By Alieu Jallow
The Chief of Fulladou East, Muhammed Krubally, has urged authorities to provide travel allowances for district chiefs, implement urgent reforms to the District Tribunals Act, and enhance logistical support for tribunal court members, including the provision of uniforms and mobility support for Bart messengers.
Chief Krubally made these remarks during an exclusive interview with The Fatu Network’s Alieu Jallow on the sidelines of a community engagement led by Activista The Gambia in Basse. The session was part of a three-day capacity-building initiative aimed at promoting inclusive representation and assessing the effectiveness of the District Tribunals Act.
He highlighted that many chiefs across the country often have to rely on their own limited resources to travel for official functions, attend tribunal matters, or respond to community crises, a situation he described as “unsustainable and demotivating.”
“[As the] chiefs of URR, sometimes [we] travel to Banjul for a meeting without a dime. They don’t give us any allowances. We have to fuel our cars from back home. That’s a big challenge for us, to be honest. If you go to the High Court, you’ll see that they don’t work on weekends. But we work every day, even on Sundays, Saturdays, and sometimes at night. So, the government should consider us and see how best our welfare can be improved,” he added.
Regarding tribunal court operations, Chief Krubally stressed the importance of equipping Bart messengers with proper uniforms and transport to improve the efficiency and professionalism of court processes. He also reiterated the need to revise the current tribunal laws to align with present-day realities and ensure fairness for all parties.
“The government should look into how it can reform the District Tribunal Act, because times have changed, and the current fines no longer reflect today’s realities.
Concerning our Bart messengers, we’ve long been raising the issue that they don’t even have uniforms. They need to be identifiable, but up to now, nothing has been provided. We’ve taken this concern to the higher authorities, but we haven’t seen any action.
“We also appealed to them to at least provide one motorbike to help ease the process of delivering messages. Sometimes, the messengers face real difficulties travelling to the villages to deliver letters, messages, or sermons,” he appealed.
Activista The Gambia’s community engagement brought together traditional leaders, youth representatives, women’s groups, and civil society actors to discuss the importance of inclusive governance and access to justice in rural Gambia.
Chief Krubally’s remarks add to growing calls from grassroots leaders for systemic reforms to strengthen local governance and improve service delivery.
