Our World

Gambian Election

After being confident of a landslide victory, Gambian President Yahya Jammeh was recently re-elected for a third term. A problem with the election is that only 42% of Gambian citizens are registered voters. The greater issue within the election is that there was only a 59% voter turnout. These are such troubling statistics because there is already only a small collection of the population registered and an even smaller portion actually voting. How can countries build solid governments when they aren't even having half of their citizens voting?

When I continued to read the article, I found more discouraging news related to the election. There were no voting ballots used in this election because of the high illiteracy rate in the country. Instead, voters put marbles into a drum that represented the candidate of their choice. If the people cannot read, it would be very difficult for them to stay informed about issues in their own country and the election taking place. These people are then making uninformed decisions about someone who is to govern their country. This is troublesome for Gambian citizens and other countries, as they will have to live with the voting decision.

The Gambia has struggled in its decolonization from Great Britain and is still lacking in social development. Jammeh came to power during a coup twelve years ago and the country has been stable since his arrival in office. However, Jammeh has firmly stated that he would ban any newspaper that offended him. Journalists and political oponents have also been imprisoned for life without a trial. It seems almost scary that this is a leader of a country that is developing.

Gambian president is re-elected

posted by Anonymous @ 9/24/2006 08:09:00 PM