Only Three Parties Sign the ‘Alliance for Change 2021’ Coalition MoU, GFA NUP Absent

Only three political parties involved in the discussions to form the “Alliance for Change 2021” turned up Wednesday to sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) the Citizens’ Alliance hinted about in its last press release.

Party leaders of the Citizens’ Alliance (CA), the Gambia For All (GFA), All People’s Party (APP), National Unity Party (NUP), Gambia Moral Congress (GMC),
were initially set to formalize in public the framework on which a flag-bearer for the December 4th presidential election would be selected, after a protracted struggle to keep their discussions confidential.

It appears, however, that only Dr. Biram Jagne of All People’s Party (APP), Dr. Ismaila Ceesay of the Citizens’ Alliance (CA), and Mai Ahmed Fatty of The Gambia Moral Congress (GMC) have turned up and signed the agreement.

For the moment, there is no explanation as regards the absence of the leaders of the Gambia For All (GFA) and the National Unity Party (NUP) to the agreement’s signing.

As the clock on nominations for the official presidential candidates continues ticking in the corridors of the five-party discussion, there is still optimism that by Wednesday evening, all five party leaders would have signed the opposition MoU, setting in motion the “Alliance for Change 2021.”

Should the five finally sign the MoU, a consensus on a flag bearer will be prioritized. And should the latter fail, parties will vote by delegates who would come up to contest for the “Alliance for Change 2021.”