{"id":19723,"date":"2017-01-19T06:51:16","date_gmt":"2017-01-19T06:51:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=19723"},"modified":"2017-01-19T06:51:16","modified_gmt":"2017-01-19T06:51:16","slug":"gambia-president-jammeh-refuses-to-leave-office-as-deadline-passes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/world-news\/gambia-president-jammeh-refuses-to-leave-office-as-deadline-passes.html","title":{"rendered":"Gambia President Jammeh refuses to leave office as deadline passes"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Gambia President Jammeh refuses to leave office as deadline passes<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Gambia President Jammeh refuses to leave office as deadline passes:-<\/strong> Gambian President Yahya Jammeh is refusing to step down despite efforts to persuade him to leave office ahead of a deadline set by Senegal.<\/span><\/p>\n

Adama Barrow is due to be inaugurated as the new president on Thursday, and West African military forces are poised to move in.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz met Mr Jammeh for last-minute talks before flying on to meet Senegal’s President Macky Sall.<\/span>
\nMr Barrow won elections last month.<\/span><\/p>\n

Senegalese troops remain stationed at the Gambian border, as the deadline for Mr Jammeh to stand down passed at midnight.<\/span><\/p>\n

The threat of military action is supported by Nigeria and other states in the region.<\/span><\/p>\n

However Gambian army chief Ousman Badjie said his troops would not fight Senegalese forces should they enter into the country, AFP news agency reports.<\/span><\/p>\n

“We are not going to involve ourselves militarily, this is a political dispute,” he said. “I am not going to involve my soldiers in a stupid fight. I love my men.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Mr Jammeh has ruled The Gambia since taking power in a coup in 1994.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wednesday was meant to be his last day in office but parliament granted him three more months in the post.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mr Barrow, who was said to be preparing to be sworn in as president “on Gambian soil” on Thursday, remains in neighbouring Senegal.<\/span><\/p>\n

At least 26,000 Gambians, fearful that violence could erupt, sought refuge in Senegal this week.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, thousands of UK and Dutch tourists continue to be evacuated from the tiny West African state on special charter flights. Gambia is a popular beach destination among European holidaymakers, especially in winter.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why is Mr Jammeh refusing to leave office?<\/span><\/p>\n

Mr Jammeh initially accepted that Mr Barrow had won the election but later reversed his position and said he would not step down.<\/span><\/p>\n

He declared a 90-day state of emergency calling for “peace, law and order” after what he said were irregularities in the election process.<\/span><\/p>\n

He said that along with errors made by the electoral commission, some of his supporters were turned away from polling stations.<\/span><\/p>\n

The commission later accepted that some of the results it initially published contained errors, but said they would not have affected Mr Barrow’s win.<\/span>
\nMr Jammeh has said he will stay in office until new elections are held.<\/span><\/p>\n

Retaining power would also ensure he was not prosecuted in The Gambia for alleged abuses committed during his rule.<\/span>
\nWhy is Senegal taking the lead?<\/span><\/p>\n

Ecowas, the Economic Community of West African States, mandated Senegal because it almost surrounds The Gambia.<\/span><\/p>\n

Col Abdou Ndiaye, a spokesman for the Senegalese military, said Ecowas had decided on the deadline to try to achieve a diplomatic solution.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Things are getting into place and Ecowas forces are ready to intervene if needed after midnight if we can’t find a diplomatic solution to the Gambian crisis,” he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Ecowas force is seeking UN Security Council endorsement to use “all necessary measures” to help remove Mr Jammeh.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Gambia’s entire armed forces are made up of only about 2,500 troops, making it difficult to see how they can defeat a regional force if it moves in, says BBC Africa Monitoring security correspondent Tomi Oladipo.<\/span><\/p>\n

Nigeria says it sent fighters and other aircraft, along with 200 personnel, to Senegal on Wednesday morning.<\/span><\/p>\n

Nigerian navy vessels are also on standby and a warship that sailed from Lagos on Tuesday will have the task of evacuating Nigerian citizens while putting on a show of force.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:-\u00a0http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-africa-38672840<\/span><\/div>\n

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