Top Imam Chebo Cham has said there is nothing wrong in saying some people must be lashed while others must be killed for the continuation of society, in new comments.

The cleric had come under fire after he made comments leaders should kill certain people if society is to remain intact.

But speaking to VM International TV, the cleric said: “People get angry when people are insulting people. So a leader has a right to shut down a radio station. In the eyes of God, it’s not an issue but in our human laws, [they will say] you have violated his right. That he has a right to freedom of speech. So this is the issue we are saying if we should follow that, the nation will not move forward So let’s Gambians understand us. We’re not here to look after any individual interest but the general interest.

“Some must be made to sit on a table and admonished in order for them to stop doing the bad things they’re doing. Some you must place them on a table and beat them. Some you must jail them but there is another who you must kill for him to leave the system so the rest could survive. So there is nothing wrong in this comment.

“The sharia ordered killing. Prophet Muhammed ordered for some people to be killed. But he did not kill them baselessly. He killed them because of society. You have to take out the few for the hundreds to survive.”

A police officer on Friday took the stand and testified he initially charged businessman Bubacarr Keita with defiling a minor.

Heavily-built Musa Dumbuya entered the witness box at 11:20am on Friday to testify in the rape trial as the fourth prosecution witness.

The CID officer told Judge Momodou SM Jallow he was ‘stationed’ at Piccadilly Police Post in November 2019 when he one day reported to work and found the ‘complainant, the victim and the accused’.

“It was around 8[am] onwards,” Dumbuya who is a sergeant and has been a police officer for 11 years said.

He testified: “The case file was prepared and forwarded to the gender and child welfare unit under Serious Crime Unit. The file was assigned to a gender and child welfare officer. As I work together with the gender and child welfare officers, often assisting in their investigation, we both confronted both the accused person and the complainant together with the victim. The accused strongly denied the allegation. During the interview, we came to know that the accused, complainant and the victim live in the same house.

“Subsequently, I left with both the complainant and the accused together with the gender and child welfare officer 2Couple Lisa Colley to visit the house located at Tabokoto. The house of the complainant and the accused was shown to us together with the house of the victim, where she was living, her bedroom. From there we returned back to the station.”

The police officer said Keita was charged once they got back to the police station.

“Bubacarr was cautioned, he was charged,” Dumbuya who was at one moment asked by the judge to speak up so everyone could hear him said.

When asked by prosecuting lawyer Alasan Jobe what offence Keita was charged with, the witness said: “Initially I charged him [with] defilement of a child under the age of 18.”

Dumbuya said Keita ‘again’ denied strongly when the charge was read to him. He was then asked whether he would recognize the document where he charged Keita and he said he would.

How will you recognize it?” Jobe asked him.

In replying, Dumbuya said: “If I see my handwriting I will recognize it and my signature.” Dumbuya then confirmed the voluntary statement shown to him was indeed the one he wrote. The judge admitted it into the records only for identification purposes.

Still, the witness testified elsewhere he knows a person by the name Pa Modou Johm.

The case continues on Monday.

Dumbuya began his testimony on Friday by saying ‘he’s the guy I’m facing’ when asked by the prosecuting lawyer to look around and identify Bubacarr Keita after saying he knew him.

Momodou Sabally has launched a full-throated attack on Essa Faal branding the lawyer a prejudiced narcissist.

Writing on his official Facebook page of more than 28,000 followers Friday, Mr Sabally said: “And when someone asked what was my opinion about Essa Faal upon the release of his closing statement at the TRRC, this was my response:

“This dude is a prejudiced narcissist with no other intention but to use the TRRC as a platform to launch his personal political agenda using the misery of poor victims as a launch pad for his political adventurism.

“Essa Faal is someone who himself was a tool of Yahya Jammeh at the ministry of justice in the early years of the AFPRC.

“For such a person to mount the moral high horse and constantly browbeat a selected group of witnesses while protecting others like Fatou Bom Bensouda at the same time; while the nation sits hypnotized, amazes me.

“Let’s watch his next steps; it is only when he rolls out his grand egotistical agenda, that Gambians will understand what I predicted about Essa Faal when he shamelessly bribed a witness at the TRRC in the name of a land gift; and also pitted the unwitting public against the powers that be by preempting the outcomes of the TRRC’s work…

“Essa’s reckless adventure is certainly going to mar the public perception regarding the TRRC. At the very least, Essa should have waited for a reasonable cooling period after the submission of the TRRC report before venturing into politics… But this is Gambia…”

UDP has issued a statement over the death of the founding president of Zambia Dr Keneth Kaunda.

Dr Kaunda died on Thursday aged 97.

UDP said: “On behalf of the National Executive Committee, the entire Membership of the United Democratic Party  and on my own behalf, I send heartfelt condolences and pray that the entire Kaunda family and the Zambian people are comforted as they mourn the passing of their first President Dr. Kenneth David Kaunda, a true African icon.

“President Kaunda founded and led the main nationalist party, the United National Independence Party, UNIP which campaigned against British colonial rule. Influenced by Gandhi’s strategy of nonviolence, Kaunda spent nine months in prison and later evolved his own humanist, socialist and pan-African philosophy with his slogan: ‘One Zambia, One Nation. As president of Zambia, Kaunda supported the fight of other countries against repressive, racist regimes in South Africa, Namibia, Angola, Mozambique, and Rhodesia now Zimbabwe.

“As Gambians we knew of the special affinity that existed between our first President Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara and President Kaunda in the immediate post-independence era. The first generation of African leaders were highly accomplished patriots and they fought to liberate not only their countries but the whole continent and firmly established a Pan African Agenda.

“Therefore, it is gratifying to note that spirit of mutual cooperation amongst Africans is in high gear of revitalization through the Africa Continental Free Trade Area AfCTA. On this sad occasion of the passing of a giant of Pan African Leadership, UDP takes this opportunity to pay tribute and celebrate the rich lives and remarkable legacies of the Founding Fathers of African freedom. May the highest heavens be their eternal abode.”

Gambia For Five Years and Peace-building has rejected claims the group is a pro-President Adama Barrow pressure group.

“That is totally wrong. They are not getting the point. They do not understand us. It is not. It’s a pro-Gambia group,” Haddy Jallow the deputy spokesperson of the group told The Fatu Network exclusively when what she made of claims her group is one that pushes President Barrow’s agenda.

Gambia For Five Years had written to the police requesting for a permit to protest against the IEC over its decision to allow mayor of Banjul Rohey Lowe issue birth attestation. The police however denied them a permit.

Jallow said the police pinned their decision on ‘security reasons’ and the coronavirus pandemic. She said they are contemplating suing the IEC.

Bright Stars Entertainment have cancelled their tour of the United States after falling victim of a visa scam.

Bright Stars last month announced they will be touring the US.

This week, the comedy and music group issued a statement saying it is “with great regret that we write this official statement to inform you of the cancellation of this proposed tour.”

The group said: “After several investigations and consultation with the Public Affairs section of The U.S Embassy Banjul, we realized that the promoter of this tour, Tutty’s Promotions has presented to the Bright Stars team a fraudulent Visa confirmation letter.”

The founder of Tuti’s Promotions Tuti Wadda confirmed giving a visa confirmation letter to Bright Stars which she said it was given to her by her helper. She declined to provide the specifics.

Public affairs chief at the US Embassy Kathryn Edwards while confirming Bright Stars did reach out to the Embassy said the letter she viewed claimed to be from Ambassador Paschall and said that the recipients had received a visa.

She said: “The document was a complete fabrication.”

And she added: “Not only are visas not issued in this manner, the cited visa category was incorrect, and it said that the Ambassador was approving this visa on behalf of the U.S. Embassy in Dakar. As you know Ambassador Paschall is the U.S. Ambassador The Gambia and not Senegal.”

The US Embassy is working hard to help educate the public about potential scams, according to the top Embassy official.

“Just the other day someone reached out to the Embassy’s Facebook page regarding a message they received advertising the Diversity Visa Lottery Program.  They thought it was suspicious and asked us to confirm.  I was able to confirm that it was indeed a scam, provided the proper link to the program (which should open in October) and we also shared that information as a “Scam alert” on social media to help other potential victims recognize such fraud,” she said.

Press release

Following a surge in atrocity crimes in the West African sub-region over the years, there has been a pressing need for the adoption of renewed strategies to combat the canker in compliance with the principles of the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) as endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly.

In West Africa, there are numerous recorded cases of war crimes and crimes against humanity in countries such as Mali, Guinea, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Gambia, etc. where identity-based violence are also pronounced. Recent cases of atrocity crimes in West Africa have further pushed the atrocity prevention agenda to the fore of policy discourses.

Whereas some progress has been made since 2005 when the R2P was adopted, it is becoming increasingly apparent that implementation at the country level has been slow and in some cases worsening. For instance, accountability for atrocity crimes has been mostly lacking, encouraging a culture of impunity in many spaces.

It is against this backdrop that the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), with support from the Government of Denmark, is organizing a 2-day Regional Conference on the aforementioned subject. The conference is scheduled for Monday 21st June to Tuesday 22nd June, 2021 at the Senegambia Hotel, Banjul – Gambia.

This event is geared towards achieving the undermentioned objectives: Provide a platform for engagement on critical policy issues impacting atrocity prevention efforts in West Africa; Deliberate on national experiences on best practices in atrocity prevention; Discuss appropriate structures and mechanisms for preventing and responding to atrocity crimes in West Africa; and Create a networking opportunity for relevant state officials, civil society actors and other practitioners to facilitate a community of practice for atrocity prevention;

A total of forty – five (45) participants from four participating countries; Ghana, Mali, Cote d’Ivoire and Gambia will converge on Banjul for the event. Participants will also be selected from experienced practitioners and policy level officials from ECOWAS, national human rights commissions, state security agencies, civil society organizations, and other international organizations. The event will leverage both in-person and virtual platforms to facilitate interaction among a wide network of critical stakeholders.

The Danish Government is supporting the KAIPTC to implement strategic projects in areas such as: Women Peace and Security (WPS), Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and Conflict Prevention. The project is on the theme: “Promoting Peace and Security in West Africa”. The activities to be conducted as part of the project comprise research, training, and awareness creation, with the research findings feeding into training courses, policy dialogues, and other events for stakeholder representatives at all levels (from UN General Assembly participants and ECOWAS and AU officials to community-level leaders).

About the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre

The Ghana Ministry of Defence (MoD) established the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) in 1998 and commissioned it in 2004. The purpose was to build upon and share Ghana’s five decades of internationally acclaimed experience and competence in peace operations with other states in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region and the rest of Africa. This was in recognition of the need for training military, police and civilian men and women to meet the changing demands of multidimensional peace operations. The Centre is one of the three (3) Peacekeeping Training Centres of Excellence mandated by the ECOWAS to offer training in peacekeeping and peace support operations (PSO) in Africa.

The Centre delivers training courses in three thematic areas; Peace Support Operations, Conflict Management and Peace and Security Studies and also runs Masters and PhD programmes in same. The KAIPTC has a world-class research department that undertakes research in the thematic areas in Peace and Security. Located in Accra, Ghana, the KAIPTC is an internationally recognized institution and has to date trained and tutored over 25,207 participants and students since its inception.

KAIPTC is a gender-sensitive organization and committed to gender equality. Following the launch of its gender policy in 2014, the Centre has mainstreamed gender into its policies and programmes, and integrates same in its focal areas, namely training, research and postgraduate education. The Centre has developed a Sexual Harassment policy and fully oriented employees on same. It has also provided a Nursing and Childcare Centre and instituted a paternity leave policy, all with the aim to create a conducive work environment at KAIPTC.

By Fatou Camara II

Musician Hussain Dada has reached out to Sukuta Health Centre by giving the health centre sanitary items.

The items include toilet roll, brooms, buckets and other sanitary items and were handed over on Tuesday.

“I’ve been in the music industry for about five years now, developing and growing up I started having ideas of giving back to my community and it feels good to have the support of my label more specifically having to know the items came timely and appreciated,” Hussain Dada said.

His manager Andy Spike said: “Today is a very important day for Run Way Entertainment and Hussain. Dada is a Sukuta born and as the saying goes ‘charity begins at home’. Therefore, starting from home specifically with the health aspect is commendable and worth the support.”

Speaking at the event, Officer In Charge Sukuta Health Center Landing Camara said: “I was very surprised when I saw the items because this is the first of its kind since I came to this health center . Therefore, I’ll like to thank Hussain. This will have a great impact in the sanitary department of the Health Center.”

The Ministry of Health said on Thursday the AstraZeneca COVID-19 Vaccine is out of stock in the country.

“However, the ministry wishes to re-assure those who received the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine and are eligible for the second dose, that they will subsequently receive their due dose as soon as it becomes available,” the health ministry said.

It added: “Please note that any delay in receiving the second dose would not have any negative consequences on individuals and therefore, would not need to start fresh the vaccination.

“The Ministry advice people to maintain and strictly keep their vaccination cards safe and for those who received the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine would not need to receive a different vaccine apart from AstraZeneca.”

President Adama Barrow will travel to Accra, Ghana on Friday to attend the 59th ECOWAS heads of state and government summit.

The 59th ECOWAS Heads of State and Government Summit will hold from the 18th – 20th June 2021.

The President and delegation will depart Banjul International Airport on Friday, 18th June 2021 at 12 Noon, State House said in a dispatch.

Kenneth Kaunda, Zambia’s founding president and liberation hero, has died aged 97 at a military hospital in Lusaka where he was being treated for pneumonia, his son Kambarage said on Wednesday.

Kaunda ruled Zambia from 1964, when the southern African nation won its independence from Britain, until 1991, and afterwards become one of Africa’s most committed activists against HIV/AIDS.

“I am sad to inform (members) we have lost Mzee. Let’s pray for him,” Kambarage said on the late president’s Facebook page.

The former president had been feeling unwell and had been admitted to the Maina Soko Medical Centre in Lusaka earlier this week.

Although Zambia’s copper-based economy fared badly under his long stewardship, Kaunda will be remembered more for his role as an anti-colonial fighter who stood up to white minority-ruled South Africa. (Reuters)

Alagie Muhammed and Alagie Bora have reconciled after souring relations between the two famous comedians.

Alagie Muhammed and Alagie Bora have in the past partnered and worked closely but the duo recently fell out. They however remained tight-lipped over the issue.

The duo has now agreed to let bygones be bygones after intervention by UDP leader Ousainou Darboe.

Alagie Muhammed posted a picture of himself and Alagie Bora Thursday afternoon with the caption, ‘life goes on’.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Thursday the United States Centre for Disease Control (CDC) has issued a Level One (1) Travel Health Notice for The Gambia in its recent global risk assessment level for COVID-19.

The Level One (1) tier is the lowest risk level of the four (4 ) tiered risk levels, with four (4) being the highest.

Based on the Level One (1) Travel Health Notice, the US Centre for Disease Control has advised US citizens who are visiting or planning to visit The Gambia to exercise normal precautions while in The Gambia, the foreign ministry said.

Pakistan has donated 100 tonnes of rice to The Gambia in an expression of goodwill, according to the presidency on Thursday.

In a statement, State House said the Secretary General and Head of the Civil Service, Noah Touray, “on behalf of the Gambia Government received 100 MT of rice from the Republic of Pakistan”.

“In his remarks, Honourable Touray praised Gambia-Pakistan relations, saying that the gesture will go a long way toward addressing food insecurity in The Gambia as a result of COVID-19, as well as enhancing bilateral cooperation.

“The Pakistan High Commissioner to The Gambia based in Dakar, Dr Ali Ahmed Arain, said the donation is an expression of the goodwill that exist between the two friendly nations. He added that the donation will help enhance the food security drive of The Gambia.

“High Commissioner Arain also said Pakistan is willing to share experiences with The Gambia in dealing with natural disasters, adding that his country remains committed to the ties between the two nations,” State House said.

Gambia For Five Years and Peace-building has been denied police permit to stage a march to IEC on Friday to protest against Mayor of Banjul Rohey Malick Lowe.

The pro-President Barrow group has been protesting against both the IEC and Rohey Lowe over the mayor’s powers to issue attestation.

The group applied for a police permit to conduct a press briefing and a walk to Election House to deliver a petition to election officials.

But The Fatu Network has now understood the police have denied the group a permit due to security reasons.

By CGTN Africa

Nearly 200 migrants have run away from a disembarking point in Libya, local publication The Libya Observer reported.

According to the report, the navy vessel Fezzan, of the Libyan Coast Guard, intercepted the 250 migrants while trying to head to Europe on their rubber boats.

The escapees managed to break out after a riot against the rescue teams, the Naval Forces spokesman said.

58 other migrants of African nationalities were also picked up by a different vessel, known as vessel Ubari, after which they were brought to a landing point at Tripoli Naval Base.

Phoenix lll has also managed to rescue 119 migrants of different nationalities while trying to cross the sea to Europe, according to the same source.

The women of The Gambia have continued to dominate their men counterparts in registering for the December presidential election.

In the latest updates seen by The Fatu Network, a total of 376,092 people were registered by the IEC in the first two weeks of voter registration.

Out of the number, 214,626 were female while 161,466 were male.

President Adama Barrow on Wednesday disclosed he did not hesitate approving the appointment of Amina Saho Ceesay as a judge of the Court of Appeal.

The Judicial Service Commission had recommended the top judge for elevation to the appellate court.

PresidenT Barrow approved her elevation and on Wednesday, he presided over the swearing-in of the woman.

Mr Barrow said: “It is with great honour and privilege that I welcome you again to the swearing–in formalities of the Honourable Justice Amina Saho Ceesay, which have just been administered in accordance with Government procedures.

“It is certainly not by dint of luck, but by virtue of hard work, talent, experience and trust that the Honourable Justice Saho Ceesay was recommended by the Judicial Service Commission for appointment as a Justice of the Court of Appeal. In view of her track record, I granted approval without hesitation, confident that it was a decision very well made.

“While I warmly congratulate her and her family on this meritorious elevation to The Gambia Court of Appeal as a Justice of the Court, I trust that her presence will entrench the work ethics of the legal profession in the country and further solidify the jurisprudence of the Court of Appeal.”

The National Human Rights Commission has argued practices such as female genital mutilation and child marriage continue to blight the lives of children in The Gambia, as the commission issued a statement on the occasion of this year’s Day of the African Child.

June 16 was set aside by the African Union to commemorate the 1971 Soweto Student Uprising and encourage Governments and peoples to reflect on the conditions of children in Africa and map out strategies to build an Africa fit for children.

NHRC said: “While The Gambia has taken enviable strides to improve the welfare of children through the enactment of legislation and development of child-friendly policies, child health and general child wellbeing, many gaps and challenges remain in child protection, child survival and development, and enjoyment of the rights stipulated in the Children’s Act 2005 and other ratified regional and international child rights instruments.

“Infant mortality, maternal mortality and morbidity, lack of education amongst girls, child abuse and sexual exploitation, including rape and sodomy, sexual harassment, child trafficking, harmful social and cultural practices such as, FGM and child marriage, child begging, child labour and physical abuse remain some of the conditions that continue to blight the lives of Gambian children.”