... as councillor and mayoral elections near

The IEC recently concluded a two-day training of trainers for the January 24 Local Government elections, on January 12-13, at the GTMI conference hall.

Mr Malleh Sallah, vice chairman of the IEC, in his opneing remarks, stated that everybody is aware of the apparent fact that Local Government elections are as important as both presidential and national assembly elections so these elections should be conducted with all needed seriousness.

"This is why we are here today on this interactive training to develop knowledge, skills and attitude through a learning process, so as to be equipped for effective performance on election day," he noted.

In his overview of the training course, Mr Joseph Colley, the director of training and communication of the IEC, said that after this training session, they expect every participant to be qualified so as to be able to handle their tasks effectively.

He advised the course participants to be mature and careful with the way they handle politicians and voters.

He further added that the training course will emphasise appointment and deployment, conducting the polls and counting of ballots.

The training program involved representatives from all the political parties in The Gambia.