Gambian president: 'Rule of fear has vanished'
Adama Barrow ushered in a new era of Gambian politics as he returned to the west African country to take up his role as president after his predecessor finally relinquished power.
Defeated leader Yahya Jammeh has ceded control of the country he ruled for 22 years and is set to leave for Guinea on Saturday evening.
"I'd like to welcome you all to the new Gambia," Mr Barrow said in his first press conference since Yahya Jammeh relinquished power.
Mr Barrow said: "The rule of fear has vanished from The Gambia for good.
"I wish to welcome you to the new Gambia."
He continued: "For the first time in five decades, the government has been changed by the force of the ballot box.
"On 1 December Gambians proved that power belongs to the people."
Mr Barrow was sworn in as the new president in neighbouring Senegal on Thursday due to increasing political tensions in The Gambia.Mr Barrow, who is a former security guard at Argos in north London, won the presidential election in December last year.But Mr Jammeh, who first seized power in a bloodless coup in 1994, refused to accept the election result, citing irregularities in the vote.
Earlier on Saturday, Mr Jammeh announced he would be stepping down: "I have decided today in good conscience to relinquish the mantle of leadership of this great nation," he said on state television."