Is Darboe trying to exploit Gambian's nostalgia for the Jawara era?
OJ Jallow, former agric minister during the Jawara era and leader of the peoples progressive party (PPP) , has expressed his anger at being misrepresented by the UDP and at the wrongful use of the PPP brand by Ousainou Darboe.
Jallow said he went into supporting the UDP for the total alliance of the opposition parties, attended all their meetings, participate in all the meetings but he later left to go on vacation with his children because the opposition found it difficult to put their house in forming a coalition led by one candidate which would have been more effective and in the best interest of the Gambia people who looked up to them for salvation. Jallow added that the reason why the PPP pulled out of the UDP led alliance were that the opposition party leaders wasted all the five years until it was only few days to the election before starting talks about a coalition...
He also said he found the opposition unserious because they made no serious provision for adequate resources with which to contest the elections. "From my experiences of the 1996,2001 and 2006 elections, the fragmentation of the opposition parties has caused them continual loss of support and credibility", he said.
Mr Jallow was modified that UDP never learnt from past experiences and failures. He pointed out that the opposition parties are all alike in this indolence as the same fragmentation of past years recurred again this year with the same end. He explicitly said people should have know that it would be difficult for the opposition to move Yahya Jammeh from the presidential seat through the ballot box as long as they were fragmented.
"If they had been united, it would have been a pure platform to win at least 20 seats in the parliament to put a halt to the impunity in parliament, the amendments of laws, and the passing of draconian laws. That is what is most wanted by the people in this country", the PPP leader emphasized but he said it was unfortunate the opposition couldn't grasp the real challenge before them.
''I have said it in the presence of all the opposition leaders: Ousainou Darboe, Hamat Bah, Seedia Jatta and Hendry Gomez that I O.J Jallow will be supporting the alliance led by UDP and that they should count me out if we cannot have an alliance. I have should exercised my right to vote but I am not happy with them", said O.J Jallow.
The PPP leader spoke at length about his disappointed with the current administration's record of handing the affairs of the states without even paying attention to the constitution. Jallow made it clear that he will never support the incumbent or any other political party that disrespect the constitution. O.J said he had promised since 1994 never to speak against any opposition party because it could give credence to the incumbent government, he explain that this is why he has suffered the indequacies of the opposition in silence. "That was a matter of principle. Because I don't want people to see us as fighting or trying to fragment the oppositions" He said.
However, he said it was now time to engage more actively in politics since the current crop of opposition leaders seem to have come to their wits ends in their efforts to uphold the democratic trust and aspirations of the people.
"I have been the most outspoken opposition politician in the Gambia since 1996. And now, because the opposition cannot put their house in order, I think it is time to learn from the mistakes and correct them but it really didn't happen. It was rather unfortunate", he sighed.
The PPP leader said he would now, once the elections are over, call a press conference to make some clarifications with regards to where PPP stands. He said he has kept largely quiet so as not to disrupt the opposition momentum during the election campaign.
OJ Jallow, former agric minister during the Jawara era and leader of the peoples progressive party (PPP) , has expressed his anger at being misrepresented by the UDP and at the wrongful use of the PPP brand by Ousainou Darboe. 
Jallow said he went into supporting the UDP for the total alliance of the opposition parties, attended all their meetings, participate in all the meetings but he later left to go on vacation with his children because the opposition found it difficult to put their house in forming a coalition led by one candidate which would have been more effective and in the best interest of the Gambia people who looked up to them for salvation. Jallow added that the reason why the PPP pulled out of the UDP led alliance were that the opposition party leaders wasted all the five years until it was only few days to the election before starting talks about a coalition...He also said he found the opposition unserious because they made no serious provision for adequate resources with which to contest the elections. "From my experiences of the 1996,2001 and 2006 elections, the fragmentation of the opposition parties has caused them continual loss of support and credibility", he said.
Mr Jallow was modified that UDP never learnt from past experiences and failures. He pointed out that the opposition parties are all alike in this indolence as the same fragmentation of past years recurred again this year with the same end. He explicitly said people should have know that it would be difficult for the opposition to move Yahya Jammeh from the presidential seat through the ballot box as long as they were fragmented.
"If they had been united, it would have been a pure platform to win at least 20 seats in the parliament to put a halt to the impunity in parliament, the amendments of laws, and the passing of draconian laws. That is what is most wanted by the people in this country", the PPP leader emphasized but he said it was unfortunate the opposition couldn't grasp the real challenge before them.
''I have said it in the presence of all the opposition leaders: Ousainou Darboe, Hamat Bah, Seedia Jatta and Hendry Gomez that I O.J Jallow will be supporting the alliance led by UDP and that they should count me out if we cannot have an alliance. I have should exercised my right to vote but I am not happy with them", said O.J Jallow.
The PPP leader spoke at length about his disappointed with the current administration's record of handing the affairs of the states without even paying attention to the constitution. Jallow made it clear that he will never support the incumbent or any other political party that disrespect the constitution. O.J said he had promised since 1994 never to speak against any opposition party because it could give credence to the incumbent government, he explain that this is why he has suffered the indequacies of the opposition in silence. "That was a matter of principle. Because I don't want people to see us as fighting or trying to fragment the oppositions" He said.
However, he said it was now time to engage more actively in politics since the current crop of opposition leaders seem to have come to their wits ends in their efforts to uphold the democratic trust and aspirations of the people.
"I have been the most outspoken opposition politician in the Gambia since 1996. And now, because the opposition cannot put their house in order, I think it is time to learn from the mistakes and correct them but it really didn't happen. It was rather unfortunate", he sighed.
The PPP leader said he would now, once the elections are over, call a press conference to make some clarifications with regards to where PPP stands. He said he has kept largely quiet so as not to disrupt the opposition momentum during the election campaign.
