Gambians vote in first post-Jammeh poll

Gambians have been voting for members of their one-chamber parliament in the the first polls since Yahya Jammeh left power after more than 22 years, BBC has reported.

Under Mr Jammeh, the National Assembly was frequently ignored as the president enacted executive decrees without consultation.

Expectations are high that under the new president, Adama Barrow, parliament will play a key part in lawmaking.

Mr Barrow has pledged to carry out political, security and media reforms.

As part of his proposed reform, he is setting up a truth and reconciliation commission to investigate abuses committed under Mr Jammeh’s rule.

Reports say voter turnout has so far been relatively low.

“Jammeh was a determining factor which encouraged some people to vote and now that he is gone they are not really motivated,” Pierre Gomez from Banjul University told the BBC.

Some of the candidates were also not well known to voters, he added.

Mr Jammeh sparked a political and constitutional crisis by refusing to leave office following his defeat in the December 2016 presidential election.

He finally headed for exile on 21 January after neighbouring countries threatened to remove him by force.