At least 24 MPs on Thursday agreed with their colleague Yakumba Jaiteh for a multi-million dalasis loan scheme that NAMs could access to help them build their houses.
On Thursday, nominated MP Yakumba Jaiteh made a proposal as part of the 2021 budget for a loan scheme that could run up to 54 million dalasis.
“Hon speaker, it is in the constitution that as National Assembly Members, we decide our salaries and benefits and allowances. This is a benefit that we’re trying to get here. This is law, we are making law here, we can make it now and it becomes law,” Ms Jaiteh in defending her proposal said.
It was initially backed by over two dozens of her colleagues on Thursday; it then passed on Friday following a vote by 17 NAMs in favour of the proposal. Some either did not take part in the voting or voted against it.
But on Thursday, the one lawmaker contingent that spoke with one voice against the loan is the PDOIS NAMs led by Halifa Sallah.
“I was just going to proposed that such a matter should be something that the Office of the Clerk should have negogiated in the bilaterals and move into that issue. Because it’s a complex issue.
“And it is important that members think about certain welfare but how we move to deal with it is also a matter of decency and real integrity.
“Because the issue here is we have taken from a particular institution, an independent institution certain resources by virtue of the fact that we believe the task we are to do is also in the national interest, so we do not see any personal gain emanating from it. But if we take from an institution and turn it into personal gain, well obviously we cannot defend integrity,” Sallah warned on Thursday.
His fellow PDOIS MP Suwaibou Touray had earlier said: “We have only one year to leave this office. So if you take loan which is a building loan when are you going to finish paying that? Do you leave here and leave your loan behind?”
Banjul North’s Ousman Sillah said he feared double standard in the proposal on the part of the lawmakers.
“It’s the same principle with National Audit Office. We asked them to revise that (travel expenditure) and yet we want to give it to the national assembly. The issue is that let us not be seen as playing double standard,” Sillah argued.
However, Serrekunda West MP insisted loans are not ‘gifts’ and it was not compulsory for an MP to take the whole sum.
“We know we have less than two years to go [in office], so it will not make sense for anybody to go and take the whole D800,000. And this is not a gift, it’s not an expenditure perse. I’m in full support of it,” Madi Ceesay said.
The finance minister Mambury Njie was at some point asked about his opinion and he said it wasn’t ideal for the NAMs to try to have loan scheme for themselves squeezed into the already drawn 2021 budget.
“What the Hon Member from Serrekunda said is correct. What he said, taking from here and putting it as a loan scheme, I don’t think it’s ideal. I think we go back, even if we have to come with SAP, I think procedurally, I think that’s the right thing to do,” Njie said.
