By Tabora Bojang
Main opposition United Democratic Party UDP leader Ousainu Darboe has said Solo Sandeng, the slain youth leader of his party tortured to death in 2016 after leading a protest for electoral reforms,was a hero who sacrificed his life in the struggle to end impunity in the country.
Speaking at an event marking the tenth anniversary of his murder, the UDP leader lamented that the same bad electoral laws that Sandeng gave his life for are still not removed from our system.
The indiscriminate use of attestation in Gambian elections and the “scandalous” increase of nomination fees for presidential candidates and party registrations directly contradicts the cause of Solo Sandeng who resisted injustice and sacrificed everything to ensure proper election reforms in The Gambia,” Darboe said.
The veteran politician added that the government’s promise for the repeal of the notorious Public Order Act and a new constitution that gives people the ultimate power and rights to ensure that they effectively control their government through their representatives in the National Assembly, are all not fulfilled.
He observed that the Elections Act was only passed by the National Assembly in 2025 ‘and it failed woefully to address the concerns of Solo and his colleagues who went out into the street that day among them, Fatou camara, Fatoumatta Jawara and Nogoi Njie.
“Instead of having these reforms, this government maintained attestations as a document that could qualify anybody to obtain a voter’s card. We all know how attestations are abused and indiscriminately given by village and district heads to ineligible people who are either non-Gambians or do not attain the age,” Darboe said.
He added that Solo’s act of selflessness has resonated with Gambians who are now ready to ensure there are proper electoral reforms.
He also used the occasion to pay tribute to other colleagues like Lang Marong, Modou Ngum, Falang Sonko, Bubacarr Gitteh, Lamin Jatta for their sacrifice.
