Gambiaj.com – (BANJUL, The Gambia) – National Assembly Member for Latrikunda Sabiji, Yahya Menteng Sanyang, has openly endorsed Kanifing Municipal Council (KMC) Mayor Ahmed Talib Bensouda as his choice to lead the United Democratic Party (UDP) in the 2026 presidential elections.
Writing on his Facebook page, Sanyang declared, “I want Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda to lead UDP in the 2026 presidential elections.” He argued that Bensouda is the party’s strongest candidate at a critical juncture when its survival is at stake.
“When the party’s survival is on the line, we have a duty to ask our strongest candidate to step forward. #Talib,” he stressed.
Sanyang also dismissed claims within the party that his endorsement is driven by personal ambition. Critics have suggested he is positioning himself for ministerial appointments should the UDP return to power. But the MP rejected those assertions.
“If you have a different view on who should be the party’s flagbearer, they will scrutinize your skills and accuse you of wanting a specific ministerial position. Some people say I want to be the attorney general. To answer that, I am not qualified because I have not been a legal practitioner for at least five years. However, some have said I want to be the minister of works, and yes, I am extremely qualified for that role. In fact, since independence in 1965, no works minister has been more qualified than I am,” he said.
The legislator further recalled that his entry into the National Assembly in 2022 was not part of his original political plan but rather a response to the UDP’s electoral crisis.
“My plan before the 2021 presidential elections was not to run for the National Assembly, and I told people I would not apply; in fact, I was coaching someone else for the position. But after our devastating loss, the party’s future felt uncertain. We desperately needed to secure some National Assembly seats to remain relevant. That is when the community in Latrikunda approached me. They told me I was the only person who could win and defeat Saikou Marong. They put significant pressure on me to reconsider my decision for the good of the party,” he explained.
This endorsement comes amid growing internal debate within the UDP about its leadership heading into the 2026 polls. While some senior figures argue that longtime leader Ousainou Darboe remains the party’s natural choice, others see Bensouda, a younger politician with a record at the KMC, as the fresh face needed to galvanize new voters and mount a serious challenge to President Adama Barrow.
With Sanyang’s public backing, the conversation about succession within the UDP is likely to intensify, adding momentum to calls for the party to recalibrate its strategy ahead of what is expected to be a fiercely contested election.
