Abidjan - Gambia's President Yahya Jammeh,
who initially accepted his defeat in a December 1 election before
making a dramatic about-face, will challenge the poll result
before the Supreme Court, the ruling party said in a statement.
His loss to opposition candidate Adama Barrow, announced by
the elections commission last week and followed by his rapid
concession, had sparked hope for change in the tiny West African
nation following 22 years of Jammeh's authoritarian rule.
However, in a moved that drew widespread condemnation from
the international community, the mercurial former coup leader on
Friday decried "serious and unacceptable abnormalities" and
called for fresh polls.
In a statement broadcast on state television late on
Saturday, the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and
Construction (APRC) said it was preparing a legal challenge to
the result.
"The statement of APRC chairman Yahya Jammeh on the 9th
December was a prelude of a petition that the APRC is in the
process of filing before the Supreme Court against the flawed
decision of the Independent Elections Commission," it said.
Under Gambian law, candidates have 10 days starting from the
announcement of election results during which to submit a
challenge with the court. Monday is a national holiday in
Gambia, making Tuesday the final deadline for filing a petition.