Calm returned to the streets in Serekunda Gambia after group of youths in the country took to the streets at Westfield on Thursday demanding electoral reforms from the government of Dictator Yahya Jammeh. It can be recalled that the IEC in early July 2015 brought in sweeping electoral reforms to the National Assembly, among others it requires presidential candidates to pay a fee of half a million Dalasis (D500,000) for registration, which was previously D5000, more than 5000% increment.
However, their rights to peaceful assembly and protest have been met with iron fist from the autocratic government of Yahya Jammeh. More than 30 youths were arrested and subsequently tortured by the security forces as a result of exercising their democratic rights to assemble and peaceful protest.
However, this was no surprise to many observers, as this month marks the 16th year since when students took to the streets to demand for justice for their colleagues which was also malhandled by security forces and resulted to the killing of 16 people and injuring hundreds more. Meanwhile, according to my sources, the youths are planning a country wide coordinated protests against the draconian laws that were put through by the rubber stamp National Assembly of Dictator Jammeh.
Gambia Voices 