
By Omar Bah
The United Democratic Party (UDP) has condemned the Senegalo-Gambia Permanent Secretariat (PSSG) for what it views as interference in the controversy surrounding youth influencer Bob Keita’s claims of a heated phone exchange with President Adama Barrow.
The controversy began when Keita, publicly recounted a ‘contentious’ phone call with President Barrow in which Barrow allegedly criticised the then opposition leader and current Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko. Keita further alleged that the president threatened him over his opposition to his third-term bid.
Though President Barrow never commented on the issue, Keita’s claims were strongly refuted by Yankuba Darboe, Commissioner General of the Gambia Revenue Authority and Keita’s in-law, who stated that the conversation was initiated by him to reconcile Keita and Barrow.
Darboe denied any insults or threats were made, nor was there any mention of Ousmane Sonko. The GRA boss affirmed that Barrow accepted Keita’s apology and graciously forgave him. Darboe described Keita’s version as a deliberate distortion of the truth.
Following the controversy, the PSSG issued a statement and without specifically referring to the matter, denounced what it viewed as inflammatory social media comments that could sow discord between The Gambia and Senegal, and urged for caution and responsibility to preserve the unity and cooperative spirit between the two nations.
The Secretariat also emphasised the importance of constructive dialogue and diplomatic channels to avoid escalating misunderstandings.
Unhappy with the PSSG’s involvement, Lamin Manneh, the UDP Deputy Secretary for External Affairs wrote to the body to express the party’s disappointment over its involvement in the matter.
In response, the deputy executive secretary of the secretariat, Dr Cherno Omar Barry while acknowledging receipt of the UDP protest letter, said: “While the PSSG respects the freedom of political expression and the right of all citizens and organisations to voice their concerns, we wish to clarify that we do not customarily respond to correspondence from political parties, and have decided therefore not to issue an official response to this letter.”
Dissatisfied by the PSSG’s response, the UDP issued a statement shared with The Standard which reads: “We advised that the PSSG restrict its activities to the high-level political, economic and diplomatic interactions between the two countries.”
The UDP said since its inception, the Senegalo-Gambian Permanent Secretariat has, for the most part, been staffed by highly competent and seasoned diplomats, who were hardly known outside the top official circles of The Gambia and Senegal because of the discretion they observed.
“These included Ambassadors Pierre Diouf, Ebrima (Ebou) Manneh and the current vice-president of The Gambia, Muhammed Jallow, to name but a few. The hallmark of those top-notch diplomats was quiet and behind-the-scenes efficiency. They accomplished so much without fanfare. They charted the course for smooth Senegalo-Gambian relations, identified potential challenges even before they surfaced and made recommendations thereon to the two presidents, to whom they had direct access.”
The UDP added: “The same unfettered access is still available to those currently leading the PSSG since the core mandate of the latter has not changed since inception. Therefore, we believe that the PSSG should not insert itself into a trivial fallout between an NPP political operative and his former boss, Adama Barrow. That conflict is a lowly intra-NPP squabble in which the PSSG should not be involved, let alone take side for one of the parties involved in this baseline local politicking.”
The UDP described the intervention of the PSSG as uncalled for, saying it could only stain the unblemished reputation and standing of such a prestigious interstate institution.
“The fact that the PSSG was designed and instituted by two political giants of Senegambia, namely, Presidents Leopold Sedar Senghore and Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara, both of blessed memory, to reflect on, advise, implement and follow-up on high-level politico-economic and security matters between the two sister countries, the institution should not be trivialised. Its respectability and standing must be safeguarded at all times and that obligation befalls those who head the institution,” the UDP said.
It said the social media post of the young man in question, (Bob Keita), would probably have gone unnoticed had it not been echoed by the prestigious PSSG.