Gambian President-elect Adama Barrow is to be inaugurated Thursday at the West African nation’s embassy in neighboring Senegal after his predecessor refused to step down.
“You are all welcome to my inauguration today 4pm at The #Gambian embassy in #Dakar,” Barrow posted on his official Twitter account.
Yahya Jammeh, who took power in a 1994 military coup, has ignored repeated attempts by African leaders and the United States urging a peaceful transition.
Jammeh suffered a surprise defeat in elections in December, with Barrow winning 45% of the vote. He originally conceded but then announced his “total rejection of the election results.”
Barrow has been waiting in Senegal — which surrounds Gambia — for the handover of power.
With the country in flux, thousands of other Gambians are reported to have fled across the border, and tourists have been flown home on specially organized flights.
Troops from several West African countries are on standby, ready to enter Gambia if Jammeh insists on staying in the post. He faced a midnight deadline to step aside, but hours after it passed, soldiers remained massed on the border.
Troops prepare to enter country
As Barrow’s inauguration approached, the government of Botswana said in a statement posted to Twitter and Facebook that it would “no longer recognize Mr. Jammeh as the President of Gambia.”
“Mr. Jammeh’s decision not to respect the will of the Gambian people undermines the ongoing efforts to consolidate democracy and good governance in The Gambia and Africa as a whole,” it said.
Senegal, Ghana, Togo and Mali are among the countries who have contributed to the military effort, while the Nigerian air force said 200 of its troops would join forces from the Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS.
“The deployment is also to forestall hostilities or breakdown of law and order that may result from the current political impasse in Gambia,” a Nigerian statement said.
On Wednesday, Col. Seydou Maiga Moro of ECOWAS told Senegal’s state media that his forces were waiting to act. “All the troops are already on site. If no solution has been reached by midnight, we will take action.”
Tourists flee country
Hundreds of tourists poured out of Gambia on Wednesday as the risk of violence grew.
In a statement on its website, tour operator Thomas Cook said it was “working hard to get our UK customers home” and it expected to fly about 3,500 vacationers out of Gambia by the end of Friday.
The UK Foreign Office also updated its advice to travelers, cautioning against all but essential travel to Gambia.
“The potential for military intervention and civil disturbance is high and could result in Banjul International Airport being closed on short notice,” the site said.
On Tuesday, Jammeh declared a state of emergency, claiming “a situation exists which, if it is allowed to continue, may lead to a state of public emergency.”
Speaking in a televised statement, Jammeh also claimed he had filed an application with Gambia’s Supreme Court to prevent Barrow being sworn in.
The President-elect’s office insisted in a statement last week that the election result stands.
