By: Dawda Baldeh
A 60-year-old woman in Sukuta-Salaji has become homeless after witnessing the Department of Physical Planning demolish her house recently. The woman, who spoke to The Fatu Network, stated that the house she lived in before its demolition belonged to her grandparents. “My parents settled on this land before I was born,” the 60-year-old woman mentioned, adding that she has been farming on this land for nearly 30 years. “This is heartbreaking,” she continued, “at my age, even if my children sold me, I couldn’t afford a new house in The Gambia.”
She explained that since she settled on the property years ago, no one had ever informed her that it was reserve land. “It was only recently that two masked men came to deliver a notice to us with paramilitary guards. The notice was delivered on the 25th, and on the 28th, we saw bulldozers demolishing our fences and houses,” she recounted. She stressed that they had been unjustly removed from their homes and that Allah is watching. “There is no truth in what physical planning did to us. Right now we don’t have any power, but the superior power (Allah) is watching, and He will deliver justice,” she stated.
Mariama Bojang, another middle-aged single mother affected by the ongoing demolition, described the act as unjustifiable. “I am a single mother of seven, and when I saw my house demolished, I nearly fainted. If I had high blood pressure, I would have died that day,” she said. Ms. Bojang, who is involved in petty trading, expressed that her life is now miserable. “I have been building this house for the past four years. I sell ice and other items to earn a living. That’s how I feed my kids,” she explained. Now that her house is demolished, the middle-aged single mother’s dream of building a home for her children has been shattered. She revealed that her seven children are now under the care of her elder sister. “As a single parent, where can I get money to buy a new house? My dreams have been crushed. My family is devastated,” she lamented.
The Fatu Network was able to view a notice served to the demolition victims from the Department of Physical Planning, which claimed the victims “encroached on public space and built houses and fences without permits.” This action has left hundreds of families devastated and displaced at a time when the country is facing increasing uncertainties such as unemployment, rising domestic violence, poverty, and elevated rates of murder and suicide, which are largely attributed to mental health issues due to the current hardships.
