Alieu Sowe on Sunday emerged as presidential candidate of Gambia Action Party more than a year of firing former army general Lamin Bojang.
Mr Sowe, 46, will lead GAP into the December presidential election. But who is Sowe?
According to a biography shared with The Fatu Network, Mr Sowe was born on the 10th of October 1974 in Cheedi Wolof, Upper Baddibu, North Bank Region. He attended Minteh Kunda Primary School and Farafenni Senior Secondary School from 1989 to 1993. In 1996, he was enrolled in paramilitary training course at the Guards Training School at Bakau. He studied Computer Science and upgraded his skills through diversity at Bahai Centre; also studied criminal investigation through Gambia Police Force Prosecution Department in 2004. He later studied International Relations and Diplomacy at the Management Development Institute.
Career-wise, Mr Sowe worked as a private soldier from 1995 to 2006 and extended his military career to Lance Corporal from 2006 to 2009. He became Corporal in 2009 and Staff Sergeant in 2012. In 2015, he became a Captain from 2015 and then a Major in 2016.
He was Commanding Officer of Defense Platoon 2017 to 2018 and General Manager of the entire Kanilai family group from 2014 to 2017.
