The President of The Gambia, Adama Barrow, has finally relocated to his official residence ten months after he became the leader of the tiny West African country. The housing complex known as ‘State House,’ was vacated by the ousted strongman, Yahya Jammeh, who is currently on exile in Equatorial Guinea.
Until last Saturday, President Barrow had been residing in a hotel and later moved to state residence in the town of Fajara, where he worked from. Photos shared by journalists showed President Barrow’s arrival at the premises where a guard of honour was mounted for him.
Since Jammeh left the country in January this year, the premises was deemed to be unfit for President Barrow with different reports stating that there were stash of arms and chemical weapons hidden there. The ECOWAS regional force took over the building at a point to ensure its safety before the relevant authorities set out to renovate it for President Barrow’s use.
Yahya Jammeh lost the election held in December 2016 to Mr. Barrow, who ran as the candidate of the opposition coalition. The former ruler initially accepted the election result but later made a U-turn, citing electoral irregularities. ECOWAS stepped in and insisted that the result must be upheld.
The dictator was still bent on clinging to power till the ECOWAS Force stepped into Banjul to oust him as his mandate expired last January. Last-minute mediation by the Presidents of Guinea and Mauritania, however, managed to get Jammeh to leave power and quit the country.
