President Adama Barrow will travel to Abuja, Nigeria on Friday to attend the 55th session of the Ecowas heads of state and government summit.
The director of press and public relations Amie Bojang Sissoho made this known on Thursday in an engagement with Gambian journalists at State House.
The Summit will promote peace and stability, economic growth as well as nurture democratic values in the sub-region, Sissoho said.
By Lamin Njie
The President Adama Barrow has made a personal donation of 1000 bags of rice worth over one million dalasis to be distributed to victims of last week’s deadly windstorm in the Central River Region and Upper River Region, State House press secretary Amie Bojang Sissoho has said.
A powerful windstorm Tuesday last week swept at least 600 houses in the two regions, displacing thousands of people.
“President Barrow delegated the Vice President to visit the victims of the recent windstorms disaster in the CRR and URR over the weekend to show solidarity with the victims,” the president’s spokeswoman Amie Bojang Sissoho told journalists at State House on Thursday.
She added: “It was reported that during a rapid appraisal of the situation, the NDMA has done its initial assessment of the destruction to prepare a relief plan. It was reported that 600 properties have been affected in the URR alone.
“The President has made a personal donation of 1000 bags of rice, worth over a million Dalasi to be distributed to the victims. Efforts are being made to mobilize D35 million as estimated amount required to provide relief.”
On June 21, 2019, Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo released the 2018 version of the annual Report to Congress on International Religious Freedom – the International Religious Freedom Report – that describes the status of religious freedom in every country. The report covers government policies violating religious belief and practices of groups, religious denominations and individuals, and U.S. policies to promote religious freedom around the world. The U.S. Department of State submits the reports in accordance with the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.
This year’s report on The Gambia details a climate of broad religious tolerance and acceptance. The report includes U.S. Embassy efforts to decentralize and expand outreach to religious communities. In remarks at an Iftar hosted during the Holy Month of Ramadan this year, Ambassador Paschall noted that just as The Gambia is a leader in religious tolerance and acceptance, it can be a leader on many other significant human rights issues.
The full report, including The Gambia country narrative, can be found online at: https://www.state.gov/reports/2018-report-on-international-religious-freedom/the-gambia/.
While it is indeed painful to witness a key perpetrator like Yankuba Touray easily walk out of the TRRC it is necessary to point out that indeed the Constitution, from sections 13 to 17of the Second Schedule have protected members and other persons acting in the name of the notorious AFPRC from accountability. In their criminal minds the junta seemed to have considered that a day of reckoning would one day arrive and therefore they crafted these entrenched clauses to protect themselves. However, it must be noted that these AFPRC members shall not escape justice for long hence Yankuba was ill-advised to invoke those provisions.
What did those sections say?
Section 13(1) clearly protects members of the AFPRC or their ministers or appointees from answering before any ‘court or authority or under the Constitution or any other law’ for anything they did or failed to do in the ‘performance of their official duties’ in the name of the junta. While torture and murder are indeed not an official duty, however the drafters of the Constitution smartly covered up this matter with subsection 4 which states that even if such action was taken not in ‘accordance with any procedure prescribed by law’ it cannot be questioned.
These actions have been listed in subsection 2 as actions leading to or subsequent upon the July 22 military coup which includes the overthrow of the PPP Government, suspension of the 1970 Constitution or the establishment of the AFPRC. Section 13 went further to state in paragraph 3 that no person acting on behalf of the AFPRC shall be questioned for any act in any proceedings and therefore no court or tribunal shall have the power to make any decision on account of these acts. Furthermore, under paragraph 5 it stated that no court or tribunal shall ‘entertain an action’ against any person acting on the instructions or authority of AFPRC even if such action violates any law during the tenure of the AFPRC.
To further concretise their protection from accountability the Constitution went ahead in Section 17 to state that even the National Assembly ‘shall have no power’ to amend or repeal Section 13 and other sections which seek to prevent any court to challenge the decisions of the commissions of inquiry set up by AFPRC (Section 11) or Section 12 relating to the succession of AFPRC to the properties of the former government or Section 14 which also relates to preventing anyone challenging the confiscation of properties or penalties imposed by AFPRC. Only a referendum can amend or repeal these provision!
In light of the above one can see that Yankuba has a firm ground to refuse to testify as that would mean an ‘authority’ or a ‘proceeding’ is questioning his actions and inactions as a member of the AFPRC. While the TRRC is essentially a fact-finding exercise, and not a court or tribunal, as set out in its objectives in Section 13 of its Act, it must be noted that such inquiry focuses on the actions and inactions of individuals who might be members of AFPRC or their ministers or appointed persons. The recommendations of the TRRC are indeed decisions that would may lead to other decisions being subsequently taken by any authority on the actions or persons connected with AFPRC.
Section 14 of the TRRC Act states one of its functions as investigation of human rights violations that took place between 1994 and 2017. These violations indeed would definitely be actions or inactions committed by AFPRC persons who are already protected by Section 13 of the Constitution from being questioned by anyone. The powers of the TRRC under Section 15 of its Act further emphasise the extent to which it can go to investigate including forcing a person to testify as they did with Yankuba Touray by subpoenaing him.
Section 19 of the TRRC Act gives the power to the Commission to recommend amnesty for perpetrators who apply for such. This means where the TRRC does not give amnesty to a perpetrator then such a person stands the risk of prosecution. Therefore, in view of Section 13 (2) of the Constitution this means the actions or inactions of an AFPRC member or minister are potentially subject to question or decision by some authority contrary to the Constitution.
The question now is what is to be done?
We must bear in mind that a review of Section 13 of the Constitution focuses only on acts and omissions ‘relating to, or subsequent upon’ four events. These are the overthrow of the PPP Government before the formation and after the establishment of the AFPRC and the suspension of the 1970 Constitution as well as the establishment of the 1997 Constitution. This means therefore actions beyond 1996 are not covered by the Constitution for which AFPRC members, ministers and appointed persons do not enjoy any constitutional immunity.
In my view therefore TRRC should focus on the period after 1996 for those AFPRC members who refuse to cooperate by invoking Section 13 of the Constitution. This is one option for TRRC to consider. Otherwise arresting these individuals would be unconstitutional and certainly difficult to prosecute. It will serve to derail the Commission and potentially lose its cool. We must avoid that.
The other option would be to challenge the constitutionality of the immunity clauses in Section 13. I do not think this is also a wise option as Section 13 is indeed part of the Constitution as an entrenched clause. Consequently, it would be strange to question the constitutionality of a provision of the Constitution. Constitutional experts may wish to interrogate the idea of how the Supreme Court could question a provision of the Constitution against the Constitution. What I know is that the Constitution is the basic law and therefore it is other laws and actions or omissions by natural and legal persons that are interpreted in their relation to the constitution. But to question the constitution against the constitution would be a contradiction in terms in my view.
Having said that it is important to highlight that after all AFPRC persons cannot escape justice. This is because sooner than later the 1997 Constitution will be repealed as we usher in a new constitution for the third republic. That dispensation therefore opens the floodgates to now prosecute AFPRC persons without any hurdles. This is where Yankuba would now come to realise, albeit too late though that his actions before the TRRC were ill-advised.
I wish to therefore urge the TRRC to order the release of Yankuba Touray and rather subpoena him to testify on other issues beyond 1996. Failure to testify for those issues would directly violate the TRRC Act as he would have no constitutional immunities. Therefore, the Commission would have a legitimate ground to seek his arrest and prosecution of he refuses to testify.
As citizens there is no need to despair or act unlawfully because of the unfortunate actions of Yankuba. Anywhere Yankuba goes in this world he cannot escape justice because he has indeed committed crimes that are against humanity hence international crimes. That Yankuba Touray would act in such a way must not be found surprising. Such actions by perpetrators are a normal occurrence in truth commissions around the world.
For that matter no one would have any reason to question or doubt the power, competence, integrity or relevance of the TRRC. This unfortunate action cannot in any way prevent other witnesses from testifying. I am sure many such persons would rather advise themselves properly to realise that it is in their own personal interest to come forward to testify as we saw how Sanna Sabally, Alagie Kanyi, Alagie Martin and others did.
For the Gambia Our Homeland
The writer, Madi Jobarteh, is a renowned Gambian political commentator
While it is indeed painful to witness a key perpetrator like Yankuba Touray easily walk out of the TRRC it is necessary to point out that indeed the Constitution, from sections 13 to 17of the Second Schedule have protected members and other persons acting in the name of the notorious AFPRC from accountability. In their criminal minds the junta seemed to have considered that a day of reckoning would one day arrive and therefore they crafted these entrenched clauses to protect themselves. However, it must be noted that these AFPRC members shall not escape justice for long hence Yankuba was ill-advised to invoke those provisions.
What did those sections say?
Section 13(1) clearly protects members of the AFPRC or their ministers or appointees from answering before any ‘court or authority or under the Constitution or any other law’ for anything they did or failed to do in the ‘performance of their official duties’ in the name of the junta. While torture and murder are indeed not an official duty, however the drafters of the Constitution smartly covered up this matter with subsection 4 which states that even if such action was taken not in ‘accordance with any procedure prescribed by law’ it cannot be questioned.
These actions have been listed in subsection 2 as actions leading to or subsequent upon the July 22 military coup which includes the overthrow of the PPP Government, suspension of the 1970 Constitution or the establishment of the AFPRC. Section 13 went further to state in paragraph 3 that no person acting on behalf of the AFPRC shall be questioned for any act in any proceedings and therefore no court or tribunal shall have the power to make any decision on account of these acts. Furthermore, under paragraph 5 it stated that no court or tribunal shall ‘entertain an action’ against any person acting on the instructions or authority of AFPRC even if such action violates any law during the tenure of the AFPRC.
To further concretise their protection from accountability the Constitution went ahead in Section 17 to state that even the National Assembly ‘shall have no power’ to amend or repeal Section 13 and other sections which seek to prevent any court to challenge the decisions of the commissions of inquiry set up by AFPRC (Section 11) or Section 12 relating to the succession of AFPRC to the properties of the former government or Section 14 which also relates to preventing anyone challenging the confiscation of properties or penalties imposed by AFPRC. Only a referendum can amend or repeal these provision!
In light of the above one can see that Yankuba has a firm ground to refuse to testify as that would mean an ‘authority’ or a ‘proceeding’ is questioning his actions and inactions as a member of the AFPRC. While the TRRC is essentially a fact-finding exercise, and not a court or tribunal, as set out in its objectives in Section 13 of its Act, it must be noted that such inquiry focuses on the actions and inactions of individuals who might be members of AFPRC or their ministers or appointed persons. The recommendations of the TRRC are indeed decisions that would may lead to other decisions being subsequently taken by any authority on the actions or persons connected with AFPRC.
Section 14 of the TRRC Act states one of its functions as investigation of human rights violations that took place between 1994 and 2017. These violations indeed would definitely be actions or inactions committed by AFPRC persons who are already protected by Section 13 of the Constitution from being questioned by anyone. The powers of the TRRC under Section 15 of its Act further emphasise the extent to which it can go to investigate including forcing a person to testify as they did with Yankuba Touray by subpoenaing him.
Section 19 of the TRRC Act gives the power to the Commission to recommend amnesty for perpetrators who apply for such. This means where the TRRC does not give amnesty to a perpetrator then such a person stands the risk of prosecution. Therefore, in view of Section 13 (2) of the Constitution this means the actions or inactions of an AFPRC member or minister are potentially subject to question or decision by some authority contrary to the Constitution.
The question now is what is to be done?
We must bear in mind that a review of Section 13 of the Constitution focuses only on acts and omissions ‘relating to, or subsequent upon’ four events. These are the overthrow of the PPP Government before the formation and after the establishment of the AFPRC and the suspension of the 1970 Constitution as well as the establishment of the 1997 Constitution. This means therefore actions beyond 1996 are not covered by the Constitution for which AFPRC members, ministers and appointed persons do not enjoy any constitutional immunity.
In my view therefore TRRC should focus on the period after 1996 for those AFPRC members who refuse to cooperate by invoking Section 13 of the Constitution. This is one option for TRRC to consider. Otherwise arresting these individuals would be unconstitutional and certainly difficult to prosecute. It will serve to derail the Commission and potentially lose its cool. We must avoid that.
The other option would be to challenge the constitutionality of the immunity clauses in Section 13. I do not think this is also a wise option as Section 13 is indeed part of the Constitution as an entrenched clause. Consequently, it would be strange to question the constitutionality of a provision of the Constitution. Constitutional experts may wish to interrogate the idea of how the Supreme Court could question a provision of the Constitution against the Constitution. What I know is that the Constitution is the basic law and therefore it is other laws and actions or omissions by natural and legal persons that are interpreted in their relation to the constitution. But to question the constitution against the constitution would be a contradiction in terms in my view.
Having said that it is important to highlight that after all AFPRC persons cannot escape justice. This is because sooner than later the 1997 Constitution will be repealed as we usher in a new constitution for the third republic. That dispensation therefore opens the floodgates to now prosecute AFPRC persons without any hurdles. This is where Yankuba would now come to realise, albeit too late though that his actions before the TRRC were ill-advised.
I wish to therefore urge the TRRC to order the release of Yankuba Touray and rather subpoena him to testify on other issues beyond 1996. Failure to testify for those issues would directly violate the TRRC Act as he would have no constitutional immunities. Therefore, the Commission would have a legitimate ground to seek his arrest and prosecution of he refuses to testify.
As citizens there is no need to despair or act unlawfully because of the unfortunate actions of Yankuba. Anywhere Yankuba goes in this world he cannot escape justice because he has indeed committed crimes that are against humanity hence international crimes. That Yankuba Touray would act in such a way must not be found surprising. Such actions by perpetrators are a normal occurrence in truth commissions around the world.
For that matter no one would have any reason to question or doubt the power, competence, integrity or relevance of the TRRC. This unfortunate action cannot in any way prevent other witnesses from testifying. I am sure many such persons would rather advise themselves properly to realise that it is in their own personal interest to come forward to testify as we saw how Sanna Sabally, Alagie Kanyi, Alagie Martin and others did.
For the Gambia Our Homeland
By Lamin Njie
Justice Minister Abubacarr Tambadou on Wednesday said the ministry of justice will vehemently prosecute Yankuba Touray.
The former AFPRC junta topshot was at the centre of dramatic scenes on Wednesday after he appeared before the TRRC but refused to testify to the commission. He was later arrested by the police.
“I was actually shocked by his behavior, by his contemptuous conduct towards not just the commission but the commissioners for whom he had total disregard. His actions today were really shocking and there is no excuse for this kind of behavior in any civilized society,” Mr Tambadou told GRTS Wednesday afternoon.
The Justice Minister added: “I can assure you that his defiance will not go unchallenged. It it as sure as daylight that my ministry will act in the most serious manner in supporting the commission’s important work for the country.
“We will not entertain or tolerate this kind of behavior from anyone including Mr Touray and we will set an example so that those who are even imagining they can do something like this and get away with it will think twice.”
By Lamin Njie
Justice Minister Abubacarr Tambadou on Wednesday slammed former president Yahya Jammeh saying the former leader abused his position as head of state to the detriment of many Gambians including the sexual assault.
Fatou Jallow a 23-year-old Gambian based in Canada has told various news outlets including New York Times that former president Yahya Jammeh raped her. Ms Jallow claimed the incident happened in 2015 at State House.
On Wednesday, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice Abubacarr Tambadou issued a statement praising Ms Jallow’s courage for ‘speaking up and sharing her story with the world.
Mr Tambadou said in his statement: “The Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubacarr M. Tambadou, has followed with keen interest the recent publication on 25 June 2019 of an interview by the New York Times of Ms Fatou Jallow, a Gambian national, who was reportedly raped by former President Yahya Jammeh.
“The Attorney General salutes the courage of Ms Jallow for speaking up and sharing her story with the world and for exposing yet another serious allegation of reprehensible conduct by former President Jammeh who abused his position as head of state to the detriment of many Gambians including the sexual assault of Ms Jallow, a young and brave girl.
“I take this opportunity to call upon all women and girls in the country to emulate Ms Jallow by speaking up about their own experiences with former President Jammeh and to do so in any manner that they see fit including through testimony before the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC). It is only through speaking up and exposing such despicable acts especially by those in positions of power can we effectively combat the scourge and menace of sexual violence against women and girls in our society.”
By Lamin Njie
The subpoenaing of Yankuba Touray by the TRRC turned chaotic when the former AFPRC junta leader stormed out of the hearing room of the investigation.
Yankuba Touray was at the centre of dramatic scenes on Wednesday after he was subpoenaed by the TRRC to testify to the commission.
Drama started as early as 10:00am when Mr Touray first reported to the commission, engaging in a long back and forth with TRRC officials. During the standoff, Touray made it clear he was not comfortable testifying publicly.
At about 11:30am, Touray finally came out of the witness room and took his seat in the hearing room but once asked by the TRRC counsel Essa Faal to stand up to swear to the Quran, Touray refused. Touray then sat and said, “Mr chairman, I think we have a problem. I am leaving”
The chairman of the commission Lamin Sise read a statement shortly after Touray stormed out, saying: “The Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission has issued multiple subpoenas to Mr Yankuba Touray to appear before the commission to testify as a person adversely mentioned for his involvement in human rights violations between 1994 and 1996.
Chaiman Sise then added: “All those subpoenas were postponed and the last subpoena was issued on the 24th day of June 2019 for his appearance and testimony before the commission today.
“During a meeting this morning between Mr Touray, the chairman and the commission’s staff members, Mr Touray indicated his refusal to honour the subpoena. He is presently within the premises of of the TRRC but as just been seen, he has clearly refused to appear and testify before the commission pursuant to the subpoena.
“Mr Yankuba Touray claims that he has immunity from prosecution for all human rights violations that occurred between 1994 and 1997. It must be noted however that even if this immunity claim were to be accepted which is not the case, he cannot lawfully refuse to appear before the commission and answer questions that do not directly violate the immunity he claims.
“Mr Yankuba Touray has also been informed on several occasions that failure to respect a subpoena issued by the TRRC constitutes a contempt of court and is therefore liable to be referred to the high court for prosecution. In the light of this, the commission has to act firmly and within the parameters of the law to ensure that actions of this nature are dealt with with the full force of the law. I therefore have no choice but to order the immediate arrest of Mr Yankuba Touray pursuant to Section 15, 1(A) and 15, 2(B) of the TRRC Act of 2017.”
TRRC counsel Essa Faal intervened once the chairman of the commission finished reading a prepared statement, asking the investigation to give Yankuba Touray another chance to testify. Touray later emerged but only after another back and forth with Faal in the witness room.
At the hearing room, Touray was asked to swear by the Quran which he did. Five minutes into his testify, Touray again showed his stubborn side.
“I am not going to testify regarding that please. I invoke my constitutional immunity on all those issues,” Mr Touray told Essa Faal after the lawyer asked him about the problems that the Gambian army faced in the 1990s. Touray then stormed out after another back and forth with Essa Faal, leaving the counsel scrambling for options.
BBC News
A 23-year-old former beauty queen in The Gambia, Fatou Jallow, has said she was raped in 2015 by ex-President Yahya Jammeh when he was in office.
Her testimony is part of a Human Rights Watch and Trial International report that details another alleged rape and sexual assault by Mr Jammeh.
The BBC tried to contact Mr Jammeh, who now lives in exile in Equatorial Guinea, about the allegations.
A spokesman for his APRC party denied the accusations made against Mr Jammeh.
“We as a party and The Gambian people are tired of the steady stream of unfounded allegations that have been reported against our ex-president,” said Ousman Rambo Jatta, in a written statement to the BBC.
“The ex-president has no time to react to lies and smear campaigns. He is a very respectable God fearing and pious leader who has nothing but respect for our Gambian women,” the deputy APRC leader said.
Ms Jallow told the BBC she wanted to meet Mr Jammeh, 54, in court so he could face justice.
“I’ve really tried to hide the story and erase it and make sure it’s not part of me.
“Realistically I couldn’t so I decided to speak now because it is time to tell the story and to make sure that Yayha Jammeh hears what he has done.”
She said she also wanted to testify before The Gambia’s Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC), which has been set up by President Adama Barrow, who won elections in December 2016.
The TTRC is investigating human rights violations alleged to have been committed during Mr Jammeh’s 22-year rule, including reports of extrajudicial killings, torture and arbitrary detention.
He was forced from office in January 2017 after regional powers sent in troops when he refused to give up power.
Ms Jallow said she was 18 when she met Mr Jammeh after winning a beauty pageant in 2014 in the capital, Banjul.
In the months following her coronation, she said the former president acted as a father figure when they met, offering her advice, gifts and money, and also organising for running water to be installed in her family home.
Then at a dinner organised by an aide to the president, she says he asked her to marry him. She refused and rebuffed other enticements from the aide to agree to the offer.
Read: Profile of Gambia’s former strongman
Ms Jallow said the aide then insisted she attend a religious ceremony at State House in her role as beauty queen in June 2015. But when she arrived, she was taken to the president’s private residence.
“It was clear what this was going to be,” she said, describing Mr Jammeh’s anger at her for rejecting him.
Ms Jallow says he slapped her and injected her in her arm with a needle.
“He rubbed his genitals in my face, pushed me down to my knees, pulled my dress up and sodomised me.”
The young woman says afterwards she locked herself at home for three days and then decided to flee to neighbouring Senegal.
Once in Dakar, the Senegalese capital, Ms Jallow sought the assistance of various human rights organisations. Weeks later, she was approved protection status and moved to Canada, where she has been living since.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Trial International say Mr Jammeh had a system in place to abuse women, where some were put on the state payroll and worked at State House as so-called “protocol girls”, who had some clerical duties but were mainly on call to have sex with the president.
The BBC could not verify the allegation, but a former Gambian official, who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity, said he was aware of “inappropriate things” happening at the presidency: “Protocol staff were mostly women and they were hired to satisfy the president’s fantasies.”
He remembered seeing Ms Jallow at State House, sometimes at “odd hours”.
Another woman, hired as a protocol officer at the age of 23, told HRW she was forced to have sex with Mr Jammeh in 2015.
The woman, who asked not to be named, said that one day the president called her into his room: “He started undressing me and saying that he was in love with me, that he will do anything for me and my family, that I should not tell anyone because if I do I will face the consequences.
“I felt I had no choice. That day he slept with me without protection.”
Another woman who worked as a protocol officer said that they knew if one of them was called it was for sex.
“Some wanted it. They felt honoured or wanted the money,” she told HRW on condition of anonymity.
She described how she was sexually assaulted by the president at his summer house, Kanilai, in 2013 when she was 22: “One evening, a presidential aide called me and told me to come with her to the president’s private apartment. He asked me to undress.
“He told me that I was young and needed protection so he wanted to apply spiritual water on me.”
In an encounter the next day, she started crying as Mr Jammeh began to touch her body. He became angry and sent her away.
She says she was later sacked and a promised scholarship cancelled.
TRRC Executive Secretary Baba Jallow has told the BBC that the commission, launched eight months ago, will focus on sexual violence in September.
“We are aware of allegations involving Jammeh but we have not heard victims on the record yet. Investigations have already started but at this stage we can’t say who is involved and how many victims there are,” he said.
Read: ‘I was tortured in The Gambia’
Ms Jallow wants to create an atmosphere where women will feel safer to talk about rape and sexual assault: “It’s a step-by-step thing and the first part is to acknowledge it happened.
“When many other women speak up and it becomes safer and safer,” she told the BBC.
President Barrow has said he will await the report of the TRRC before considering whether to pursue Mr Jammeh’s extradition from Equatorial Guinea.
President Adama Barrow has appointed Alpha Robinson as the new managing director of National Water and Electricity Company.
President Barrow on Tuesday announced the sacking of Baba Fatajo who has been in the role since 2017.
“His Excellency, President Adama Barrow in consultation with the Chairpersons of the NAWEC Board and the Public Service Commission has approved to relief Mr. Baba Fatajo from the post of Managing Director of the National Water and Electricity Company – NAWEC with effect from 28th June 2019,” a statement signed by President Barrow’s spokesperson on Tuesday said.
It added: “Mr Fatajo will be appointed in the Public Service as a diplomat in the Foreign Service. In the same vein, President Barrow has appointed Mr Alpha Robison as the new Managing Director of NAWEC 1st July 2019.”
By Lamin Njie
A Gambian army lance corporal has been taken into custody after he ‘accidentally’ shot his colleague.
Lance Corporal Sylvester Gomez shot Lance Corporal Samba Bah in the thigh.
Army spokesman Major Lamin K Sanyang told The Fatu Network on Tuesday the incident happened on Monday at a military guard post in Kanilai.
Sanyang added: “It’s what we call in the military negligent discharge. That was what happened. It was between two of our soldiers at one of our guard posts around Nyeffie but a board of inquiry has been instituted and has started work to ascertain the circumstances surrounding it. He (Sylvester Gomez) is with the military police.”
Bah has since been admitted in hospital in Banjul.
Samba Bah
Melania Trump’s spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham will get a major new role as both White House press secretary and communications director, the first lady tweeted Tuesday.
“I am pleased to announce @StephGrisham45 will be the next @PressSec & Comms Director! She has been with us since 2015 – @POTUS & I can think of no better person to serve the Administration & our country. Excited to have Stephanie working for both sides of the @WhiteHouse. #BeBest” Melania Trump tweeted.
President Donald Trump didn’t look far for his next press secretary in Grisham, who for the past two years has been the communications director for the first lady. Grisham will keep her current job too.
However, Trump has tweaked the job duties before handing the reins to Grisham, whose purview will include a larger scope of responsibility than that of her predecessor Sarah Sanders, and one as yet unprecedented in this administration. Trump has appointed Grisham both White House director of communications as well as press secretary, a senior White House official tells CNN. Grisham will be assuming the roles formerly held by Bill Shine, who departed as White House communications director in March, and Sanders, who has said her last day will be this Friday.
Additionally, Grisham will remain in charge of communications for the East Wing in addition to her new West Wing responsibilities, staying on as the spokeswoman for the first lady, says the official.
Grisham will be accompanying the President in her new capacity on his trip to Japan and Korea this week.
Grisham has been with team Trump longer than anyone currently in the White House, with the exception of Dan Scavino, both of whom started on the Trump campaign in 2015. Prior to that, Grisham worked as a spokeswoman and communications operative, mostly in Republican politics, in her home state of Arizona; in 2012, she briefly worked on Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign. Before joining Trump’s campaign, she was operating her own public relations and communications company in Arizona, but decided to commit to the role of traveling press director after assisting with a July 2015 rally in Phoenix by then-candidate Trump. (CNN)
By New York Times
Five years ago, the president of Gambia crowned 18-year-old Fatou Jallow the winner of the nation’s top beauty pageant with a lecture to her and other contestants: Do not rush to marry, he said, but use the pageant’s scholarship prize to fulfill your dreams.
But the president, Yahya Jammeh, soon began summoning the pageant winner to Gambia’s Statehouse, and eventually asked her to marry him. She said no.
“I thought it was a joke,’’ Ms. Jallow said. “I was very naïve. I didn’t know how brutal he was.”
When he summoned her yet again, for what she thought was a Ramadan event, she said he raped her.
“Reality hit me that this is my new identity,’’ she said. “I’m just this girl the president will call and pick up and rape. Everything I wanted to be, every potential and reason why I even went into this competition, all of that was shoved into the dumpster.”
During his 22 years in office, Mr. Jammeh ruled by terrorizing the tiny West African nation of two million. People he deemed enemies were tortured and killed. Protesters and journalists were jailed and beaten, many never to be heard from again. His death squad was accused of gunning down dozens of migrants trying to sail to Europe, according to a survivor of the massacre. He subjected AIDS patients to what he said was an experimental miracle cure — an herbal body rub and a banana. Some died.
Mr. Jammeh, 54, has never been called to account for any of it. West African leaders allowed him to flee to Equatorial Guinea in 2017 after he lost an election, the results of which he had refused to accept for six weeks. He took with him two Rolls-Royces and a Mercedes-Benz, and has turned up on social media being feted with a birthday cake and sipping champagne.
Now human rights advocates are collecting firsthand accounts of abuses so that he can be brought to trial. Ms. Jallow, known in Gambia as “Toufah,” shared her story in an interview. She is the first to publicly accuse the president of sexual assault, just as Gambia is in the process of reckoning with the terrible legacy of the Jammeh regime.
“This is one layer of atrocities in many,” said Reed Brody, a lawyer with Human Rights Watch who is leading a push for criminal prosecution of Mr. Jammeh, as he did for the Chadian dictator Hissène Habré, who was convicted in 2016 of crimes against humanity. “The bigger picture is, is this guy going to get away with this, or can they hold him to account for all the bad things he did?”
Gambia’s current President, Adama Barrow, has set up a Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission to create a record of atrocities. Those testifying have included government soldiers accused of beatings and murders, as well as victims of abuse.
“At the end we hope to nurture national reconciliation and healing,” said Baba Galleh Jallow, the commission’s executive secretary and no relation to Ms. Jallow, “and to ensure that never again shall we have dictatorship and gross human rights violations in this country.”
Mr. Jammeh did not respond to efforts to reach him through government officials in Equatorial Guinea or supporters in Gambia, where he still has a following. One refused to solicit his response to the allegations, saying it would be “the worst form of disrespect” to put such a question to “a figure like him.”
Gambia’s reconciliation process has put a special focus on women who endured beatings or sexual violence by Mr. Jammeh’s security officers, or who were impoverished after their husbands were locked up. Last year a series of women-only listening circles brought victims together to share privately their traumatic experiences and encourage them to speak out.
Ms. Jallow, now 23, received asylum in Canada in 2015, and she is scheduled to testify before the commission during hearings on sexual violence later this year.
“Part of what he did was to break me and shut me down,” Ms. Jallow said in an interview. “I want him to hear me loud and clear. He can’t bury it.”
Five years ago, when Mr. Jammeh first summoned Ms. Jallow to the presidential palace, she was a teen and unaware of the scale of the accusations against the president.
“In order to know information like that, you had to be connected to the internet,’’ she said. “I didn’t even have a phone for most of my high school years. I was not very politically savvy as a teenager.”
Mr. Jammeh had told her he wanted to talk about her beauty pageant project — a drama program for students on eliminating poverty. Then he offered her a job as one of his protocol officers, who performed secretarial work at the statehouse. She was only 18, she told him, and did not feel qualified to work in a president’s office.
Later, reports emerged in the Gambian diaspora media that Mr. Jammeh had been using his “protocol girls” for sexual favors.
Advocates with Human Rights Watch and Trial International, a group that supports crime victims, took testimony from two former protocol officers who said that sex with the president had been part of the job. One woman, who did not want to be identified because she is afraid of retribution from Mr. Jammeh’s supporters, said in her testimony that when she was 23, she was given cash and gifts for having sex with him, and that he told her that if she refused he would cut off the financial support he was giving her family.
One former government official who was close to Mr. Jammeh said in an interview that several women working in the protocol office had complained to him that the president had touched them inappropriately or demanded sex. He said that in 2015 he told Mr. Jammeh to stop, and that Mr. Jammeh threatened his life and sent security officers to his house. He also said that he had seen Ms. Jallow at the statehouse at night.
The official, who asked not to be named publicly because he still fears for his life, fled the country.
Ms. Jallow said that after her first encounter with the president, he arranged for the national water company to install plumbing in her family’s house, which did not have running water. New furniture arrived. Sick relatives were shuttled to doctors.
The president summoned her for more meetings at the statehouse. There was speculation in the media that she was “dating” Mr. Jammeh, who was married.
During another meeting at Gambia’s statehouse, she said, as she and the president reviewed the budget for her project, Mr. Jammeh asked her to marry him. She said she explained that she wanted to study before marriage.
“He told me to think about it, that probably I didn’t understand what this means and needed time to process it,” she said.
Ms. Jallow was soon summoned to the presidential palace for what she thought was a beauty pageant event with other contestants to help kick off Ramadan. She was told to wear her crown. She put on a traditional Muslim gown with a head scarf and got into the car that was sent for her.
When they arrived, the driver passed the garden where the Ramadan program was getting underway, she said. He dropped her off at the president’s residence, where she was told to wait as a security guard took her phone and bag.
A few minutes later Mr. Jammeh arrived, dressed in baggy slacks and a T-shirt, the clothing men wear under traditional robes.
“My guts literally fell down,” to see him in his undergarments, Ms. Jallow said.
She said that he greeted her sharply, saying, “You know a woman has never rejected me.”
He took her by the hand and led her into an adjacent room, which had a bed in it, she said. He shoved her into a chair, she said, and began to lecture her about how disrespectful she was. He started ripping off her abaya. She began crying.
He lifted the gown and pulled a syringe from his pocket and injected her arm, Ms. Jallow said. He was sweaty, she remembers, and he pushed her to her knees and rubbed his genitals in her face.
She said the president then pushed her facedown onto the bed and sodomized her, and she blacked out. When she awoke, she said she found her leggings on the floor and Mr. Jammeh sitting in a chair in the corner.
“I literally stumbled out of there,” she said, and into the same car that had brought her.
Ms. Jallow said she was too scared to tell her parents, or anyone, what had happened.
About five days later, Ms. Jallow said, she put on a veil — only her eyes were showing — and took money from her mother to go to the market to buy groceries. Instead, she fled across the border into Senegal and on to Dakar, the capital.
With help from a relative in England, Ms. Jallow contacted aid organizations in Dakar. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees there would not confirm details, but said Ms. Jallow was immediately referred to seek asylum and resettlement in Canada.
Ms. Jallow said she knows that telling her story publicly could bring shame to her and her family. It had kept her from speaking out for years. She only recently told her mother what happened to her.
“Mr. Jammeh needs to pay for what he did in his lifetime sooner or later,” said Ms. Jallow’s mother, Awa Saho.
Ms. Jallow is in therapy. She has studied at a university to become a social worker, inspired by those who helped her in Canada. To pay for her education, she is working as a customer care agent for a phone company in Toronto. She volunteers at a women’s shelter once a month.
“I’m not afraid to speak,” she said. “In the end the silence is as uncomfortable and more damaging than the consequences of speaking.”
By Lamin Njie
President Adama Barrow has sacked the managing director of National Water and Electricity Company, Nawec.
Baba Fatajo was handed a termination letter in a surprise move on Tuesday.
Mr Fatajo confirmed his sacking telling The Fatu Network: “We got the correspondence this morning, [and it’s] the usual text that my services have been terminated. There was no reason advanced.
“[But] anything I tell you will be a matter of speculation. Perhaps you can get to the authorities, the office of the president since that’s where the letter is coming from. They should be in a better position to through light on this.”
The Fatu Network contacted the director of press and public relations at the office of the president Amie Bojang Sissoho for comment but she said she was not aware of Fatajo’s sacking. She however promised to find out and get back to The Fatu Network.
Mr Fatajo was the managing director of Nawec since 2017.
By Momodou Justice Darboe
President Adama Barrow has said in 2017 that Gambia’s former President Yaya Jammeh has stolen an estimated 4 billion dalasis from public funds. But according to the Organised Crimes Reporting Project, President Yaya Jammeh has orchestrated the embezzlement of nearly $1 billion of public funds and illegal timber revenue during his 22-year-rule. The former President is accused of looting the treasury in a long-running conspiracy that crippled the country.
The documents analysed by OCCRP show a web of fraud that far exceeds the figure offered by President Barrow.
According to OCCPR, Jammeh and his associates looted or misappropriated at least $975 million. The organisation says Jammeh and his associates stole $363.9 million from Gamtel/Gamcel, $325.5 million in illicit timber revenue, more than $100 million in foreign aid and soft loans from Taiwain, $71.2 million from the Central Bank of The Gambia, $60 million from the Social Security and Housing Finance Corporation and $55.2 million from Gampetroleum.
Jammeh is also accused of plundering major accounts such as The International Gateway Account of $363 million through secret contracts, $43 million from the State Aircraft Fund to purchase a luxury jet,buses and vehicles. He is also accused of stealing $466,000 from the State Security Account for entertainment,travel, payments to his favorite wife Zeinab and other expenses.
Jammeh and his associates have also been accused by OCCRP of embezzling $35,706 from a fake Office of the First Lady Account and $4.5 million from National Youth Development Fund which is funded by revenue from a 10 percent fee on fish caught by trawlers in Gambian waters.
So, what is the Gambia government doing to recover some of these monies that were suspected of been sent to foreign shell companies about which little is known?
“Tracking and recovery is a very sensitive matter. People have the ability to move assets around the world. We are cooperating with several governments. Let’s remember that asset recovery efforts outside Gambia are not unfortunately within our control. They are in foreign territories. They are subjected to foreign laws and we can only rely on the goodwill and support of those countries where these assets are,” the Gambia’s minister of justice recently told the press.
Meanwhile, Jammeh’s manipulation of the Central bank may have violated several of Gambia’s laws, including the Government Budget and Management Accountability Act of 2004, the Social Security Act of 2010 and the Public Finance Act of 2004. His assets have been forfeited to the state but is yet to be charged of any crimes.
By Momodou Justice Darboe
It is almost six months to the planned protests against President Adama Barrow’s ambition to stay in office till 2021 but the much-hyped demonstrations has already caused quite a stir in President Barrow’s camp.
A group calling itself Operation Three Years Jotna is poised to spearhead protest(s) to ensure President Barrow make good on his promise of relinquising power come December 2019. They insists President Barrow must step aside in December as he earlier promised.
But the Gambia government is not taking lightly threats of protest rallies to force the President out of office at the end of this year. The government has already acquired a vehicle that is earmaked to spray hot-water on would-be demostrators in December, according to the interior ministry. Other members of the Barrow inner circle were making reference to the bloody April 2000 student protests that led to the massacre of 14 unarmed students.
Proving to be an issue of delicate national issue, many are of the view that threats against Gambians in the exercise of their constitutionally-guaranteed rights is not the way-forward in dealing with the planned December rallies.
President Barrow however insists that he’s mandated to serve five years and no threats would deter him from completing his mandate.
“The mandate given to me is a constitutional one. Whether you like it or not, I will stay in office till 2021,” President Barrow maintained during a mass political rally in Brikama of-late.
But to Dr. Ismaila Ceesay,a lecturer of Political Science at the University of The Gambia, a better approach such as convening a national conference to iron out the difference caused by the coalition agreement should be taken and now.
He said: “There must be a national dialogue as soon as possible before December. Why because..yes the constitution says five years but we have to be careful how we approach this three years and five years thing because we dont want to have a political vacuum. There is no President. There is no provision. The only provision is if President Barrow resigns voluntarily, the vice president continues the residue of the term. That’s what the constitution says. So, that’s an option.
“But to avert a situation where people are coming out and the government is forced to respond with force. To avert that situation, a national crisis, constitutional crisis, a power vacuum, I think it is apt for the country to have a national dialogue; a national consultation on this issue. It shouldn’t be left to the politicians alone. Let all stakeholders come; religious leaders, the academia,Diaspora, civil society, media, politicians and political parties to sit on one table as a country and define a path for this country which is in national interest.”
Dr. Ceesay further explained: ” If after this dialogue it emerge that the national interest is for us to leave Barrow to serve his term for five years, then we’ll accept that but that he must not run after that five years because that will be against the spirit of the MOU and the spirit of our democracy that we fought for.
“So there must be some dialogue. There must be some give and take. I think it is very dangerous for Barrow himself to come out and say whether you like, I’m going for five years. That was not the language they[Coalition partners] were using”.
Be as it may, the planned end of year march of resistance against Barrow can bring the country to the brink if not well managed, says analysts.
By Lamin Njie
The Basse Magistrates Court on Monday transferred the case of 23 people who are facing three charges including arson to the high court.
Magistrate Omar Jabang transferred the case after the prosecution last week applied that the case be transferred from the Basse Magistrates Court to the Special Criminal Division of the High Court.
Three weeks ago, the nation woke up to the news of an outbreak of another caste-related clashes in the Upper River Region this time in Koina in which houses were set ablaze and properties vandalised. Scores were also injured during the violence. The police later rounded up and detained nearly two dozen people suspected of involvement in the rampage. The suspects, numbering 23, have been accused by the police of inciting violence, arson and assault.
On Monday, the Basse Magistrates Court granted the prayer of the prosecution and transferred the case to the high court. It also remanded the accused persons in prison until such a time the case would come up at the high court.
Gambia Centre for Victims of Human Rights Violations has slammed a senior adviser to President Adama Barrow over recent comments he made regarding the April 10 and April 11, 2000 student protest.
Henry Gomez reportedly said students who took part in the deadly protest 19 years ago were used by external forces.
The human rights group said in a statement Monday: “Whilst the Gambians and victims of all kinds are coming to terms with current revelations unfolding before the TRRC, Hon. Henry Gomez is preoccupied in politicizing and distorting facts regarding the victims of April 10 & 11, 2000 student demonstration thereby traumatizing victims of this incident that have been fighting for justice for nearly two decades.
“His unacceptable comments suggesting that students were used by external forces during the April 10 & 11, 2000 student demonstration was inconsistent with the facts established by the Commission that was later setup to probe the incident. Thus, his suggestion that the April 10 & 11 students were used by external forces is unfounded.
“Like many, the Victims Center is dismayed by this frivolous statement from Hon Gomez, and as a result, the Center cannot let it go without expressing its repugnance to such irresponsible remarks. It is totally unacceptable and deserves absolute condemnation in the strongest terms. As a Presidential Adviser, he ought to speak responsibly and work for unity and a cohesive society.
“Hon. Gomez’s statement is unpatriotic and we expect the Gambia Government not to condone such statements and must publicly reject and condemn same. Citing brutality meted on victims and distorting well established facts surrounding the April 10 &11, 2000 student demonstrations are clear indications of his lack of empathy and respect for the dignity of victims of such an unfortunate incident.
“It is worth noting that Hon. Henry Gomez was not acting in the best interest of the country, but rather propelling personal interest. These irresponsible remarks of his must not be allowed to be a tool to distract our collective pursuit of justice and accountability for the victims of human rights violations in the Gambia; instead it should serve as a source of strength and bring victims together to fight for redress.
“The Gambia Center for Victims of Human Rights Violations will continue to work with relevant partners to facilitate justice to victims, through national, regional and international mechanisms to ensure that peace continues to prevail in the country.
“We therefore call on Hon. Gomez to urgently withdraw his statement and apologize to the victims of April 10 & 11, 2000 student demonstration. We also call on the Government through the Attorney General’s Chambers and the Ministry of Justice to clarify their position on his statement.
“Finally, we advise Hon. Gomez to respect the promotion and protection of fundamental human rights as enshrined and entrenched in the Constitution of The Gambia.”
Mr President,
As Driver-in-chief of Bus Gambia – to use your transport metaphor – the twist and turn you make, at crucial stages of the journey to destination prosperity, will determine the fate of our country. Faced with a potential protest in December by the bandwagon of ‘3 Years Jotna’, your government has reached a critical cross-road: you either have to make up, or risk driving the bus towards a crash. That is the stark choice in front of you.
In politics, as in life, you mark yourself out on where you stand in moments of conflict and crisis, not during times of comfort and calm – to paraphrase Martin Luther King Jr. These are not ordinary times in Gambia. The air is thick with a sense of a looming crisis, following the cast-iron determination of the ‘3 Years Jotna’ movement to take to the street to protest against your refusal to hand over power.
I have argued in these pages before that it is constitutionally wrong, verging on dishonesty, to force you to step down in three years. Such a move should be sanctioned by our law-making body, the National Assembly, to change our statue book, which mandates an elected president to serve for five years, if the protesters were to stand on legitimate rocket boosters to terminate your contract with Gambians. That you all agreed on three years, but refused to enact it into law, let alone your own MoU, is a collective failure of all involved.
Our NAMs didn’t do the deed. But that doesn’t render their case to be without merit. That is why now, more than ever, is the time to sit back, take a pause, and make moves to outmaneuver and outflank your political opponents by standing up for the national interest. Not escalate already fraught tensions, as some of your cabinet ministers are hell-bent on doing.
When the political journey is strewn with rough-edges, your ability as the lead-driver to navigate your way to smooth terrain would distinguish your mettle as a leader, your skills as a stress-tested operator and your foresight as a team captain. Because under pressure, the virtues and vices of a man manifest itself. It is how your deploy them, at the right time for the right cause that makes a crisis solved, bestow honor and endear you to people. Harold Macmillan, former British Prime Minister, was famously asked what he feared most. He droned on: “ Events, dear boy, events.” And “events” are about to sweep your government, shoving your bus to a juddering halt. You need to act far and fast before being at the mercy of “events”. “What to do?” What on earth can I do to defuse this crisis”, I hear you ask.
First, and most importantly, call for a meeting, inviting all the protest leaders, political party leaders, civil society representatives and religious leaders for a dialogue on national unity at state house.
Secondly, no less important, enlist the optic public service of GRTS to broadcast the event live prime-time – preferable immediately after the evening news. During the meeting, be more of a listener than an active speaker. Stick to your opening remarks, and your closing statements. Let the religious leaders lecture in chapter and verses the importance of unity to all present, as interlocutor of the meeting. Make sure leaders of all religious shades and colors are invited.
Thirdly, give a fair hearing to the points protest leaders and political party leaders are going to put forward. They deserve to be heard, and respected. Some personal comments may hurt. But suck it up. You call the meeting to serve as a human shield against a far worse catastrophe. In political terms, it is called the sadomasochism strategy, which means as a leader, when people are angry with you all what you have to do is appear in front of them. They can empty the anguish they had against you. That will make them both satisfied and relaxed that you have the guts to engage them.
In your closing statement, make a point of striking a message of unity, that you recognize and respect the contribution each and every member made from dictatorship to democracy, that in you they have a servant who listens and leads, that as a democrat you will respect the constitution and serve for five years, that beyond that anyone with ambition to be president can stand for president to be decided by the sovereign people of The Gambia. Lock them in a binding commitment there and then to pledge, as democrats, that they will respect the constitution and desist from the politics of protest.
That is the way to hem the crisis back into its sealed box. You must be able to communicate in clear terms, and show some gumption whiles delivery you message in a way that the public will not misunderstand, and the media and those present will not misrepresent. This is not the time for weak and wobbly leadership. It is time to stand up and be counted. You are attempting to ward off a criss, and deny your opponents a propaganda gift. Remember that who controls the streets controls power. The protest, if not head off, could mutate into a deep crisis. You have to do something practical. Merely counting on the blessings of Allah to wish away the protest from happening is phantasm. Politics is an art. Not a science. Nothing is chiseled in stone. As Machiavelli shrewdly observed: power could be attained by principles, but it is retained by pragmatism.
It is time to jaw-jaw with Gambians to bring the stand-off to an end. Follow the wisdom of one of the founding fathers of US Benjamin Franklin on the need to extend an olive branch to friends and foes alike during times of tension when he sarcastically quipped : “We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately”? Hang out with them at state house.
It is in your gift, Mr president. Hit a different gear in a new direction of conciliation and camaraderie. And, whiles you are at it, swerve the bus from the looming criss to landscape of sunny uplands of tranquility, not tiff!
The writer Amadou Camara studied political science at University of The Gambia and is currently based in the US
By Lamin Njie
Six serving members of the Gambia Armed Forces have been arrested, the spokesman of the army has said.
Reports on Saturday emerged of some serving members of the army abandoning their posts and fleeing the country.
Army spokesman Major Lamin K Sanyang confirmed on Sunday that six soldiers have been arrested.
“I can confirm that six soldiers have been arrested and are currently with the military police,” Sanyang told The Fatu Network without giving detail.
The six soldiers were arrested at different times beginning last week, Sanyang added.
