Coalition 2026 says it remains willing to reopen discussions with political parties that withdrew from its negotiations as the alliance seeks to expand opposition cooperation ahead of the 2026 presidential election.
Coalition spokesperson Assan Martin said the grouping has not ruled out renewed engagement with former participants, arguing that disagreements during coalition-building should not necessarily bring political negotiations to a permanent end.
Speaking in an interview with West Coast Radio, Martin said differences among parties and political movements were inevitable, but maintained that dialogue and compromise could still create room for reconciliation.
“There is nothing cast in stone here. The thing is that we are open, and we are very flexible. The doors will be open until the day we do the nomination from the IEC,” Martin said.
He said Coalition 2026 had sought to build its framework around consensus, adding that such an objective required political actors to remain engaged even when major disagreements emerged.
The coalition-building process has faced significant challenges, with a number of political parties and stakeholders withdrawing at different stages of the negotiations. Martin acknowledged those setbacks but said the coalition now sees an opportunity to regroup and explore whether some of those parties could be persuaded to return.
According to him, efforts will be made to reach out to political groups that were no longer involved during the final stages of the coalition negotiations, with the aim of identifying areas of agreement and rebuilding cooperation.
Martin said the coalition’s leadership believes broader political participation would strengthen its position ahead of the presidential election and help create a more inclusive opposition platform.
Despite the departures and disagreements that have characterised the negotiations, Martin insisted that Coalition 2026 should be viewed as more than an electoral arrangement centred on individual politicians.
He described it as a broader political project intended to survive differences among personalities and parties while pursuing a common programme.
Martin also addressed speculation surrounding the selection of Kanifing Municipal Council Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda as Coalition 2026’s presidential flagbearer.
He rejected suggestions that the person who finished second in the coalition’s candidate-selection process was automatically entitled to become Bensouda’s running mate, saying no such arrangement had been agreed.
The spokesperson said decisions concerning the coalition’s future political structure would be handled through its established processes rather than assumptions arising from the flagbearer contest.
Martin maintained that Coalition 2026 would continue reaching out to political stakeholders in the period leading to the election, stressing that parties willing to reconsider their positions would still have an opportunity to return to the negotiating table.
