By: Dawda Baldeh
The Chairman of Basse Area Council (BsAC), Mahamadou Ceesay, has confirmed that all salary arrears owed to staff from the previous administration have been settled.
In addition, Ceesay cautioned staff against being unpunctual.
Based on the annual report obtained by The Fatu Network, the council has implemented innovative strategies that have led to significant progress in a short time frame.
Ceesay, the council chairman, said that the council made tough administrative choices to navigate challenging times, such as deferring bank loan repayments until 2023.
As a result, the council has achieved the following milestones:
1) Paid off the 2023 salary arrears for all staff members.
2) Resolved the 5C Energy contract, which was on the verge of collapse due to outstanding arrears amounting to 4,164,134.71.
The council renegotiated the deal and paid one million to the company to ensure the continuation of their services.
Additionally, the council has made it mandatory to collect all revenue using a digital system.
Ceesay has revealed that in 2024 the council plans to digitalize land transfer fees, which has been a major challenge in terms of accounting.
Subsequently, the report said: “The council managed to reduce its total liabilities from over 24 million to D14,317,020, with a closing balance of D6,303,428.65 as of January 3rd, 2023.”
“Furthermore, as part of their projects, the council successfully drilled three boreholes in the communities of Sare Geda, Keita Ya, and Sare Gubu Muntaga.
The summary report revealed that the council inherited a debt burden of D24,199,206, with all council accounts having a negative closing balance.
