By Mama A. Touray
The United Democratic Party (UDP) has called on Gambian Agriculture Minister Demba Sabally to retract his warning that Banjul Mayor Rohey Malick Lowe and lawyer Essa Mbye Faal could face arrest if they join youth-led protests, condemning the remarks as a threat to constitutional rights.
Sabally, speaking at a political rally in Tallinding on Sunday, vowed that authorities would “arrest and send Rohey Malick Lowe and Essa Faal to jail” if they participated in peaceful demonstrations. The UDP, in a statement issued Monday, described the comments as “an abuse of authority” and demanded an immediate retraction and public apology.
“UDP demands an immediate retraction and apology from Minister Sabally for his inflammatory remarks,” the party stated, adding that the government must provide a “public assurance [it] will respect and protect citizens’ rights to peaceful assembly” and cease “political victimisation.”
The party invoked Section 25(1)(d) of The Gambia’s 1997 Constitution, which guarantees citizens the right to “assemble and demonstrate peaceably and without arms.” It emphasised that this right extends to all individuals, including elected officials like Mayor Lowe and political figures such as Faal, a former presidential candidate.
“For a sitting Minister to openly threaten arrest and imprisonment for exercising a constitutional right is an abuse of authority and a clear violation of democratic principles,” the UDP said in a statement. “Such statements undermine the rule of law and create a climate of fear and intimidation.”
The UDP urged the Gambia National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to investigate the matter, stressing that public officials “must not be allowed to intimidate citizens with unlawful threats.” It also warned President Adama Barrow’s administration against reverting to tactics reminiscent of the country’s authoritarian past under former leader Yahya Jammeh.
“The Gambia has fought hard to move away from the dark days of dictatorship,” the statement read. “We urge the government to act responsibly and uphold the democratic values that our people sacrificed for.”
Sabally’s remarks have sparked concerns over escalating political tensions ahead of anticipated protests. The UDP affirmed its solidarity with “the youths of this nation, Mayor Rohey Lowe, Essa Mbye Faal, and all Gambians who choose to protest peacefully for a better future,” pledging to resist attempts to “silence dissent.”
Neither Sabally nor government spokespersons had publicly responded to the UDP’s demands at the time of publication.
