Imam Muhammed Lamin Touray has been tapped for the role of chief imam of Gunjur, according to people familiar with the issue.
Touray was the president of Supreme Islamic Council. He replaces Imam Bakawsu Touray who died a few weeks ago.
‘Allahu Akbar’: Essa Faal expresses shock as Yaya Jarjusey says he supported plans for Jammeh to be made king
Essa Faal got a little stupefied by Jarra West Chief Yaya Jarjusey’s support of a plan by former President Yahya Jammeh to be made king.
“Allahu Akbar. So you were wanted to sacrifice the republican status of this country for a monarchy so that your child has no chance of being head of this country?” Essa Faal asked the Jarra West chief on Wednesday as he appeared before the TRRC over allegations of abusing his powers and sending people to jail illegally.
According to Jarjusey, it was people’s ‘idea’ to make Jammeh king of The Gambia.
He said: “It was people who had the idea; they toured the country and told me and others about it. Yes I supported it. I will not lie to you.
“But it would be left to the people. If people wanted it, then it’s up to them.”
NPP top official Maimuna Baldeh says victory is ‘guaranteed’ where she leads
The women of National People’s Party are ready to hit the campaign trail, according to their leader Maimuna Baldeh.
Mrs Baldeh recently got the nod as women mobiliser of National People’s Party, making her the leader of all NPP women.
She wrote on her official Facebook page on Tuesday: “The NPP women are ready to hit the campaign trail lead by the National Women mobiliser Aja Maimuna Baldeh Jallow. When Aja Maimuna Baldeh Jallow leads, victory is guaranteed.”
Her role involves pushing the agenda of National People’s Party among Gambian women and for them to support President Adama Barrow.
On National (in)security and it’s International Ramifications: shall we tell the president?
One of the key refrains in President Barrow’s utterances when he took over the mantle of leadership of this country was that he did not have the knowledge or experience to run this country and that he was going to rely on his team (meaning the coalition members) to do the job; transforming weak institutions and overhauling the policy frameworks necessary for the smooth running of a modern republic.
Now that that ‘team’ has disintegrated, thanks to his own lust for power, it is incumbent upon us as citizens to share our knowledge and concerns regarding the state of affairs of this country. One such key concern is the apparent breakdown of security characterised by rampant burglaries, importation of drugs and guns in mass quantities, and armed robbery, creating an atmosphere of anarchy.
The forgoing reality of our current situation has created genuine fear and consternation regarding the future of this country. But it is also worrisome that this country that has been an oasis of peace and security in a volatile subregion, might render itself as a hub for distribution of narcotics and international terrorism aided by illicit financial transactions.
If we are not concerned about our own safety and welfare, at least we should be alarmed by the potential of our country to be used as a base for such dangerous organisations like al Qaeda in the Maghreb because all the elements necessary for such an explosive situation have now manifested themselves. Mass youth unemployment, the availability of hard drugs in huge quantities, coupled with mass deportation of disillusioned youths from Europe could be fertile ground for recruitment activities of terror groups. There is an alarming trend of voluntary resignation of soldiers from our national army mainly due to unfavourable conditions of service.
It is a fact that our men and women in uniform have been demoralised by a government that does not care about anything expect their own personal safety and financial security. The continued unjustifiable presence of ECOMIG forces is both a bane for the morale of our security officers and a potential weakening of our national security systems due to past nefarious activities of regional peace keeping forces in countries like Guinea and Liberia.
Our record in terms of importing foreign security forces has not been pretty. The Jammeh-led 1994 coup had a lot to do with the Nigerian command then heading our national army. And before that, the Senegalese forces that guarded former President Jawara left unannounced, creating an unexpected void in our national security setup.
I have heard genuine concerns being raised by some police and military officers regarding the seeming nonchalance of this government about their welfare. It is so bad that some police officers on duty at the President’s own home town of Mangkamang Kunda have decried their poor welfare, especially their feeding at the President’s village; a situation that could have been averted if President Barrow remained content with his palatial lodging at State House powered by a daily fish money of D150, 000 funded by the tax payers. But our President has decided to splurge millions of Dalasis on a grand mansion in his ancestral hamlet thereby inflicting further damage on the national treasury in terms of fuel, extra man-hours and wear and tear among other incidental expenditures.
With foreign troops afforded the privilege and honour of guarding the Commander-in-Chief of our armed forces and our own troops wallowing in the squalor of poor salaries as well as inadequate logistics, how do you expect these men and women to perform at optimum levels.
It is quite evident that the State Security Services (SIS) is now a de facto political wing of the fledgling Barrow political incumbency called the National People’s Party (NPP). Intelligence gathering and analysis is a relentless tedious time-consuming activity. If the top echelon of this critical national security outfit is busy canvassing support for the President’s political party and arranging audiences for political allies with the President, how can they effectively carry out their official mandate?
There is also a growing trend of politicisation of our security services with The Gambia Police Force being in pole position in this race to the bottom. Past heads of the Police in this transition government have dipped too deep into the political cesspool with mass mobilisation of grassroots support for the fledgling Barrow political bus. A recent land fraud case set for prosecution had to be thwarted by the police command because the accused is a loud mouthpiece of President Barrow’s party. This does not augur well for independent professional execution of duties.
No wonder we still cannot get to the bottom of the multi- million dollar cocaine case purportedly still under investigation after 4 months; yet the police have the nerve to create a storm out of a tea cup with a fishy seizure of a few wraps of cannabis allegedly found in the official vehicle of the leading opposition party in the country.
President Barrow is desperate for re-election and self-perpetuation beyond the two term limit sanctioned by the popular draft constitution that he killed before reaching a referendum. He is trying to use our security services to reinforce his political game plan. His disregard of the Truth Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) is now evident. He has already reinstated at least one former top security chief who is regarded as a gross violator of human rights, during the former regime, with close ties to known drug dealers. The reinstatement of this man into the security services was clearly a move to gain political mileage from a particular ethnic group.
The cost of such a drunken adventure is too high. Perhaps Barrow does not know that his own weakening of our national security infrastructure has international ramifications that will catch up with him sooner rather than later.
Shall we then tell our President that there is a natural law that can never be broken: that thoughts and actions have consequences as promulgated in scripture (Both the Bible and Quran); and further elucidated by such luminaries like Sir Isaac Newton (Newton’s Third Law); and the American sage of Concorde, Ralph Waldo Emerson?
May Allah heal and protect the poor victims of our national insecurity nightmare. God bless The Gambia.
Momodou Sabally
Author, Economist, former Minister of Presidential Affairs
‘I’m sorry’: General Alagie Martin returns to the TRRC to apologise to Colonel Babucarr Sanyang for torturing him
General Alagie Martin whose fate remains hanging in the balance amid explosive allegations of torture against him has apologized to Colonel Babucarr Sanyang.
Sanyang said in 2019 Martin placed a plastic bag over his head and tried to suffocate him. He said Martin also meted out other forms of torture to him.
The two met at the TRRC today in a reconciliation showdown.
Martin said: “I’m here to ask forgiveness. It was not my intention to do what has happened. It was the situation at the time. As you know me colonel, I would definitely not come and do those things to you without being given instructions at the time.
“After all what has happened, you were working under me as my 2IC, we worked amicable in the office. But with all those things you managed to cope with me. Once again I would like to say I’m very very sorry for what has happened. Definitely it’s regrettable.”
The TRRC has also heard Martin tortured Sanna Sabally and Sadibou Hydara. He has been accused of always carrying a hammer with him.
Sabally claimed Martin’s team visited him more than 20 times in 1995 in Mile Two and meted out various forms of torture to him including waterboarding, castration and enforced homosexual behaviour. The alleged incidents happened more than two decades ago when Martin was only a sergeant.
State House announces President Barrow will tour roads under construction
President Adama Barrow will on Thursday 20th May 2021 conduct a day’s tour of ongoing road construction projects in the Central River Region-North and the North Bank Region, State House said.
“The objective of this monitoring tour is to assess the implementation progress of the projects.
“President Adama Barrow places a high priority on roads and infrastructural development as outlined in the National Development Plan (NDP). The plan prioritises the completion and upgrading of the national road network and the expansion of feeder roads in rural areas for improved access, mobility and socio-economic development,” the dispatch by the presidency said.
Supreme Court dismisses Bubacarr Keita’s interim bail ask, pins it on incompetence
The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a request by Bubacarr Keita’s lawyers for the businessman to be granted bail amid his appeal at the top court.
Keita, 29, invoked the apex court after the Court of Appeal revoked his High Court bail in March.
The Supreme Court is yet to decide his appeal against the appellate court’s decision yet his lawyers asked the court to grant him bail pending the determination of the appeal.
But in his ruling, top Justice Rahmond Sock insisted the rule Keita’s lawyers relied on applied only to someone who is already convicted of a crime, who has decided to appeal his conviction.
“Clearly, therefore, rule 42 of the Rules of this Court, pursuant to which this application is brought, envisages a situation where one has been convicted of a criminal offence, has appealed to this court against his or her conviction and applied for bail pending the determination of his or her appeal before the court,” Sock argued in one instance.
And in his concluding remarks in a 9-page ruling, Sock said: “I believe the law provides for three types of bail, namely police bail during the investigation of an offence, court bail during the trial (pending the hearing and determination of the offence); and court bail pending the hearing and determination of an appeal against conviction.
“However, these three types of bail are only available in respect of offences not punishable with death or imprisonment for life, as provided by section 99 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Consequently, in the absence of a conviction and appeal therefrom, the Court of Appeal cannot ordinarily grant bail even with respect to bailable offences.
“In the instant suit, section 99 prohibits a court from admitting into bail a person accused of rape or other offences punishable with death or imprisonment for life. The lower court was therefore right to revoke the bail granted by the trial judge contrary to the provisions section 99 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The application before this court is therefore dismissed for incompetence.”
Keita is standing trial for allegedly raping his former wife’s 15-year-old sister, charges he has since denied.
Israel and Palestine: Government describes as ‘abhorrent and criminal’ situation in Gaza and calls for end to violence
Foreign Minister Dr. Mamadou Tangara has called for an end to violence on Palestinians and the lifting of blockade on the Gaza Strip, according to the foreign ministry.
Minister Tangara made this statement on May 16 2021 during an Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s Extraordinary Executive Committee meeting at the level of Foreign Ministers held virtually, the foreign ministry said in a statement on its official Facebook page.
“Dr. Tangara described the situation in Gaza as very sad, abhorrent, criminal, and unacceptable. He pointed out that The Gambia has always been consistent with its position on Palestinians in pursuit of their inalienable and legitimate rights to self-determination and full independence as a sovereign state.
“On the issue of Al-Quds Al-Sharif, Foreign Minister Tangara said attacks unleased on Palestinians have been intestified to an unprecedented levels, noting that the city of Al-Quds Al-Sharif continues to endure judaization, deportation, closure, and settlement of building policies.
“The holy site especially Al-Aqsa mosque faces grief and recurrent attacks in the form of incursion, desecration and denial of access by worshippers as evident in recent crisis in the area, Minister Tangara observed.
“He used the opportunity to urge his counterparts to end the broad daylight massacring of Palestinians as over 130 were killed including children and women and thousands injured,” the news release said.
Survey detects progress in family planning, maternal health and nutrition in Gambia
The Gambia has made notable progress in many health and development indicators, according to the just-released 2019-20 Demographic and Health Survey (GDHS).
The 2019-20 GDHS is the second DHS survey implemented in the country, following the survey in 2013.
The survey results, released today at a national seminar in Banjul organised by the Gambia Bureau of Statistics, show notable improvements in maternal and child health in The Gambia, but important challenges remain.
“The 2019-20 Gambia Demographic and Health Survey provides representative results of key health indicators. We are proud to see so much progress towards achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, and the Government of The Gambia, together with our development partners will use these findings to guide policy and programmatic decisions to ensure healthy lives for all Gambians,” says Nyakassi M.B. Sanyang, Statistician-General at GBOS, according to a press release. Nyakassi M.B. SanyangStatistician-GeneralGambia Bureau of StatisticsNyakass
The total fertility rate in The Gambia has fallen by more than one child since 2013. Currently, women have an average of 4.4 births in their lifetime, compared with 5.6 in 2013. During the same time period, use of modern methods of family planning has more than doubled, from only 8% of married women in 2013 to 17% in 2019-20. Injectables and implants are the most commonly used methods among married women.
Progress in child health has been more uneven. Vaccination coverage has increased in recent years. Currently 85% of children age 12-23 months have received all basic vaccines, up from 76% in 2013. And fewer children are under-nourished or anaemic. Stunting in children, a sign of chronic malnutrition, has dropped from 25% to 18%. Anaemia prevalence has also declined, from 73% of children age 6-59 months in 2013 to 45% in 2019-20. Still, these improvements do not correspond with trends in childhood mortality. Under-five mortality has remained stable since 2013, at 56 deaths per 1000 live births. This means that about 1 in 18 children in The Gambia do not survive to their fifth birthday. Neonatal and infant mortality have increased slightly since 2013.
Gambians are making progress towards a malaria-free future. More than three-quarters of households in The Gambia own at least one insecticide-treated net (ITN). More than half of pregnant women now receive at least 3 doses of SP/Fansidar to prevent malaria, up from only 6% in 2013. The 2019-20 GHDS included malaria testing among children age 6-59 months. Fewer than 1% tested positive for malaria by rapid diagnostic test (RDT).
While the 2019-20 GDHS reports progress in many areas, challenges remain, particularly in the area of women’s empowerment and spousal violence. More than 1 in 3 (39%) ever-married women have experienced spousal violence by their current or most recent husband or partner, whether physical, sexual, or emotional violence. Nearly three-quarters of women age 15-49 in The Gambia have been circumcised. The practice may be becoming less common: 46% of girls age 0-14 are circumcised. Less than half of women and men believe that female genital cutting should continue.
The 2019-20 GDHS provides up-to-date estimates of basic demographic and health indicators at the national level, for urban and rural areas separately, and for each of the 8 Local Government Areas (LGAs). A total of 11,865 women age 15-49 and 4,636 men age 15-59 were interviewed, representing a response rate of 95% of women and 87% of men. The 2019-20 Gambia Demographic and Health Survey (2019-20 GDHS) was implemented by the Gambia Bureau of Statistics (GBoS). The funding for the GDHS was provided by United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the World Health Organization (WHO), ActionAid International The Gambia, the Network Against Gender Based Violence, the National Nutrition Agency (NaNA), and The Government of the Republic of The Gambia. ICF provided technical assistance through The DHS Program, a USAID-funded program that supports the implementation of population and health surveys in countries worldwide.
Additional information about the 2019-20 GDHS may be obtained from GBOS, Kanifing Institutional Layout, P.O. Box 3504, Serrekunda, The Gambia; telephone +220-437-7847.
Dr Isatou Touray says health situation has improved in Gambia but warns against complacency
Vice President Dr Isatou Touray has said the 2019-2020 Demographic and Health Survey shows the health situation in The Gambia has improved since President Barrow assumed office.
“…this new survey shows us many ways that the health situation in The Gambia has improved when the new dispensation was voted into power in since 2017,” Dr Touray said on Tuesday while launching the 2019-2020 Demographic and Health Survey.
The Vice President said fertility rate has “decreased [sic], many more women are delivering in health facilities, more children are vaccinated, and children’s nutritional status has improved”.
“But there is no room for complacency as we still have much work to do. Although women’s use of family planning has increased since 2013, still only 17% of married women are using a modern method of family planning, and many have unmet need.
“Despite important improvements in child health, childhood mortality has not made a much significant decline since 2013,” she added.
In Gambia, 10% of women aged between 25 and 49 had first sex at 15 years old, 5% for men – report
Ten percent of Gambian women between the ages of 25 and 49 had their first sexual intercourse at exactly 15 years of age with five percent of the men having their first sex at the same exact age, according to the 2019-2020 Demographic and Health Survey.
The survey which investigates the demographic and health situation of The Gambia covered 2019 and 2021 and was implemented by the Gambia Bureau of Statistics. The report was launched on Tuesday.
In the report, early marriage among women in The Gambia is relatively common as roughly one in five young women aged 15 to 19 are currently in union, compared with less than one percent of men in the same age group.
Still, the survey’s findings on the age at first sexual intercourse showed ten percent of women aged 25 to 49 had sexual intercourse by age 15 while five percent of the men had sex by age 15.
The survey also said 44% of women aged between 25 and 49 had intercourse by age 18 while 67 percent of the men in the same age bracket had their first sexual intercourse by age 25.
Ambassador Paschall lauds Gambia healthcare improvements amid launch of D20M survey
The United Stated Ambassador to The Gambia Richard Carl Paschall has lauded healthcare improvements in The Gambia and called for investments in maternal healthcare.
On Tuesday, May 18, 2021, representatives of the United States Government joined the Government of The Gambia at the national dissemination of the 2019-2020 Gambia Demographic Health Survey (DHS), US Embassy Banjul said in a statement.
The statement added: “Held at Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference Center, the U.S. Ambassador to The Gambia, R Carl Paschall, accompanied by Dakar-based USAID Deputy Mission Director Dr. Zeric Smith, joined the Vice President of The Gambia, the Minister of Health, and The Gambia Bureau of Statistics to highlight the trends in health outcomes. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) provided both technical and financial support for the survey totaling $400,000.
“The DHS results demonstrate positive improvements in the area of maternal care with 84% of births attended by a skilled provider, compared to 57% in 2013. Additionally, the modern contraceptive prevalence rate also doubled from 8% in 2013 to 17% in the 2020 DHS. Despite noticeable progress in some areas of health, more needs to be done to advance child health. Infant mortality increased from 34% to 42%, and children under 5-mortality increased from 54% to 56% deaths per 1,000 births.
“The data from the DHS will help stakeholders make informed decisions on areas that need improvement. More details on the report can be found via https://www.statcompiler.com/en/.
“Globally, the DHS Program, funded by USAID, has provided technical assistance to more than 400 surveys in over 90 countries. The breadth and depth of the information collected in DHS surveys is recognized as the gold standard for monitoring country progress in improving health outcomes.. The United States Government, through USAID, will continue to support the DHS surveys in The Gambia. This support will include building the capacity of the Bureau of Statistics in collecting and analyzing survey data. The United States Government supports activities in The Gambia which promote stronger health systems for all.”
National Audit Office lands itself a prize for its probe into obstetric care in Gambia
The National Audit Office has been awarded ‘best performance audit prize’ by the by African Organization of Supreme Audit (AFROSAI-E) on Monday for its ‘impressive audit’ into emergency obstetric care in the Gambia.
In the past 2 years, there has been a rising concern among the citizenry about maternal mortality in Gambia, prompting the NAO to probe emergency obstetric care in public health facilities under Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in 2020. The audit covered from January 2017 to 31 December 2019.
“We noted that some key Medical tools or certain important maternal and neonatal assessment equipment are not adequately available in some of the facilities visited. These include Suctioning machines, Oxygen cylinders and dopplers,” said the report published on NAO website.
“Furthermore, 58% of the facilities go for outreach programs without portable haemoglobin-meter (HB meters) at the trekking stations for testing HB. It should be noted that these are crucial to saving a person’s life or performing any procedure, detect and diagnose the problem/disease at a very early stage that aids the health facilities to provide prompt care and treatment.”
The competition received 107 reports from 18 countries in English-speaking Africa. The reports submitted for the prize, according to AFROSAI-E, covers a wide range of issues including public health, environment, e-governance, technology, among others.
“The aim of the prize is to benchmark good practices in performance audit and to highlight efforts made by performance auditors around the region (Africa) by providing parliaments and other stakeholders with quality performance audit reports…,” said AFROSAI-E.
“The audit illustrates serious problems in the emergency obstetric care with far-reaching consequences. There is a consistent aspiration to analyze causes of the identified problems.”
“In this way, the audit report has what it takes to help the government to reduce obstetric complications, maternal deaths and eventually healthcare cost….”
Meanwhile, the Auditor General Karamba Touray has expressed delight that they “efforts in helping the government judiciously utilise scarce resources is recognized.”
AFROSAI-E, established in 2005, is a member-based institution with 26 Auditors-General from English-speaking African countries making up its Governing Board. It is the English language subgroup of AFROSAI, the African branch of the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions.
‘I withdraw my complaint’: Student ends his war with his lecturer
A student at the University of The Gambia who accused his lecturer of violating his right has walked back his complaint.
Mustapha Ceesay lodged a complaint against Dr Charles Mendy with the National Human Rights Commission on May 14 said the lecturer violated his fundamental right to freedom of conscience, association, assembly and movement. He also charged that the lecturer violated his right to practise any religion and to manifest such practice.
According to Ceesay in his complaint, Dr Mendy wilfully held French 102 lecture online “without his knowing fully well that the University informed its staff and students that will it is on Eid break until 17th May”.
Ceesay has now written to the NHRC saying he is now withdrawing his complaint, in a dramatic twist to the matter on Tuesday.
He said in his Tuesday letter: “I hereby withdraw the said complaint after the lecturer concerned on 18th May apologised for the act, announced a postponement of the test previously slated for the 21st May 2021 to a latter day.”
Security must be President Barrow’s utmost priority
By Basidia M Drammeh
When former President Yahya Jammeh surprisingly conceded to Barrow before he made his infamous U-turn, Jammeh implored his successor to prioritize national security, insisting that without peace, Barrow would achieve nothing.
Four years down the line, Jammeh’s prophecy came true with a country once known as a bastion of peace and security entangled in unprecedented insecurity. In his traditional Eid message, President acknowledged the issue, warning that the crimes taking place in the country pose a threat to peace and stability.
The gruesome killing of a 36-year-old lady in Mandinaring, the stabbing of a Senegalese vendor in Westfield and the robbing of a Lebanese businessman at gunpoint add to a catalogue of serious criminal activities that have raised eyebrows in the country, with no end in sight. Though the Gambian police and other security agencies have launched what they have dubbed as Zero Crime campaign in recent times, the crime rate has been on the rise and shows no sign of abating.
Apart from logistical challenges, the security apparatus lacks visible leadership. Despite recurrent security incidents, the Minister of Interior, who is ultimately charged with internal security, has never held a press conference or issue a press release outlining his plans to deal with the dire security situation in the country. Though President Barrow expressed concern over the mounting insecurity in the country in his Eid message to the nation, he fell short of spelling out concrete and tangible measures to combat crime and criminality in the country. Criminals should hear a tougher tone and stricter action.
The insecurity that has rocked the nation in recent times has serious socio-economic consequences for the country. The people of a country that has branded itself as the smiling coast of Africa are fearful of their lives and properties. An economy that heavily relies on tourism stands to suffer as tourists will get scared to be in a country where armed and professional criminal gangs could attack them. Insecurity will equally scare potential investors away. Foreign business people could be mulling over moving out to more peaceful countries.
This is a crucial year for the Gambia as the nation gears up for presidential elections; hence the government needs to ensure that security is maintained to conduct free, fair and transparent elections.
President Barrow and his top security brass must draw up a comprehensive plan to institute law and order. The alarming insecurity is a cause of great concern that needs to be handled with the highest sense of urgency and emergency before the situation spirals out of hand. Inaction in the face of this National security threat stands to scupper the President’s development agenda and plunge the country into the unknown!
Police confirm Westfield stabbing incident
Police have confirmed a stabbing incident at Westfield on Eid day.
Senegalese national Serigne Mbacké Fall was allegedly stabbed by unknown men who tried to rob him on May 14.
His father told Senegalese media his slain son was on his way to send some money to him when he met his brutal fate.
Police spokesman Lamin Njie confirmed the incident saying investigation is currently ongoing into the matter.
Members of the public who wish to volunteer information to assist in the investigation are encouraged to come forward, Njie added.
Armed Men allegedly force their way into Old Jeshwang Home and steal D16M
By Sarjo Brito
A burglary incident in old Jeshwang has left many in the community in a state of trepidation amid a surge in thievery, murder, among other criminal activities in the country.
The Bourgi family woke up to their worst nightmare on the night of May 15th when armed men breached their property which houses them and their auto spare parts shop, leaving with an approximate whooping amount of D16 Million.
A group of six men allegedly forced its way into the burglar-proof house after breaking one of the windows. Starting from the family’s rooms upstairs, the burglars ransacked the entire apartment looking for anything valuable they could steal.
The head of the family identified as Walid Bourgi was home at the time of the incident with his three daughters. Walid Bourgi recalled shots being fired in the air, bound, gagged and mercilessly beaten by the armed men.
A traumatised Bourgi explained: “I wanted to use the restroom and once I entered, I started hearing noise. So, my daughter came next to the door and asked if I was hearing this noise. I asked her if she knew where it was coming from, but she said no. And then suddenly she screamed, and someone opened fire.
“That is when I jumped from the toilet and when I opened the door of the toilet, the guy was straight in my face. I locked the door immediately and called my son, but he did not answer, so I pretended that I was talking to him, asking him to come home because we have thieves in the house to scare them off.”
The burglars became enraged at Walid’s attempt to scare them off and that was when the assault on him and his three daughters began.
“They broke the door of the toilet, entered and started hitting me and my daughters. They were mostly hitting on me. And they started throwing everything out of the cupboards. They found about D20,000 in my daughters’ cupboards and their gold which they also took,” he explained.
The rage did not stop as the armed robbers had a bigger plan in mind which was to access the safe in the shop where hard currencies were kept. But first they will have to overpower the male in the house by torturing him, forcing one of the daughters to use her survival instincts, leading them exactly where the cash was.
“They tried to drag me downstairs. Then they saw that I was pushing and pulling with them. They brought me in again. They took my watch and my phone from me. When they brought me back inside, they silo taped my daughters’ mouth and their hands, and they started hitting me. That was when one of my daughters gave them signs that she will lead them to the safe. She was not happy with what they were doing to me. So, she led them downstairs, opened the safe and they cleared everything,” Bourgi recounted.
Whilst everyone tried to wrap their head around what happened, some are left wondering how the armed thieves made it into the property even when it was burglar-proof, with cameras mounted at every angle.
“They were about five to six people. Some stayed with us and some went downstairs. And some were even down waiting in the car. They turned all the camera’s off and took the decoder with them. They removed the whole recoding system for the CCTV, cut the wires and removed everything,” Bourgi said.
Asked in monetary value how much the burglars got away with; Walid dropped the shocker.
‘’They went with a watch also (Rolex watch) worth about USD20,000 and some gold. They also went with Dollars, Euro, CFA and other hard currencies. If you want to put them equivalent to dalasi, they are almost about D16 Million,” Bourgi said.
Walid Bourgi said crime has become prevalent in the country, adding that recent times and trends have become scary.
“This is becoming profoundly serious. If these people can break your burglar-proof [home], enter your house while you are awake and bring weapons with them, threaten you, hit you, I am afraid it will get to a point when they strike during the day. The pestle they had, maybe it was not real, but it looked like a real pestle and sounded like one. I did not see any holes, that is why I assume it was artificial with rubber bullets. But in the future these people will come in with real weapons and it will be more dangerous,” he said.
UTG: Student accuses his lecturer of violating his right, takes him to human rights commission
A student at the University of The Gambia is seeking redress at the National Human Rights Commission after he accused his lecturer of violating his right.
Mustapha Ceesay who is reading development studies at the varsity filed a complaint against Dr Charles Mendy that the lecturer violated his fundamental right to ‘freedom of conscience, association, assembly and movement guaranteed under Section 25, subsections 1b and c of the 1997 Constitution’. He also charged that the lecturer violated his right to practise any religion and to ‘manifest such practice as guaranteed by Section 25, subsection c of the 1997 Constitution’.
In his letter to the chairman of the National Human Rights Commission on May 14, Ceesay Dr. Charles Mendy wilfully held French 102 lecture online without his “knowing fully well that the University informed its staff and students that will it is on Eid break until 17th May. Less than a quarter of the registered students were present as a result, he claimed.
“Thereon, Mendy held the lecture to the end without regard for the UTG notice and the Eid celebrations I and other colleagues absent were engaged in because the UTG granted us the permission.
“Evidence on the platform also revealed that during the lecture, he had slated 21st May for a test and gave guidelines to those present. And further held another lecture in the afternoon to the disadvantage of many more,” Ceesay then told the NHRC chairman in his letter of complaint.
He said the lecture did not only violate the UTG announcement but also his fundamental right to freedom of conscience, association, assembly and movement. He also said his right to practice any religion has been violated.
He then asked of the NHRC to “instruct Dr. Charles Mendy to postpone the French 102 test slated for Friday 21st May to Friday 28th May 2021 because I have missed the lecture before, during which vital information such as test guideline and other issues relevant have been discussed”.
Ceesay also asked the commission to instruct Dr. Charles Mendy to repeat the said lecture delivered on Friday on 14th May on Friday 21st May to give him the opportunity to benefit from whatever is discussed.
He said elsewhere: “Instruct Dr. Charles Mendy to grant me a public apology for wilfully violating the said constitutionally given right of mine; and instruct Dr. Charles Mendy to apologise for giving false information that the break announced by the UTG is for the management only.”
‘Israel’s actions are a violation of international law’: UDP issues statement over ‘latest Israeli violence against Palestinians’
United Democratic Party has issued a statement calling for an end to raging violence between Israel and Palestine.
The Israeli army has in past days been engaged in airstrikes in Gaza as violent confrontations erupted between Israel and Palestine.
UDP said today in a statement signed by leader Ousainou Darboe: “Throughout the EID holidays Gambians and the rest of the world have watched with horror and consternation the violent attacks of the Israeli Defence Forces on Gaza. The escalating situation in Israel and Palestine affirms once more that intractable conflicts can only be solved through peaceful negotiation.
“The senseless and continued Israeli bombardment of Gaza will have devastating consequences for more than two million people who have been suffering under an illegal Israeli blockade for 14 years. As is always the case, it is civilians who will bear the brunt, with their homes and livelihoods destroyed. Every effort must be made to dissuade both sides from further escalation, and to end the violence that is causing fear, death and misery on both sides.
“The horrific images also demonstrate that unless the root causes of a conflict are addressed, in this case the illegal occupation by Israel of Palestinian land and the denial of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, there will never be peace.
“The latest violence was sparked by an Israeli court decision to evict a group of families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in East Jerusalem to make way for Israeli settlements. The sight of women and children being evicted from the homes their families have lived in for generations brings back painful memories of apartheid South Africa – of forced removals and land dispossession of the last century. Being forced from one’s home at gunpoint is a trauma not easily forgotten, and is carried across generations. For all who believe in equality, justice and human rights, UDP cannot but be moved and indeed angered, at the pain and humiliation being inflicted on the Palestinian people.
“Israel’s actions are a violation of international law. They show a total disregard for successive United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions that call for an end to the occupation of Palestinian land and for the fulfillment of the rights of the Palestinian people. Since Israeli security forces launched assaults on worshippers at Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem last week, the violence has now engulfed the Gaza Strip, large parts of the West Bank and a number of Israeli cities. It has claimed the lives of dozens of people, including children.
“According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) at least 40 children have been killed in Gaza since 10 May. Over half of them were under 10 years old. It is also deeply troubling that Israeli forces last week destroyed a multi-storey building that housed a number of media organisations, such as Al Jazeera AP Reuters etc sending a chilling message to media reporting on the violence.
“UDP calls on all parties involved to show restraint, to respect human life, and to cease the current hostilities. Far too many lives have been lost to this intractable conflict. The continued occupation of Palestinian land and the suffering of the Palestinian people is a blight on the conscience of humanity.
“As a Political Party UDP is committed to being part of international efforts aimed at reviving a political process that will lead to the establishment of a viable Palestinian state existing side-by-side in peace with Israel, and within internationally recognised borders. The two-state solution remains the most viable option for the peoples of Israel and Palestine, and must continue to be supported.
“As firm believers in justice and freedom, UDP stands with the Palestinian people in their quest for self-determination, UDP also support their resistance against the deprivation of their human rights and the denial of their dignity.”