Gambian President Pledges Power Infrastructure Amid Violent Protests
2 sources across 2 countries · Qatar · South Africa · 1 of them is linked to a state
Who reported this
- Al Jazeera
- Daily Maverick
What the colours mean
- Left
- Centre-left
- Centre
- Centre-right
- Right
- A hatched block means the outlet is affiliated with, or controlled by, a state.
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Every outlet covering this story shares the same political lean; read with that in mind.
President Adama Barrow has promised to restore electricity stability by the end of October following violent protests over prolonged rolling blackouts in The Gambia. Protesters in the capital, Banjul, and nearby cities burned tyres and erected barricades while demanding that Barrow resign. In some areas, police used tear gas to disperse crowds gathered near the National Water and Electricity Corporation (NAWEC) headquarters and the residence of President Barrow.
During a national address and a visit to a NAWEC power station, President Barrow declared the outages a national security issue. He announced the installation of a 24 megawatt generation machine by the end of October and the awarding of a contract for a 50 megawatt solar power plant. Barrow acknowledged the hardship caused by the outages, noting that children are working in the dark and food is spoiling due to the heat.
NAWEC attributed the electricity crisis to an unforeseen surge in demand caused by high temperatures and technical failures of major power generating units. One source further noted that the utility manager cited climate change and the US Israel war on Iran as contributing factors. Information Minister Ismaila Ceesay apologized for the hardship and described the protests as deeply disconcerting.
The unrest occurs as the country prepares for a December presidential election in which Barrow is seeking a third term. While both reports focus on the infrastructure failure and the resulting civil unrest, they provide different details on the targets of the protests. One report highlights the destruction of banners at the ruling National People's Party office and protests outside the residence of Vice President Mohammed B.S. Jallow.
How each side framed it
- Centre-left
- Outlets of this lean framed the event as a crisis of government stability and infrastructure failure occurring immediately before a contentious third term bid for the president.
Sources
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