07/07/2025
Karma or Consequence?
The Rise of NDP and the Cracks Within Barrow’s NPP
In a dramatic twist that has sent shockwaves through Gambia’s political landscape, a new political faction has emerged from within the ruling National People’s Party (NPP), and it's shaking the party from its roots.
The recently expelled officials includes, Kebba Madi Bojang (Youth President), Lamin Touray (Deputy PRO of the Youth Wing), Lamin Jatta (Co-opted Executive Member), and Sainey Manneh (West Coast PRO), have wasted no time in regrouping. Rather than retreat in silence, the group has launched the National Democratic Party (NDP), a bold movement that is already gaining momentum on the ground.
With an office established in Farato and a wave of grassroots mobilization underway, the NDP is quickly becoming a political force to watch. Reports indicate that a growing number of NPP supporters and sympathizers are resigning from the ruling party, disillusioned by its current direction and inspired by the NDP’s call for renewal.
But this isn’t just a case of political fallout, it’s a case of political irony.
Let’s rewind: the NPP itself was born out of defection. In 2019, President Adama Barrow broke away from the United Democratic Party (UDP), the party that helped bring him to power in 2016, and formed his own vehicle for re-election. That move split the opposition and consolidated Barrow’s grip on power, allowing him to win the 2021 elections under the NPP banner.
Now, less than four years later, Barrow faces a splintering of his own. The NDP, what many are calling the “grandchildren of UDP”, is emerging as a serious threat, not from the traditional opposition, but from within the very house Barrow built.
Some political commentators are calling this poetic justice. To them, it’s karma catching up, a reminder that betrayal for political survival often comes full circle. Barrow, they argue, abandoned the reformist and democratic ideals that galvanized Gambians in 2016, choosing instead to consolidate power and sideline those who helped him rise.
Now, the chickens may be coming home to roost.
While the UDP appears content to sit back and watch the drama unfold, the cracks in the ruling NPP may have long-term consequences for its unity, public confidence, and electoral prospects. If the NDP continues to attract disillusioned youth and grassroots supporters, Barrow could find himself fighting not just opposition parties, but former allies who know the system from the inside.
Whether the NDP will survive beyond the buzz remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: Gambia’s political landscape is once again in flux, and the spirit of 2016, the desire for change, justice, and accountability, is being reawakened, even if not by those originally entrusted with it.
