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Gambian authorities banned all unauthorised demonstrations following several nights of violent anti-government protests triggered by severe blackouts during peak heat waves.
Inspector General of Police Seedy Mukhtar Touray issued a firm directive restricting public gatherings as public anger mounts against President Adama Barrow ahead of the December elections.
Police forces deployed tear gas earlier in the week to disperse crowds after demonstrators vandalised a police post and unlawfully freed detainees. They attacked multiple branches of the National Water and Electricity Company Ltd. (NAWEC).
Authorities confirmed the arrest of 11 individuals linked to the destruction of public infrastructure.
Touray warned that security forces will maintain order, stating, “Nobody is allowed to converge, cause havoc, or distort the peace and tranquillity of the nation, especially during the night. Any violation of this will be met with necessary force.”
Opposition presidential candidate and Kanifing Municipality Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda expressed empathy for the public’s outrage over the power cuts and lack of economic opportunity.
“If you can’t sit in your house because of the heat… you’re forced to take the matter to the streets,” Bensouda said, adding that “youths are frustrated, and I think not just about energy, they’re frustrated about a lot of things.”
In response to the crisis, President Barrow inspected utility facilities and promised to deliver new generators, complete a 24-megawatt installation, and construct a 50-megawatt solar plant to restore power by late October.
