26th January, 2017
Barrow confirmed this on his twitter handle, @adama_barrow, on Thursday.
He tweeted: “I’m finally home. #Gambia”.
Reuters earlier reported that hundreds of people gathered along the streets of Gambia’s capital Banjul to welcome home the new president after former President Yahya Jammeh went into exile under pressure from regional leaders.
Gambians were seen along wide avenues leading to the airport, wearing T-shirts with Barrow’s picture blowing whistles, drumming and singing in Fula language.
“We welcome you our president, our hope, our solution.”
Barrow won the Dec. 1 election, but Jammeh refused to step down, forcing his opponent to be inaugurated at the Gambian Embassy in Senegal.
Jammeh departed The Gambia for Equatorial Guinea on Saturday night after final mediation efforts by presidents Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz of Mauritania and Alpha Condé of Guinea.
Thousands of soldiers from the ECOWAS sub-regional bloc were poised to remove him by force after his 22-year rule.
The ECOWAS Commission President, Marcel de Souza on Tuesday said the coalition force in The Gambia would remain for the next six months, as requested by Barrow.
De Souza, however, said that retaining troops in that country would be decided by the Chiefs of Army Staff.