By Mama A. Touray
With the rainy season well underway, The Fatu Network visited Brikama central market to assess its condition. The market vendors lamented the state of the market, describing it as ‘dirty,’ while the market committee chairman offered a different opinion, stating the market is clean.
Mariama Keita, a vegetable vendor, speaking about the market’s condition, complained, “The market is not clean, one should speak the truth. Especially when it rains, there is a hole at the other end, and if it fills with dirty, smelly water, it flows to where we are seated. We sit and sell in that dirty, smelly water, which is challenging.”
Keita was quick to add that whenever it rains, the area council, under the leadership of Chairman Yankuba Darboe, usually brings a septic tank to drain the water. If that water is not drained, the dirty, smelly water comes to where they are seated.
She called on the area council to help them get rid of that hole with stagnant water, adding that they pay taxes for the council to help them with better market conditions.
Fatoumatta Sanyang, a fish vendor at Brikama market, lamented, “We are in deep challenge in this market, but you have seen the market. If you are told that human beings sit and sell foodstuff in this market, you will be surprised. The condition of the Brikama market is not appealing at all because we cannot be healthy with the current condition of the market.”
She added that the market committee is not doing anything because they are in opposition, and that working towards the betterment of the market will be hard as the committee and the council are not aligned with the government.
“Despite the dirty condition of the market, every week we pay D25, but even our fish store is not in good condition,” she said.
Meanwhile, the market committee chairman, Foday Manjang, shared a different perspective on the market: “What we have heard about the condition of the market under Chairman Darboe, that it is dirty, is not true. What Yankuba has done in this market, no chairman has ever done it since I assumed the role of chairman of the market committee. He is the fourth chairman, but he has done great work in this market.”
He added that BAC should not be blamed for the condition of the market, as the market is under the fisheries and not the council.
However, he called on the market vendors to throw their trash in the place designated by the council or give it to trash collectors.
