By Mama A. Touray
Alhaji Mamadi Kurang, the former Secretary General of the Janneh Commission of Inquiry, has disclosed that nearly all operational needs of the high-profile commission were funnelled through the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), a process he described as inefficient and delaying critical work.
Testifying before an ongoing inquiry into the commission’s operations, Kurang stated: “The MOJ was the line ministry we were dealing with directly. 99% of our needs were directed to the MOJ, and when we requested [supplies], it went to the ministry, and we were given the material”.
Kurang explained that while the commission initially drafted its own budget, the Ministry of Justice later assumed control. “We started working on a budget to know how much items would cost and shared it with the Attorney General. But along the way, we were told the budget would be under the ministry and that we would make requests to them for provisions,” he said.
This arrangement, he argued, hindered the commission’s autonomy. “If we had no control over the budget, then you will not have full control over what you do,” Kurang emphasized.
A key frustration, according to Kurang, was the absence of an on-site accountant. Instead, an official named Alagie Babou Joof, tasked with handling allowances, operated remotely. “He was not at the commission; he would come to deliver [payments]. He was supposed to be under my department, but he was not,” Kurang testified.
The former Secretary General painted a picture of bureaucratic bottlenecks, where even simple requests faced prolonged delays. “A material or request that was supposed to take 24 hours took 24 days because [the accountant] was not based at the commission,” he said. “I am supposed to be his boss, but in this case, my subordinate was my boss. I had to beg him.”
Kurang acknowledged that the Attorney General had clarified commissions’ budgets traditionally fall under the MOJ’s purview. However, he insisted the setup slowed operations. “The fact that the commission did not have any control over its budget delayed a lot of things. Requests for materials or allowances were frequently delayed,” he noted.
The hearing, which aims to scrutinize the Janneh Commission’s operations during its tenure, will resume with further testimony from Kurang. Observers expect deeper insights into the commission’s challenges, including resource allocation and administrative hurdles.
The Janneh Commission, tasked with investigating financial mismanagement under former President Yahya Jammeh’s regime, has been a focal point for accountability in The Gambia. Kurang’s revelations now spotlight the structural difficulties faced by such high-stakes inquiries.
