By Dawda Baldeh
Former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh has rejected the constitutionality of two key post-exile commissions and demanded statutory guarantees ahead of his planned return to The Gambia this November.
In a letter dated 3 November 2025, Jammeh dismissed the legal standing of the Truth Reconciliation and Reparation Commission (TRRC) and the Janneh Commission, both established to investigate alleged financial misconduct and human rights abuses during his 22-year rule.
“The TRRC and Janneh Commission are not under the laws of The Gambia or courts,” Jammeh asserted, arguing that the commissions’ recommendations are “null and void” and cannot infringe on his right to return.
The letter, issued by Momodou Yafaye Tamba, formally mandated to speak on Jammeh’s behalf, confirmed the former president’s intention to return this month, though no specific date was given. Tamba said copies of the letter would be sent to President Adama Barrow, the Speaker of the National Assembly, ECOWAS, the African Union, the United Nations, and diplomatic missions in The Gambia.
Jammeh, who left the country under a joint ECOWAS-UN agreement on 21 January 2017, framed his return as a constitutional right and a commitment to national stability. The letter outlines five key assertions, including his basis for return, his commitment to peace, his rejection of the commissions’ legal authority, his calls for unity, and his demand for statutory and constitutional provisions.
“We respectfully seek the cooperation, understanding, and proactive engagement of all relevant institutions and international partners to ensure the immediate provision of statutory guarantees and constitutional provisions for a former President and Head of State,” the letter stated.
Jammeh also called for measures to “recognize, respect, and safeguard his rights, dignity, and security in strict adherence to the Constitution of The Gambia and the letter of the ECOWAS-AU-UN Joint Agreement.”
Despite facing allegations of serious crimes, Jammeh reiterated his commitment to a peaceful return and issued a patriotic appeal to all Gambians “to collectively uphold the principles of peace, national discipline, mutual respect, and genuine reconciliation,” adding that the country’s stability “must never be compromised.”
He concluded the letter by expressing gratitude to Equatorial Guinea’s President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo and his people for their hospitality during his exile.
By Dawda Baldeh Former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh has rejected the constitutionality of two key post-exile commissions and demanded statutory guarantees ahead of his planned return to The Gambia this November. In a letter dated 3 November 2025, Jammeh dismissed the legal standing of the Truth Reconciliation and Reparation Commission (TRRC) and the Janneh Commission, The Fatu Network
