Gambian authorities have refused the European Union access to observe the presidential election set for December 1, according to an official of the EU Delegation in Banjul.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed the EU mission that it was not accepted to observe the election, the EU Delegation’s political and press officer, Enya Braun, said on Saturday.
According to her, the EU was ready to deploy a small team to provide technical assessment of the poll. At the end of the election, the technical team would make a report on the assessment.
Meanwhile, a Gambian political analyst, Mbemba Camara, has said that without the EU monitoring, voting would not be free and fair.
Considering President Yahya Jammeh’s campaign statement, Camara charged that the Gambian leader was intimidating the opposition.
Meanwhile, the Independent Electoral Commission was yet to announce countries and organizations invited to observe the 2016 presidential election in Gambia.
Jammeh has won every presidential election in the country since 1996, two years after a military junta he led, ousted former president, Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara, in a bloodless coup.
Source PANA
