time to consult with the party leadership to decide whether they should continue with the talks.
“So we have agreed to meet the party leadership tomorrow [today] to try to convince them to return to the talks as soon as possible,” he said.
Mballow said the delegation will comprise former vice president Fatoumatta Jallow-Tambajang, himself and Dr Jaye Ceesay-Krubally, the chairperson of the APeX Initiative Coalition Building Project.
As The Gambia’s biggest opposition party, the UDP had gone into the talks maintaining its position that it should provide the coalition candidate to challenge Barrow in the December election.
However, several other opposition parties at the talks insisted that the flag-bearer should be chosen in a candidate-led, instead of a party-led, process.
When contacted for comments, the UDP spokesperson Saikou Camara said he could not comment on the matter as he had not received any official information on the issue.
The Gambia will go to the poll to elect a president on 5th December 2026 with incumbent Adama Barrow seeking a third term.
President Barrow, 61, had won two presidential votes including in 2016 when at the head of an opposition coalition he defeated President Yahya Jammeh.
