Preparations for the 18th edition of the July 22 are in high gears, and signs have emerged that the military-junta-turned-civilian government will traditionally celebrate the day in style.

But, this is to the outrage of President Yahya Jammeh’s main challenger, Ousainou Darboe, who described the APRC’s pumping of millions of dalasi into the celebrations as a misplaced priority.

“The new pavilion under construction at the entrance of Banjul costs lots of money, while the ferry services are in a poor state,” Darboe pointed out.

The revered lawyer cum political figurehead was addressing his party’s second mass political rally in Serekunda after the Nov.24 presidential elections, in which he lost, for the fourth time, to President Jammeh.

“The APRC government is no more thinking about positively changing the lives of the people, but spending money lavishly and keeping the masses in poverty,” Darboe added.

He alleged the government of cheating Gambians as President Jammeh uses the Japan-donated rice as his personal property, and distributes it to people every Fridays at the State House.

“It is so disheartening to see people forming queues at the July 22nd Square to receive  food items meant for them as a gift from the president.”

The UDP leader lamented the skyrocketing basic commodities under the APRC regime, noting that a bag of rice has gone beyond the reach of ordinary Gambians.

Darboe continued: “Agriculture has died a natural death during his [Jammeh] tenure as minister of Agriculture.

“He [Jammeh] sacked ministers calling them incompetent and inefficient, but fails to resign his post as the agriculture minister, despite failing miserably.”

On the tax commission that accused him of owing taxes to the state, Darboe said the exercise was a witch-hunt.  

“If Gamcel can owe tax over seven million dalasi, then, I wonder where all its profit has  gone? The Director General can explain to the Gambian people.”

For him, the country’s democracy is a sham and the elections are fraudulent as civil servants, soldiers, police and all other security agents rally behind and campaigned for the ruling APRC party, even when they are supposed to be neutral.

He heaped the blame for the opposition failure in the presidential elections on what he calls Independent Electoral Commission’s unfairness.

“After the November 24, 2011 presidential elections, when all irregularities were discovered by the opposition parties, we took bold actions against the IEC to amend some abnormalities, so that they would not recur in the National Assembly elections.

“But to the surprise of everyone, the IEC refused the calls of the  members of the opposition parties, and gave empty excuses that they could not reschedule the election date due to the short notice given to them,” he explained. 

Though pundits would say that chances for the opposition are getting slimmer, Darboe however hold a different opinion.

“If Senegal can do it, The  Gambia can do it as well,” he said, but was quick to add that Gambian people should take charge of their own destiny and not allow anyone to mislead them.

“The UDP party has been calling on the people to know the kind of people to elect as leaders and now hell has befallen all of us,” he added, decrying APRC’s iron-fist rule.