Gambia’s Adama Barrow’s win brings new hope

Gambia will see a new phase of hope with the surprise win of  Adama Barrow, the property developer. Yahya Jammeh, an authoritarian president who ruled for 22 years, has confirmed that he will step down. “I will help him work towards the transition,” Mr Jammeh said on state TV on Friday evening, after speaking to the president-elect by telephone. Mr Adama, who is 51, who has never held political office, won Thursday’s election with 45.5% of the vote. Countless Gambians took to the streets to celebrate the one of the biggest election events. Mr Jammeh, wielded much power in a bloodless coup since 1994 and has ruled the country with an iron fist from that time.