Sidia Sagnia was one of the founding fathers of The Gambia’s United Democratic Party (UDP) and one of the men whose courage, vision, and organizational commitment helped give birth to the party in 1996.
In the aftermath of the 1994 military takeover, when political parties were banned and the country was under military rule, a small group of Gambian political leaders began exploring the creation of a new democratic political movement. The discussions began in July 1996 and were conducted with considerable secrecy because political organizing remained politically sensitive.
It was at the residence of Sidia Sagnia that the historic maiden meeting that initiated the formation of the UDP was held. Representatives of the former People’s Progressive Party (PPP), National Convention Party (NCP), and Gambia People’s Party (GPP) gathered to discuss the creation of a broad-based democratic political force. Among those present were Kebba Tamba Jammeh, Jallow Karamo Sanneh, Jobe Kanteh, Ansunding Keita, Bemba Tambedou, Femi Peters, and Amadou Corra.
The meeting was held on a Saturday evening and, according to accounts of the party’s formation, was shrouded in secrecy because the political environment remained dangerous. Yet these pioneers were determined to create a political movement that could offer Gambians an alternative to military rule.
Sidia Sagnia was not merely the host of that historic gathering. He became one of the central architects of the new party. He later worked closely with H.E. ANM Ousainu Darboe and other founding figures as they developed the party’s constitution, structure, identity, and political program. Darboe himself recalled working with Sidia Sagnia, Mbemba Tambedou, and Kebba Jammeh in the process of settling on the name United Democratic Party, while the party adopted “Justice, Peace and Progress” as its motto and the handshake as its symbol of unity.
Sidia Sagnia subsequently became the first Senior Administrative Secretary of the UDP, taking responsibility for helping establish and manage the party’s administrative machinery during its formative years.
His contribution was particularly significant because building a political party from scratch required more than political speeches and rallies. It required organization, discipline, documentation, communication, coordination, and people willing to work behind the scenes to establish the institutional foundations of the movement.
Sidia Sagnia was one of those foundational builders.
The UDP was formally registered in August 1996, and from those humble beginnings it grew into one of The Gambia’s most enduring political movements. The party would subsequently endure decades of opposition, repression, arrests, intimidation, electoral struggles, and sacrifice.
Sidia Sagnia’s role in those earliest days therefore occupies a special place in the UDP’s history. His home became the setting for the meeting that set the formation process in motion, and his subsequent service helped transform the idea of a new democratic movement into an organized political party.
His legacy is also remembered through his contribution to the party’s early political and policy development. Former Vice President Fatoumata Jallow-Tambajang has recalled working with the late Sidia Sagnia in preparing the UDP manifesto during the party’s formative period.
Three decades later, the significance of those early efforts is unmistakable.
The UDP exists because a group of Gambians had the courage to believe that a different political future was possible, and Sidia Sagnia was at the very heart of that beginning.
Mr. Sidia Sagnia, thank you for your tremendous service to The Gambia and to the United Democratic Party. Thank you for opening your home, taking the risks, doing the organizational work, and helping turn an idea into a political movement.
You opened your doors when the country was still under military rule.
You helped bring the founding generation together.
You helped shape the party’s early structures.
You became its first Senior Administrative Secretary.
You helped lay the foundation upon which three decades of UDP history would be built.
As we celebrate 30 years of the United Democratic Party, we remember you as one of the men who made the first steps possible.
You were a pioneer.
You were a founding father.
You were an organizer.
You were an administrator.
You were a party builder.
You were there at the beginning.
Today, we honor Sidia Sagnia and all the founding pioneers whose courage, sacrifice, and vision gave birth to the United Democratic Party.
Happy 30th Anniversary, Mr. Sidia Sagnia.
May Almighty Allah forgive your shortcomings, grant you Jannatul Firdaus, and may your contribution to the birth and development of the UDP remain forever remembered by generations of Gambians.
UDP Media & Communications Team