Gambia citizens set fire to tyres in protest over prolonged blackouts
Residents in Banjul and other towns lit tyres and built barricades to denounce weeks-long power cuts, prompting police to fire tear gas.
In the capital Banjul and several other locations, crowds gathered after dark to protest persistent electricity outages, some lasting up to 48 hours. Protesters burned tyres on streets, erected makeshift barriers and shouted slogans demanding President Adama Barrow’s resignation. In the town of Farato, demonstrators assembled outside Vice President Mohammed B.S.
Jallow’s residence and ripped down National People’s Party banners. Police intervened, dispersing the crowds with tear gas, after which participants used water to extinguish the fires and clear the blockades. The National Water and Electricity Company Ltd (NAWEC) cited an unforeseen surge in demand due to heat and a technical incident at a major generating unit as reasons for the load-shedding, but gave no timeline for restoration. The protests occur as Barrow prepares to visit the utility and address the nation ahead of a December election in which he is running for a third term.
Why it matters
The protests highlight growing public anger over power shortages ahead of a crucial election in the Gambia.
How the sides frame it
MODERATE AGREEMENTLeft-leaning coverage emphasizes the political pressure on President Barrow and his pledge to boost power, while right-leaning coverage stresses the utility’s technical explanation for the outages and notes the lack of a restoration timeline.
LEFT
Left-leaning coverage frames the unrest as politically charged protests demanding Barrow’s resignation, highlighting his pledge to boost power and labeling the outages a national security emergency.
RIGHT
Right-leaning coverage frames the unrest by stressing the utility’s explanation of an unexpected demand surge and technical fault, noting the absence of a restoration timeline and the protesters’ targeting of opposition symbols.
The left emphasises
- boost energy supplies by next month
- outages an emergency and a “national security issue”
- protesters demanding Barrow resign
The right emphasises
- unforeseen surge in demand due to heat and a technical incident
- gave no timeline for restoration
- ripped down National People’s Party banners
Possibly left out
- Right-leaning coverage cites an unforeseen surge in demand and a technical incident as causes, absent from left-leaning coverage.
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