By Tabora Bojang
Presidential aspirant and leader of the APP-Sobeyaa alliance, Essa Faal has used his Independence anniversary speech to accuse President Adama Barrow of overseeing an underperforming economy that relies on transactional arrangements instead of holistic macroeconomic policies.
Faal said those bad policies have now resulted in the mortgaging of the most significant money making assets of the country to foreign entities.
“We must recognise that the economic crisis we face is not solely a consequence of global challenges but a direct result of poor leadership and reckless fiscal policies/
After 60 years of independence the country is still grappling with the harsh realities of a ‘sinking ship’ and Gambians cannot endure another five years of ‘hardship, ineptitude, corruption, waste and neglect,’’ Faal said,
According to him, the grim realities of high and unaffordable cost of living, unsafe and insecure environment in which armed robberies, murders, burglaries, drug trafficking and other serious and violent crimes are daily occurrences, are enough for Gambians to take a stand for change of government.
“This undesirable state of affairs does not merit celebration; rather, it calls into question who we are and what we want for our people, ourselves and our posterity, ’he said.
Faal further accused the Barrow administration of consistently prioritising lavish spending over genuine and meaningful progress.
He said this is evidenced by the alleged decision to allocate a staggering D100 million to a useless independence celebrations, D61 million on ‘Meet the People’s tour’ and over a D1billion on unnecessary vehicles not just for high-ranking officers, friends and party supporters.
