Former President of The Gambia Yahya Jammeh and his family have been barred from entering the United States.
According to a statement by the U.S. Department of State, titled ‘Public Designation of The Gambia’s Yahya Jammeh,’ he was sanctioned over “his involvement in significant corruption.”
The statement noted; “The Department is publicly designating former president of The Gambia, Yahya Jammeh, under the terms of Section 7031(c) of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act of 2018, due to his involvement in significant corruption.
“Section 7031(c) provides that, in cases where the Secretary of State has credible information that foreign government officials have been involved in significant corruption or a gross violation of human rights, those individuals and their immediate family members are ineligible for entry into the United States.
“The law requires the Secretary of State to publicly or privately designate such officials and their immediate family members.
“In addition to the designation of Yahya Jammeh, the Department is also publicly designating Jammeh’s spouse, Zineb Yahya Jammeh, his daughter, Mariam Jammeh, and his son, Muhammad Yahya Jammeh.”
The statement further reiterated the United States’ commitment to combating corruption, increasing respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and promoting good governance globally.
It also noted the US support for the Gambian government saying, “The United States stands with the government of The Gambia, its people, and civil society in support of The Gambia’s transition towards greater transparency, accountability, and democratic governance, for the benefit of all Gambians.”
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Jammeh lost the Dec. 2016 elections to the incumbent President Adama Barrow, a result he initially accepted but later reneged on refusing to vacate office.
Barrow was forced to flee to Senegal, and was inaugurated at the Gambian embassy in Senegal on Jan. 19 2017.
The United Nations, the African Union and ECOWAS all stood firm that Jammeh would cease to be recognised as Gambian President from the date he was expected to handover, which the U.S. also supported.
Jammeh was eventually forced to leave The Gambia and go into exile on January 21, while Barrow returned to the Gambia on January 26.
