At a political rally in the Upper River Region (URR) last week, the president, Mr Adama Barrow said that he may go unopposed in the 2021 presidential election if he is able to achieve all the objectives of the National Development Plan.
Many citizens are talking about this statement to an extent that some people are arguing about its possibility or not. One wonders whether it is genuinely a question of not knowing; or, some people are simply ignoring the facts.
For one, it is absolutely impossible for a sitting president to complete his work no matter how many terms (or years) one may have in office. The work of a government is never complete. One cannot complete the work in government.
Secondly, even if a president were able to bring unprecedented development in a country, it doesn’t mean that he or she will be loved by everyone.
That is simply not possible. The intention of the people in a country can be the same, but their opinions on how to fulfil it can never be the same. Thus, there will always be people who do not agree with what one does.
Coming to realpolitik, it is well-known in the current state of The Gambia that this government, or the next one for that matter, cannot complete the work to be done. Take for instance the issue of unemployment, who can solve this problem in a short term?
Citizens must endeavor to gain knowledge and understand what politics is really about.
