During the National Assembly elections, the Gambian nation was informed that the Coalition members would form a tactical alliance. Many people waited to find out what tactical alliance meant.
Finally, it was very clear that the parties were on their own. They contested against each other in many constituencies which made many people to believe that the Coalition had come to an end. The fact that the presidency was not neutral made the people to wonder whether the Coalition was bound by the letter and spirit of its agreement.
It did not take long for members of the National Assembly to realise that they were not in the Assembly to serve a ruling party. It became evident that even though many National Assembly members were elected on their party ticket. When it came to motions different cabinet ministers from different parties would bring the motions on behalf of the government. This made it evident that there was no ruling party in the country. It became increasingly evident to the people through the debate in the National Assembly that one could not retain one’s seat if one fails to support what is in the national interest in the National Assembly.
This in fact led many National Assembly members to move away from making decisions purely on party grounds. In the same vein the presidency and the ministers have come to see that party bias would undermine the administration. It is therefore no surprise that there is no tactical alliance of any sort by the Coalition in contesting the council elections.
The results of the elections would determine where Gambia has to start from to build a nation. The vote will determine whether there is political participation or apathy and where the vast majority of the Gambian people want to take The Gambia in the next two years.
