Eighty-seven (87) percent of Gambians agree that the country needs a new constitution, according to a nationwide survey by the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) Center for Insights in Survey Research.
The poll also indicates that most citizens (74 percent) would vote in a constitutional referendum, but the lack of voter ID cards (for 39 percent of respondents) could hamper turnout.
“Gambians are looking forward to a new constitution that strengthens fundamental rights and freedoms,” Greg Kearns, IRI Regional Director for Africa, said in a statement. “In order to meet the high threshold for voter turnout, it is critical that the government addresses barriers to voter participation before holding a referendum.”
The new constitution introduces new checks and balances on power and promotes secularism in the Muslim-majority nation. It also recommends that presidential terms be limited to two five-year periods, and the survey finds that 88 percent of citizens support this idea.
More than half the population (57 percent) cited limited terms for presidents as a main reason for turning out to vote in a potential referendum, along with 49 percent of Gambians who cited fundamental rights and freedoms, according to the survey which involved 1,178 Gambians aged 18 and above.
After receiving the draft constitution in March, President Barrow said it will be presented to the National assembly in August before it will be submitted to voters in a referendum.
“The poll reflected general optimism regarding the country’s democratic trajectory,” Kearns said of the survey conducted in December 2019 after the release of the first draft constitution.
The Bill for an Act to promulgate the Constitution of The Republic of The Gambia, 2020 and repeal the Constitution of The Republic of The Gambia, 1997 has now been completed and was published in the Gazette on May 28, according to the Ministry of Justice.
A second publication of the Bill in the Gazette will be made in exactly 3 months, and thereafter, sent to the National Assembly.
