Opposition parties are not a threat to the APRC

Yankuba Colley, KMC Mayor

The National Mobiliser of the ruling Alliance for Patriotic Re-orientation and construction (APRC) Mayor Yankuba Colley, has stressed that the opposition are never a threat to the APRC, because they are minor to the ruling party.

“But as time goes on, people will see for themselves what is on the ground,” he told The Voice in an interview at his office yesterday. “The oppositions are the minority, they can talk big, but they are still a minority, in most places you hardly heard about them. It’s just that they used newspapers,” Mayor Colley said. 

Asked about the determination of opposition parties to effect change come the November 2011 polls, the Kanifing Municipality Mayor said: “I believed that there is a particular newspaper who intended to champion the Kingship issue for the opposition, it does not matter they make it an issue for people to talk about it, it does not matter much in the Gambian politics.”

On level of preparedness, he said that people always asked the level of the preparedness of the APRC but to me that should not be a question, because APRC is an organized party and we are always prepared. We did not see election as the only time of coming together; we are prepared since we were elected into office.”

He said the change that the opposition is calling for cannot be possible, as he puts it “if ten percent of the population is calling for change and ninety percent are saying they want things to remain the same, who are you going to listen to, the majority of cause”.

“To us, the oppositions is not a threat, they remain the same, in fact, they are minor to us completely, but as time goes on people will see for themselves what is on the ground,” he reiterated. “We are here for the Gambian people and the development of the country.”

Opposition parties have described the political situation of the country as not being a level playing field, but Mr. Colley that said that is left to them.

“They are entitled to their opinion, but that is not true, the enabling environment is there for everybody to see, it is the people who have rejected them, so how can they blame the government for that,” he said.

He said the APRC cannot be moved by any political party in The Gambia; the statement the President made at the opening of the National Assembly does not means that he is moved, he was just calling on them to come together after the election for the best interest and development of this country.

Opposition parties forming a coalition cannot even move the APRC because all the oppositions put together are not up to ten percent of the votes, so how can that move or be a threat to ninety percent of the electorate.

“They are not a threat to us whether they are in fragments, in pieces or in bunch,” he argued.

He also argued that the APRC will win the upcoming by-election in Wuli East. He revealed that President Jammeh will not campaign for votes this time around, and this shows that he is very confident of winning the November 24 polls. Source – The Voice