By Omar Bah
Public trust in key Gambian institutions including the Office of the President OP, is weakening while perceptions of corruption are worsening, a new Afrobarometer survey shows.
Since 2018, trust in the office of the President, Parliament, the judiciary, and other public institutions has steadily declined. According to the Afrobarometer, over the same timeframe, public perceptions of corruption within these institutions have increased.
“Majorities of citizens report rising overall corruption levels in the country, fear retaliation if they report corruption to authorities, and express dissatisfaction with the government’s ability to tackle the issue effectively,” the report added.
According to the report, among key institutions, majorities of Gambians say they trust religious leaders (80%), the army (70%), traditional leaders (61%), and the police (55%) “somewhat” or “a lot”. “Popular trust in most key institutions and officials has declined since 2018, with the exception of the army and opposition political parties.”
It added that about half (49%) of Gambians perceive widespread corruption within the Presidency,
while more than four in 10 respondents suspect “most” or “all” to be corrupt among members of Parliament (46%), the police (43%), and judges and magistrates (43%).
“Eight in 10 Gambians (81%) say the level of corruption in the country increased
“somewhat” or “a lot” during the past year, more than twice the proportion recorded in 2018 (32%). Fewer than half (40%) of citizens believe that people can report corruption without fear of retaliation, a decline of 18 percentage points since 2018,” it added.
The report added that most Gambians (86%) say the government is not doing a good job of fighting
corruption, a 49-percentage-point increase compared to 2018.
Public trust in Gambian institutions is weakening due to several factors including corruption and poor governance which are major issues, with public officials often perceived as prioritising personal gains over public interest.
