Months after inauguration, still confusion over Gambian President Adama Barrow 's Twitter handle

Four months after Adama Barrow was sworn in as the new president of The Gambia, there seems to still be confusion over which of the two Twitter accounts affiliated to the head of state is the official one.

Uncertainty over the accounts first emerged in January, when a Twitter handle purportedly affiliated to Barrow, @adama_barrow , claimed the leader, who was in Senegal at the time, was preparing to leave for Gambia.

However, a spokesperson for Barrow told IBTimes UK at the time that the account was fake, and the official one was @Barrowofficial1. The last time this handle posted something was on 24 February.

Both accounts have not been verified on Twitter.

On 10 May, @adama_barrow posted an announcement from the country's office of press and public relations regarding Barrow's official Twitter handle.

"The Office of Press and Public Relations would like to inform you that President Barrow's official handle – as of 3 December 2016 – is @adama_barrow," read the statement.

Several Twitter users have claimed @adama_barrow is a fake account. One user said in a Tweet in February: "The presidency @BarrowOfficial1 should take care of the parody account @adama_barrow to avoid a potential scandal."

Journalist Ruth Maclean asked for @BarrowOfficial1 to confirm the statement. "Throughout #Gambia elections, Barrow's team said​ that was his account," she said.

IBTimes UK contacted both accounts for clarifications on the matter. Only @adama_barrow replied and said: "The Office of Press and Public Relations has confirmed that the official Twitter handle of the president is — @adama_barrow. It would be great if you could spread the word, as we want people to know that @adama_barrow is the main Twitter handle of the president.

"On 3 December 2016, President-elect Barrow decided to set up a personal account (@adama_barrow) with which he would communicate with his Twitter followers. On 4 December 2016, the media coalition team created the @BarrowOfficial1 account, which was to be verified and used as @PresidentGambia account (mainly for news from the presidency) However, as @adama_barrow has a larger audience, we find no use of the @BarrowOfficial1 account. So, we decided to archive it and not use it anymore. We are looking to verify this account very soon."

Barrow won the December presidential election, defeating previous leader Yahya Jammeh, who had ruled the country for 22 years. However, Gambia experienced a post-election political crisis as Jammeh, now in exile, tried to cling on to power after his defeat.

The political crisis prompted thousands of Gambians , including Barrow, to flee into neighbouring Senegal and tourists to be evacuated amid fears a war could break out.

Jammeh eventually agreed to step down and go into exile in Equatorial Guinea following pressure from world leaders and the intervention of foreign troops.

Barrow took the oath of office at the Gambian embassy in Senegal, in January. There was another official inauguration in Gambia's capital Banjul on 18 February.