By: Alieu Jallow
The political rhetoric in The Gambia has escalated following a fiery response from Information Minister Dr. Ismaila Ceesay to Essa Mbye Faal’s recent remarks during a widely discussed Coffee Time interview with Peter Gomez. In the Monday edition of the interview, Faal, leader of the APP-SOBEYA party, strongly criticized the government’s handling of fiscal policies and governance.
Dr. Ceesay, in a sharp retort, stated, “He doesn’t understand governance issues,” dismissing Faal’s criticisms as ill-informed and lacking in-depth comprehension of the complexities of public administration. This rebuttal comes during growing scrutiny of the government’s performance and rising tensions ahead of the 2026 presidential elections.
Dr. Ceesay outlined that Faal’s claims of spending D61 million on the Meet the People’s Tour were misleading, stressing that only D35 million was spent, of which D7.3 million was allocated to security DSA, and D3.5 million was spent on civilian expenses, culminating in D10 million out of the D35 million.
“In fact, for the security forces, their daily sustenance allowance was D600 before, and under this government, we increased it to D1,500 per night. So, it’s not D61 million. I don’t know where he got the D61 million from. He needs to come back here and explain to us. It’s also false, and we need to debunk that,” Dr. Ceesay asserted.
The Information Minister alleged that the APP-SOBEYA party leader was receiving taxpayers’ money and campaigning, thus accusing Mr. Faal of harboring an agenda to become president and using the platform given to him by the government to embark on his political campaign.
“He didn’t even complete the job. When the final report was written, he wasn’t there. He was out there campaigning. What is more dishonest than that? I think that needs to be clear, and Gambians need to understand that. Also, he doesn’t understand governance issues. When I hear him speak, it tells me this is a man who would put Gambians in grave danger if given the keys to the Statehouse. Someone who doesn’t understand governance work—honestly, it would be a grave danger,” Dr. Ceesay alleged.
The exchange signals an increasingly polarized political atmosphere, with economic management emerging as a central battleground. Many believe and anticipate further exchanges as opposition figures seek to challenge the ruling administration’s record while the government defends its policies.
