Yahya Jammeh: shuts down Teranga Radio
Gambia has shut down Teranga Radio, a popular radio station critical of of its embattled ruler Yahya Jammeh.
As stated by Emil Touray of Gambia Press Union, intelligence agents ordered the FM radio station to close transmission without giving reasons. It was the first sign of a possible crackdown on the media since Mr Jammeh rejected defeat in the 1 December poll. Mr Jammeh, who first seized power in a bloodless coup in 1994, initially conceded to property developer Adama Barrow, however, then withdrew his concession and launched court action to annul the result, saying the poll was marred by irregularities. Four National Intelligence Agency operatives and a police officer visited the offices of Teranga FM on Sunday to demand its closure, a staff member told AFP on condition of anonymity. There has been no official comment from the government. It was not the first time the station would suffer repression from Jammeh’s government. Station manager Alagie Ceesay was arrested in July 2015 on charges of sedition and “publication of false news” – allegations he denied. The Gambia ranked 145 out of 180 countries in media campaign group Reporters Without Borders’ 2016 World Press Freedom Index. The UN and West African regional body ECOWAS have urged Mr Jammeh to respect the will of the people and step down when his term ends on 18 January. ECOWAS even hinted that it may use force if the long serving leader did not handover to Barrow. Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari heads an ECOWAS mediation team to persuade Jammeh to step down. However, Mr Jammeh has accused ECOWAS of bias and threatened that any attack on his government by the regional bloc would amount to a declaration of war. Jammeh had earlier shut down the electoral commission that conducted the ’embarrassing’ election that he lost. However, he had since reopened it.