The 2021 Presidential Election is just around the corner. According to Section 46 of the constitution:
“There shall be an election for the office of President in the three months before the expiration of the term of the incumbent President. The dates for the nomination of candidates and for holding the election shall be determined by the Independent Electoral Commission.”
President Barrow took office in January 2017. His five-year mandate ends in January 2021. Elections are to take place before the end of his five-year mandate.
Hence even if President Barrow were to lose an election, he would still be in office up to the end of his term.
The challenge that Barrow had to face could also be faced by any person, other than him who wins the Presidential Election of 2021.
When Barrow won the election, he did not have any transitional arrangement for an incoming president. There was no accommodation, transportation or housing arrangement guaranteed by law. The incoming president had to live in a private home, keep an office in a Hotel and rely on private security for his safety before eventually moving to Senegal.
The first task of a Barrow administration should have been linked to the drafting of a Bill on the entitlements of an incoming President and an outgoing one.
If this is not done, any incoming president would face the same challenges he faced from 2nd December 2016 to 18 January 2021. Will a repetition be avoided? The future will tell.
