Quit within 30 days, Gambian opposition exiles tells Yahya Jammeh
Yankuba Darboe, the CNTG's justice minister, in Paris on 10 October 2012
Daniel Finnan
By Daniel Finnan <http://www.english.rfi.fr/auteur/daniel-finnan>

An exiled Gambian opposition group has given President Yahya Jammeh 30 days
to give up power. In a Paris press conference on Wednesday, the National
Transitional Council of the Gambia (CNTG) said Jammeh must give up power to
make way for a political transition.

“The CNTG should now be recognised as the legitimate government of the
people of the Gambia,” CNTG member Yankuba Darboe told RFI.

The CNTG says it intends to lead the political transition and organise
elections as well as the drafting of a new constitution. But they did not
say what would happen to Jammeh should he ignore their ultimatum.

“Jammeh has never faced this kind of opposition before,” says Darboe, who
acts as "minister of justice" for the CNTG. “We are challenging Jammeh over
his most precious prize - the presidency of the Gambia."

The CNTG is modelled on the transitional councils set up in countries such
as Libya during the Arab Spring. But there is no armed struggle going on in
the Gambia.

Darboe believes they can do it another way. That’s why they are starting
their campaign for international recognition.

“If an armed struggle starts, the world will have already heard that it is
our moral duty and our legitimate right to end dictatorship in our
country,” he says.

The CNTG does not have clear support from Gambian opposition parties. When
asked about Gambia’s United Democratic Party and United Front party, Darboe
is evasive. He says opposition figures such as Ousainou Darboe or Hamat Bah
cannot publicly endorse the CNTG because of safety concerns. At the same
time, he adds, they have not opposed it.

Darboe, a lawyer working and living in the UK, says they have promises of
money and help with logistics but claims that they cannot disclose details
for the moment.

He is also evasive about support from the Gambia’s neighbour, Senegal. “We
can’t say whether we have support from the Senegalese government or not,”
he says.

A credible movement against Jammeh is only going to emerge from the
diaspora, according to Darboe. He says Gambians at home are fearful of
publicly recognising their group. But he believes that, if they return to
the country, “hundreds of thousands” of his compatriots will take to the
streets.

The formation of the CNTG was announced in Dakar on 13 September. It is led
by Sheikh Sidia Bayo and claims to have support from some members of the
Gambian armed forces.

Jammeh seized power in a 1994 coup. He recently drew international
criticism for reintroducing capital punishment. Nine prisoners were
executed before he announced a moratorium contingent on either an
increasing or decreasing rate of violent crime.


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