Gambia's Adama Barrow names Fatoumata Tambajang as VP

New deputy leader had previously vowed to prosecute 
ex-ruler Yahya Jammeh for alleged crimes committed by
 his regime.

The Gambia's president, Adama Barrow, has named senior
politician Fatoumata Tambajang as deputy leader, 
as regional troops continued security sweeps to
 prepare for his return to the country from neighbouring Senegal.

The announcement of Tambajang's appointment will be
followed by the unveiling of the rest of Barrow's cabinet
 later on Tuesday, according to presidential spokesperson Half Sallah.

Tambajang, a former minister and United Nations
Development Programme staffer, was the architect 
of an opposition coalition that helped Barrow defeat
 longtime ruler Yahya Jammeh in a December 
1 presidential election.

She made headlines last month when she told The 
Guardiola newspaper that Jammeh, who came
 to power in a 1994 coup, would be prosecuted 
for alleged crimes committed by his regime.

Following her comments, Jammeh, who had initially 
conceded defeat, announced he no longer
 recognised the result, triggering a protracted 
political crisis which ended when he flew into exile late on Saturday.

Barrow, who fled to Senegal earlier this month for 
security reasons, was sworn in as president on
 January 19 at The Gambia's embassy in Dakar.

His return date has not yet been fixed, and the appointment 
of his cabinet is aimed at filling a void created by his absence.

The armed forces have pledged loyalty to him, though
 troops from West African regional bloc ECOWAS, which entered the country last week to pressure Jammeh to 
step down, continued clearing the presidential compound
 in advance of Barrow's arrival.

They also took over a Republican Guard barracks
 training centre in Bakau, just outside the capital, 
Banjul.

On Sunday, a Barrow aide accused Jammeh of plundering
millions of dollars from the state coffers in his final weeks in
power before flying to Equatorial Guinea.

"Over two weeks, over 500 million dalasi ($11 million) 
were withdrawn" by Jammeh, Mai Fatty said in Dakar. 

"As we take over, the government of The Gambia is in
 financial distress."

Jammeh also took luxury cars he piled onto a Chadian 
cargo plane, Fatty said.

In addition to the accusations surrounding Jammeh's
 wealth, sections of the security services under
 the ex-ruler personal control have been accused of
 carrying out extrajudicial killings, torture and arbitrary detention during his rule, rights groups say.

A truth and reconciliation committee is Barrow's
 "prevented method" of dealing with grievances 
against the  previous government, according 
to his spokesman, but many Gambians take
 the harder line of his new vice president.

Critics have also raised concerns over a statement issued 
by the UN, regional bloc ECOWAS and the African Union 
that seemed to offer Jammeh comfortable guarantees 
in return for his exit.

The statement said "no legislative measures" would be 
taken that against Jammeh or his family, noting that
 he could return when he pleased and that property
 "lawfully" belonging to him would not be seized.