Gambia's leader pulls out of AU presidency race

  1. Posted on Friday 27 January 2012 - 08:41
    Jammeh
    Image of Jammeh
    Buya Jammeh, AfricaNews reporter in Dakar, Senegal
    Gambian President Yahya Jammeh has pulled out of the race for the presidency of the African Union's Assembly. Gambia's foreign minister Momodou Tangara informed AU officials that president Yahya Jammeh has decided to with withdraw from the race for the AU presidency after a closed-door meeting of foreign minister from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
    yahya jammeh
    The Gambian foreign minister Yahya Jammeh felt it better to concentrate on domestic politics. “He wants to devote the first year of his election to satisfy and meet the needs and aspirations of the Gambian people,” Tangara said, speaking on the sidelines of the AU summit in Addis Ababa.

    Tangara said Gambia had withdrawn in favour of Benin while Ecowas had reached a consensus on Yayi’s candidacy.

    The other main candidate for the regional bloc’s presidency is thought to be Benin’s Yayi. The move is likely to pave the way for him to replace current AU president Equatorial Guinea’s Theodoro Obiang.

    This year’s summit also sees another leadership contest in the chairmanship of the AU Commission.

    This pits incumbent chairman Jean Ping against South Africa’s Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.

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