Political observers claim that the most recent coup attempt in the small West African country is due to a lack of security changes.
Based on intelligence sources, the Gambian administration claimed in a statement on Wednesday that some army members were attempting to undermine the democratically elected government.
The people of the Gambia, according to political analyst Sait Matty Jaw, are concerned about their financial predicament but oppose military intervention in domestic politics.
“There are so many other issues people are worried about, but we also know that the majority of Gambians are anti-coup based on survey data. This has been part of the conversation,” Jaw said. “It was shocking to hear it was being led by a land corporal. So today, there are people questioning whether this was even a plot.”
“People are raising questions in terms of the speed of this reform and some of these things are part of what is increasing the insecurity and the need to speed this process,” Jaw said. “The other issue raises questions about the broader transitional justice process because a lot of things need to be done.”
Three accused collaborators are being sought by the army, and four troops have been detained. In order to serve a second five-year term, President Barrow was reelected in December 2021.
After ousting the autocratic President Yahya Jammeh, who had ruled the nation for 22 years, Barrow first took office in 2016.
This West African country frequently experiences coup attempts. Jammeh personally seized control in a coup in 1994, and he thwarted numerous attempts to topple him. Eight soldiers who were connected to the former leader attempted to topple Barrow in 2017.
Over the past two years, West Africa has experienced a wave of coups and attempted coups. In Guinea, Mali, and Burkina Faso, new governments took control; in February of this year, a coup attempt was thwarted in Guinea-Bissau.
Geopolitical analyst Ikemesit Effiong, who is based in Nigeria claims that some countries’ military attempts or takeovers are the result of corruption, poor economic management, and abuse of authority on the continent.
“If you look at the age profile of a lot of coup plotters in places like Mali, Guinea Bissau, in Burkina Faso right across the region, they are relatively young people and for many of them, democracy has not delivered, they are channeling this popular frustration with a democratic ruling in the region into violence military takeovers,” Effiong said.
Jaw says the government of Gambia needs to reform the country’s political, economic and security structure to stop the military from taking power.
“One way of ensuring that things like this do not happen is to ensure that there are adequate reforms that will address the gaps, the lacuna, but also for the government to be more transparent with the population ensuring that the governance challenges in this country are addressed,” Jaw said.
The Economic Community of West Africa States condemned the attempted military takeover of the government and praised the Gambian army for thwarting it.