Stakes are high in the race to occupy the big seat at the presidential palace. Tension was mounting for the election next year until the coronavirus weakened all political hullabaloo.
Marie Sock announced her candidature seeking to upstage Adama Barrow to a portfolio he has occupied the last four years after he too leapfrogged Yaya Jammeh in 2016.
Daring as it might sound, Sock is seen to be dreading dangerous grounds for most male chauvinists and she has seen enough of the bashing that comes with it.
The jury is out on her case for now but she has presented herself a solid contender so far only that her asking -urging all opposition candidates rally behind her – is perceived to be bordering pomposity. But less she cares about these sorts of perceptions.
She talks of a ten-point agenda to transform this country and has already gone ahead to sell it to voters. Interesting though is, she is keeping her cards close to her chest avoiding her “ideas” -some of them already in the blueprints of rival candidates -from being “stolen” as she jokingly puts it during a recent presser.
Born in Banjul and an entrepreneur by profession, Marie turned subject of social media hating when she dared dye her hair blond – a look winding up majority Gambians.
Consequently, she was forced into reconsidering her aspect of clothing, wearing a lot more “responsible-looking” head-tie during her second interview in an effort to win back trust.
She has been talked down enough from the set out. Most of these detractors could be categorized in two forms; male chauvinists strongly unwelcoming of a woman leader in any sector and content-creators on the pay list of her warring opposition political figures.
The waters are calm this minute, however, the wave will soon begin surfacing once date is set for elections. One thing appears apparent at this juncture -will the traditional players the calibres of Halifa Sallah, Ousainou Darboe, Mama Kandeh and newly formed Citizen Alliance quit their platforms to join her boat?
An intriguing question but the answer is virtually guessable even though it’s a well shared belief there are no permanent enemies in politics.
The APRC still look a force to reckon with including the United Democratic Party as well as PDOIS.
Pundits are predicting Marie eventually quitting her stance to run as an independent and enroll under a merger with one of the traditional wave-makers however, it remains to be seen whether that will be happening.
