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| Alh. Mustapha Carayol |
In preparation for what he is hoping to be a smooth
re-election to his fifth 5-year term as president, Yaya Jammeh, the Gambian
brutal and prolific dictator is on the verge of regularizing the illegal
occupation of the Chairmanship of the so-called Independent Electoral
Commission (IEC) by introducing a Bill to amend the Constitution for the umpteenth
time in two decades.
According to Hon. Samba Jallow of the opposition National Reconciliation
Party who was speaking to an online dissident radio station based in the United
States, the purpose of the move is to scuttle the loud and embarrassing
criticism of the regime for brazenly contravening the constitutional provisions
governing the terms of office of members of the IEC.
Section 42 of the Constitution is being amended in
sub-section (4) by substituting the phrase “one further term” for the words “further
terms of office” making it possible for the current Chairman Mustapha Carayol
who had already served more than one further term to continue serving indefinitely.
In short, by virtue of the proposed amendment, the IEC Chairman Carayol would
have secured a lifetime appointment.
The proposed amendment is not limited to the chairman but it
is applicable to all members of the Commission to be able to serve more. According
to the regime, the reason for the amendment is to allow members to serve indefinitely
and to ensure that experienced members of the Commission are maintained to lend
their expertise to the operations of the Commission as long as they are able to
do so.
Of course we know the reasons advanced are baseless. The real reason for allowing all members to
serve indefinitely is to ensure that members found to be dancing to the tune of
the dictator to steal the elections for Jammeh can be sure of guaranteed lifetime
tenure as member of the IEC.
