Gambiaj.com – (BANJUL, The Gambia) – United Democratic Party (UDP) leader and Secretary General ANM Ousainou Darboe has urged party members to embrace the ongoing flagbearer selection process with unity and respect, dismissing concerns that certain aspirants should be disqualified or condemned.
Speaking as the party continues receiving applications for its 2026 presidential flagbearer contest, Darboe described the exercise as a “validation of democratic will” within the UDP. He emphasized that every qualified member has the constitutional right to apply and should not face hostility for doing so.
“This process is a validation of the fact that the UDP’s value resides in doing things with democratic will,” Darboe said. “No person who has applied should be condemned. No person should be considered a traitor… because they have now offered themselves to serve. If we are together, we have everything.”
So far, the count for applicants for the flagbearership reached 11 candidates including Darboe himself, businessman Lamin Jawara, Lamin NS Ceesay from Jarra, Borry S. Tour, and Kanifing Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda. The contest has already sparked heated debate among the party faithful, with some supporters warning against Bensouda’s candidature, arguing that his relative newcomer status makes him unfit to carry the UDP’s banner in 2026.
Darboe, however, cautioned against divisive rhetoric, stressing that the survival of the party and the promotion of democratic values must take precedence. He reiterated his readiness to lead a coalition if elected as flagbearer, saying unity beyond party lines is essential to consolidate democracy in The Gambia.
Meanwhile, tensions surfaced within the party over the modalities of the selection process. Lamin Ceesay, UDP National Assembly Member for Kiang West and a strong Darboe loyalist, accused some senior party figures of attempting to humiliate the veteran leader by subjecting him to the same interview process as other aspirants. “We are ready to stand by Mr. Darboe at all costs,” Ceesay declared.
The panel overseeing the interviews is chaired by UDP heavyweight Aja Yamoundow Yabo assisted by other UDP executives like Alhagie S. Darboe, tasked with vetting the aspirants in a process designed to reflect fairness and transparency.
As the UDP prepares for what could be a historic transition of leadership, the flagbearer race has underscored both the party’s democratic openness and the internal rivalries that could shape its path to the 2026 presidential election.
