Gambians have been told to remain peaceful. They have been urged not to destroy public property. They have been reminded that there are democratic institutions through which their grievances can be expressed.
All of that is reasonable.
But there is another question that cannot be avoided: who will answer for a power crisis that has pushed ordinary Gambians to the streets in the first place?
Banjul Central National Assembly Member Abdoulie Njai has defended the right of citizens to protest over the country’s worsening electricity situation, while condemning violence and the destruction of public property.
Speaking in Parliament during a Matter of the Day on the electricity crisis, Mr Njai acknowledged what government officials cannot reasonably deny: the frustration is real, widespread and legitimate.
Some communities have reportedly endured blackouts lasting as long as 30 hours. Businesses are losing working hours. Families are struggling with unbearable conditions. Students are trying to study without electricity. And citizens are increasingly asking why, after years of government intervention and investment, reliable electricity remains such an elusive promise.
“Your frustration is legitimate, your demand for electricity is legitimate, your demand for accountability is legitimate,” Mr Njai said.
That statement should not be lost in the political noise surrounding the recent demonstrations.
Because the electricity crisis is no longer simply a NAWEC problem. It has become a governance problem.
PROTEST IS A SYMPTOM — NOT THE DISEASE
Reports of vandalism in areas including Latrikunda Sabiji and Farato are troubling and should be condemned.
Public property belongs to the people. Destroying electricity infrastructure, police facilities or other public assets ultimately means damaging property that citizens themselves will have to pay to repair.
But condemning vandalism cannot be the end of the conversation.
If government responds only to the destruction while ignoring the conditions that produced the anger, it risks treating the symptom while leaving the disease untouched.
Mr Njai was therefore right to make an important distinction: citizens have a legitimate right to demand electricity and accountability, but their frustration cannot become a licence for violence.
At the same time, government cannot demand peace from an increasingly frustrated population without demonstrating an equally serious commitment to solving the problem.
Peaceful protest requires responsible citizens. But reliable electricity requires responsible government.
WHERE IS THE LONG-TERM PLAN?
The Gambia has experienced electricity problems for decades. Successive administrations have announced reforms, secured financing, purchased generators, expanded infrastructure and promised improvements.
Yet the country continues to find itself returning to the same crisis.
The question now is not simply whether another generator will arrive.
It is whether the country has a credible strategy capable of preventing the next crisis.
Mr Njai has called for increased generation capacity, stronger transmission and distribution networks, reduced system losses and better management at NAWEC.
He has also called for a long-term national electricity strategy and greater investment in renewable energy, particularly solar power.
These are important proposals. But proposals alone will not keep the lights on.
Gambians need to know what has been implemented, what has failed, how much has been spent, and who is accountable for the failures.
BILLIONS SPENT, BUT STILL IN THE DARK
This is where the national conversation must become much more uncomfortable.
The government has repeatedly mobilised significant financial resources for the electricity sector. Development partners have also supported energy projects.
Yet ordinary Gambians are still experiencing prolonged blackouts.
That raises fundamental questions about value for money.
How much money has been committed to NAWEC and the electricity sector since 2017?
How much has actually reached productive infrastructure?
How much has been spent on emergency interventions?
What has happened to previous investments?
Why have earlier promises failed to produce a dependable electricity supply?
And perhaps the most important question of all:
Who takes responsibility when billions are spent but citizens remain in darkness?
These are not partisan questions. They are questions of public accountability.
BARROW’S VISITS MUST PRODUCE MORE THAN HEADLINES
President Adama Barrow has responded to the crisis by visiting NAWEC facilities, establishing a presidential task force and pursuing additional standby generating capacity.
Those steps may provide temporary relief.
But Gambians have heard promises of improved electricity before.
What the country needs now is evidence that the government has learned from the failures of the past.
A presidential visit to a power station may generate headlines. A task force may produce recommendations. An additional generator may temporarily increase supply.
But none of these, by themselves, constitutes an electricity policy.
The government must explain how it intends to address the deeper problems of generation, transmission, distribution, system losses, financing, management and accountability.
Otherwise, The Gambia risks repeating the same cycle: crisis, public anger, emergency intervention, temporary relief — followed by another crisis.
THE PEOPLE ARE DEMANDING MORE THAN ELECTRICITY
At the heart of the demonstrations is something larger than the absence of power.
It is the feeling among citizens that they are being asked to endure too much while receiving too few answers.
When electricity disappears for hours — or stretches into an entire day and beyond — citizens do not simply lose light.
They lose business.
They lose income.
They lose productive time.
They lose access to refrigeration, water pumping, communications and other essential services.
For vulnerable households, prolonged outages can become a serious financial burden.
That is why government must listen carefully to what the protests are saying, even while firmly rejecting vandalism and violence.
THE GOVERNMENT MUST ANSWER
Mr Njai’s intervention has placed an important principle before the country: citizens have the right to demand accountability.
The government, therefore, should not see the current public anger merely as a security problem.
It should see it as an accountability test.
Gambians should be allowed to ask difficult questions.
They should be allowed to demand explanations.
They should be allowed to protest peacefully.
And government should be prepared to answer.
The destruction of public property cannot be defended.
But neither can the failure to provide credible answers be allowed to become normal.
The Gambia does not simply need another emergency response to the electricity crisis.
It needs accountability for the crises that came before it, transparency over the money already spent, and a credible plan for keeping the lights on long after the protests have disappeared from the headlines.
The people have made their frustration clear.
Now it is time for government to make its answers equally clear.
The question is no longer whether Gambians are angry. They are.
The question is whether those in charge are finally prepared to explain why.
