Gambians are
voting in presidential elections condemned by the West African regional body,
ECOWAS, as lacking legitimacy. ECOWAS said the election has been marked by the
intimidation of opposition groups and voters. The incumbent President Yahya
Jammeh, who seized power in 1994, is seeking re-election.
Regional
body ECOWAS, in an unusually strong criticism of a member state, said on
Tuesday it would not send a mission to observe the poll "because the
preparations and political environment ... are adjudged by the commission not
to be conducive for the conduct of free, fair and transparent polls.
" It said a fact-finding mission had found "an unacceptable level of control
of the electronic media by the party in power ... and an opposition and
electorate cowed by repression and intimidation". Nearly 800,000 Gambians are registered to vote in the election pitting Jammeh
against two opposition rivals.
Because of high rates of illiteracy, voters are casting their ballot by putting
a glass marble into a coloured drum representing their candidate. Analysts say Jammeh's election to a new five-year term is a foregone conclusion
after 17 years of rule that began with a 1994 coup and has been marked by
lethal crackdowns on protests, mass arrests of opponents and military
reshuffles.
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