The Government of The Gambia has identified and eliminated potential ‘ghost workers’ from its payroll, recover wrongful salary payments and updated the personnel records of Civil Servants and Security Agencies among others.

The nationwide staff audit of civil service and security agencies which was conducted by the Personnel Management Office PMO in collaboration with IFMIS is said to have revealed series of payroll malpractices.

Speaking at a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Mr Demba Ali Jawo, Minister of Information said the exercise revealed series of payroll malpractices which includes a total number of 3,146 absentee employees.

“The total payments for absentee employee salaries amounts to D10, 445, 612 Millions per month and D125, 347, 346. 76 Millions yearly,” Information Minister Jawo said.

The Information Minister quickly added that the payment of these salaries have been stopped since June 2017.

As part of the exercise, he said a total of D124, 612.8 have been recovered from employees who were seconded or transferred whose names still appeared on the payroll leaving a balance of D779,901.71 to be recovered.

Meanwhile, the Minister also spoke about the issuance of a TV License to Paradise FM among others.

By Alieu Ceesay

Information Minister Demba A. Jawo, has said that the Health Minister Saffie Lowe Ceesay has clarified that the statements attributed to her in recent newspaper reports were not accurate.

Jawo, who also doubles as the Government’s Spokesperson was speaking during his quarterly press conference on Wednesday at the ministry’s hall.

Minister Jawo said: “She [Health Minister] however confirmed saying at the press conference organized by the WACS that the Health Ministry is facing a pilfering of Medical items that include drugs and that it is her responsibility to seek measures to address the access system so that such items do not find their way to private pharmacies and other private health facilities.

“The Health Minister has however expressed understanding of the quick reaction of the medical profession and would like to reiterate that she never attributed the pilfering to the medical doctors,” the Communication Minister told the press.

The Association of Resident Doctors-The Gambia (GARD) on Tuesday demanded for the resignation of the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Saffie Lowe Ceesay within 48 hours.

This is in relation to a publication made by the Standard Newspaper captioned ‘Corruption hindering health sector’ published on February 28, 2018.

The paper reported that the minister revealed that efforts in developing The Gambia’s health sector are held back by corrupt and unpatriotic doctors.

“When you talk about corruption in the health system we all know how it is…these young doctors that will just go and practice pharmaceutics, some of them have opened their own pharmacies which the resources that we have. I am very sure of what I am saying because I was the PS,” she was quoted by the paper during a press conference.

GARD is also demanding that the Minister retracts her statement and apologize to the entire Medical and Health fraternity. The Association said if the demands are not met, they will resort to a sit down strike.

GARD is a representative body of all Resident Doctors with a current membership of 191 countrywide.

Delivering a statement on behalf GARD at the Conference Hall of the Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital in Banjul on Tuesday, Dr Ebrima Bah, President of GARD said: “We unreservedly condemn in the strongest possible terms, these defamatory remarks and find them very disappointing.”

He explains, “We understand, following subventions from the Ministry, whether adequate or not for a budget proposal, drugs are procured and stored at the Central Medical Stores from where distribution is done to the various government hospitals and other health facilities on a quarterly basis and sometimes on demand.

He said at the health facilities, drugs are entirely under the control of the Pharmacy head of department.

“Drugs are dispensed from pharmacies following a Medical doctor’s prescription per diagnosis made, either for out-patient cases or administration within the wards for in-patients depending on the treatment plan.”

“If the Minister does not understand these basics from budgeting, drug procurement down to dispensing, then it shows her incompetence at her job. Unless she is deliberately scapegoating, knowing where the problem truly lies,” he said before cheering crowd, chanting “she must go!!”

Dr Bah said, the doctors understand that The Gambia is a resource limited country adding that it is the responsibility of the Minister and her administration to prepare proper and comprehensive budget proposals for the health sector and to also ensure that a wise and transparent allocation is done in all health areas.

“However we expect inefficiency in such the Ministry is administratively challenged. Hence a total restructuring, with proper schemes and policies in place is required to rehabilitate our debilitating health system.”

Former Secretary General, Momodou Sabally has said that the former Commander of the Republican National Guard, General Saul Badjie was more powerful than the then Vice President of The Gambia.

The former outspoken Secretary General made these revelations among others before the commission of inquiry probing into the financial dealings of the former President Yahya Jammeh and his close associates at the Djembe Beach Hotel.

“General Saul Badjie was more powerful than the then Vice President,” former SG Sabally said.

“As Secretary General, I received calls from General Badjie with instructions allegedly from the former President,” he added.

The former SG said sometimes he would make queries to the former president who would confirm to him that the instructions were given by him.

When asked by Commissioner Bai Mass Saine whether the former General was a Co–President, his answer was in the negative but added that the former Army General was more powerful than the then Vice President.

Sabally said the former General was a very close confidant of the former President, noting that there were consequences for defying his instructions.

The former Secretary General Sabally was summoned in connection to the International Gateway contracted to MGI.

Sabally recalled that the former president summoned him to a meeting at Kanilai where he met the former General Saul Badjie, former Gamtel MD Babucarr Sanyang, Bala Jassey and a gentleman from Switzerland. He added that the former president decided to handover the International Gateway project to MGI while terminating Tel Company’s contract. He said the former president instructed him to work with Gamtel on the said project.

“I believe General Badjie had influence in the contract,” he asserted.

The former SG Sabally spoke about Mobisel, a company belonging to Bala Jassey that was working on the former President’s telephone sets to divert international calls without passing through Gamtel, noting that the impression given at the time was that it was based on security reasons.

Sabally told the commission about the relationship between Bala Jassey, Babucarr Sanyang and General Saul Badjie.

The Former SG said he raised concerns with the former president about the diversion of revenues from the project but his concerns were downplayed and he was later sacked.

“The circumstances were murky,” he said.

Sabally said he believes partly that his dismissal had something to do with the concerns he raised about the diversion of revenues generated from the Gateway project.

“I was told anytime the Gateway is shifted to a new management the SG is fired,” he added.

The former Secretary General said he believes the former president has something to benefit from the International Gateway project.

Meanwhile, the General Manager of GAMCEL also testified before the commission.

By Alieu Ceesay

The Association of Resident Doctors-The Gambia (GARD) is demanding for the resignation of the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Saffie Lowe Ceesay within 48 hours.

This is in relation to a publication made by the Standard Newspaper captioned ‘Corruption hindering health sector’ published on February 28, 2018.

The paper reported that the minister revealed that efforts in developing The Gambia’s health sector are held back by corrupt and unpatriotic doctors.

“When you talk about corruption in the health system we all know how it is…these young doctors that will just go and practice pharmaceutics, some of them have opened their own pharmacies which the resources that we have. I am very sure of what I am saying because I was the PS,” she was quoted by the paper during a press conference.

GARD is also demanding that the Minister retracts her statement and apologize to the entire Medical and Health fraternity. The Association said if the demands are not met, they will resort to a sit down strike.

GARD is a representative body of all Resident Doctors with a current membership of 191 countrywide.

Delivering a statement on behalf GARD at the Conference Hall of the Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital in Banjul on Tuesday, Dr Ebrima Bah, President of GARD said:

“We unreservedly condemn in the strongest possible terms, these defamatory remarks and find them very disappointing.”

He explains, “we understand, following subventions from the Ministry, whether adequate or not for a budget proposal, drugs are procured and stored at the Central Medical Stores from where distribution is done to the various government hospitals and other health facilities on a quarterly basis and sometimes on demand.

He said at the health facilities, drugs are entirely under the control of the Pharmacy head of department.

“Drugs are dispensed from pharmacies following a Medical doctor’s prescription per diagnosis made, either for out-patient cases or administration within the wards for in-patients depending on the treatment plan.”

“If the Minister does not understand these basics from budgeting, drug procurement down to dispensing, then it shows her incompetence at her job. Unless she is deliberately scapegoating, knowing where the problem truly lies,” he said before cheering crowd, chanting “she must go!!”

Dr Bah said, the doctors understand that The Gambia is a resource limited country adding that it is the responsibility of the Minister and her administration to prepare proper and comprehensive budget proposals for the health sector and to also ensure that a wise and transparent allocation is done in all health areas.

“However we expect inefficiency in such the Ministry is administratively challenged. Hence a total restructuring, with proper schemes and policies in place is required to rehabilitate our debilitating health system.”

Amidst reports that the management and staff members at the Central bank of the Gambia are set to increase (triple actually) their emoluments [the reports are yet to be confirmed though] the issue of having a minimum wage for workers both in the public and private sectors is set to receive a new impetus. Whether it will yield any fruits is something else altogether.

Reports have it that a recommendation to this effect was made but deemed to be ‘not sustainable’ by a section of the government. This is indeed worrying as in my view – which happens to be the view of many in the embattle civil and private service – even a minimum wage is not enough to bridge the gap (between rich and poor) and bring the poor working class even close to being satisfactorily paid. We view it as a first step towards making live better for the ordinary hard-working Gambians.

Thus, it is clear that government functionaries saying that it is not sustainable to increase salaries says that there is no political will to pull our people out of the quagmire they find themselves in. This would have been understandable if the gap in pay between the so-called CEOs, government ministers, directors, managers on the one hand, and the ordinary people on the other, wasn’t so glaringly wide.

Every country, company or corporation depends on its workforce – the ordinary workers in most cases – to succeed and make profits. But the capitalist system thrives on that, the exploitation of the poor and weak, for the advancement of the few on top. This is what we observe everywhere. It is seen in individual companies and corporations, it is seen in government departments, it is seen in international relations between nations and everywhere else. This is what leads to massive uprisings in various parts of the world and in various forms.

The time has come, Mr President, to think outside the box, so to speak, in order to come up with ways to not only increase the salaries of ordinary workers, but to massively reduce the cost of living: cost of food, education, transport, medical care and other things essential for a comfortable living.

This cannot be done solely on grants and loans from international donors, it must be from wealth generated within. We must find a way of fulfilling the needs of our people. This is the primary reason why we have governments in the first place. So, government should find a way of levelling the playing field and opening the country for business. Support the local industry and enable the citizens create the needed wealth to foot all the bills.

Have a Good Day Mr President…

Tha Scribbler Bah

A Concerned citizen

The Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Assan Jallow has denied reports of telephone insults to the process server at the commission of inquiry probing into the financial dealings of the former President Yahya Jammeh and his close associates.

The Permanent Secretary appearing for the first time before the commission was questioned by Lead Counsel, Amie Bensouda about his alleged telephone insults but he repeatedly denied insulting the Process Server at the Commission.

“I did not insult his mother,” Permanent Secretary Jallow said.

Mr Jallow said he does not insult people, saying the Process Server called him at late night around midnight as a result he could not sleep after talking to him on the telephone.

The Agric PS was summoned in connection to the Japanese grants but failed to produce certain documents requested from him.

The Commission’s Counsel, Amie Bensouda told the commission that the witness failed to furnish certain information as requested but added that the witness said he thought the commission was going to contact the records office to get the said information.

At this juncture, Surahata Janneh, Chairman of the warned the witness about the powers of the commission to deal with witnesses, saying if he fails to produce the said information the commission would deal with him.

Counsel Bensouda told Chairman Janneh that the commission would need all the closed files regarding the Japanese grants from 1998 to date, list of Japanese aids, accounts of all the proceeds from 1998 to date, all contracts signed with Kanilai Group International KGI, reconciliation of supplies made to KGI, and amounts paid by KGI into the Central Bank Account and any other relevant document.

At this juncture, Chairman Surahata Janneh issued an ultimatum to the witness until March 20, 2018, to submit the documents required by the commission and was told to liaise with the secretary of the commission if he has any excuse.

Meanwhile, Ms Isatou Auber, former Secretary to Cabinet failed to appeared before the commission after she was served with a summons.

She was summoned in connection to the payment of D7 Million Dalasi to MRI. Counsel Bensouda urged the Commission Chairman to warn the witness, noting that a bench warrant will be issued if she fail to appear on Thursday.

By Omar Wally

Captain Malick Boye, a Jungler accused of killing a female soldier allegedly impregnated by former President Yahya Jammeh has been arrested and currently held under custody.

The suspect who was arrested on Friday, is said to have killed one Mariama Camara and her husband at Hamza barracks, when Mariam’s husband started “making noise”, about her pregnancy which Jammeh wanted her to keep in secret.

When contacted, the spokesperson of The Gambia Armed Forces, Major Lamin Sanyang confirmed the story. He added that Captain Boye is currently under the custody of the Military Police.

By Alieu Ceesay

The Gambia and world football fraternity is mourning the demise of former Gambia Football Federation President Omar Sey. Sey died on Friday, March 2, 2018 at the country’s main referral hospital in Banjul.

The news of his demise came as a shock to many who knew the old man. Omar Sey had served in both CAF and FIFA with distinction. He was adviser to the current executive of Football Federation until his demise. Mr. Sey had also served as Gambia’s Foreign Affairs minister during the PPP regime of former President Jawara.

Hundreds including cabinet ministers, venerable religious leaders and football followers converged at the Pipeline Mosque along the busy Kairaba Avenue to pay their last respect to a man, who many said, have greatly contributed to the development of football and sports in the country.

The late Uncle Omar Sey was the President of the then GFA when The Gambia hosted and won the 2005 African U-17 Championship in Banjul. He was also the Vice Chairman of the Normalisation Committee that oversaw the transition from The Gambia Football Association to The Gambia Football Federation. He was an international FIFA Referee until his retirement when he took up an Executive position with the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

The late Sey was on the verge of becoming the President of CAF in the mid 1980s when Gambia’s first President Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara pleaded with him to take up appointed as the country’s Foreign Affairs Minister, paving the way for Issa Hayatou to take over the mantle of leadership of the continental football body.

He remained Minister in the Jawara Government until 1994 but never stayed away from football until his death. He was Adviser to the GFF Executive Committee.

GFF President Lamin Kabba Bajo described Omar Sey as a father figure and mentor to him and many others in football administration. He credited Omar Sey for the many achievements in Gambian Football. On behalf of CAF President, Ahmad, Bajo extended CAF and FIFA condolences to the family of Omar Sey.

“Wherever I travel, the first person they ask about is Omar Sey. All they talk about him is his honesty and commitment.”

The GFF President said Omar Sey will continue to be remembered for his service to the nation. He prayed for him, describing him as a devoted Muslim.

MC Cham, a cousin to the late Omar Sey, described the demise of Sey as not only a lost to his family but the country at large. He said Omar Sey spent all his life serving humanity and prayed that his soul Rest In Peace.

Gambia and Africa best referee, Papa Gassama was also among the multitude at the burial. He credited former FIFA referee Omar Sey for his (Papa’s) success in refereeing. He reflected how the late Sey had encouraged and guided him through his journey.

Another Banjulian who had worked with Omar Sey is Mbye Chaw of Banjul. He also spoke highly of his former friend.

He calls him a “devoted Muslim”. “We will really missed him!” Omar Sey, born in 1941 in Basse was laid to rest on Friday evening at the Old Jeshwang Cemetery.

It is a big disappointment to learn that President Barrow visited Foni, Sibanor as part of reconciliation efforts where he met the traditional and Community leaders as if Foni is the Gambia’s problem. There will be no reconciliation when parts of the population is labelled as anti-government as a result of their tribe, culture, political ideology and geographical area.

Previously Kanilai bigot the unusual as a bitter confrontation between the peaceful protesters and Senegalese soldiers at the entrance of the village letting to bloodshed. Residents of the rural settlement and the Foni environs demanded the immediate evacuation of both the Gambian and Senegalese soldiers in Kanilai. The protesters were shot on their route to Kanfenda leading to some civilians sustaining injuries and death of one civilian by name Mr. Haruna Jatta who was later laid to rest on the 6^th June, 2017.

It was narrated that the ECOMIG soldiers from Senegal were informed to shoot the protesters as they are rebels from Cassamance? If that is true then it is complete idiocy to allow any nation, regardless of the external generosity to fight their enemy within your land, and knowing very well and with supreme belief that the aftermath can be life threatening.

Many will asked this question. Why the heavy deployment of soldiers in one part of the country concisely Foni stuck in the minds of most Gambians? To protest again external forces is not a crime as it happened in Congo, Haiti and many more. In Senegal the last time I checked the number of protest occurred is uncountable but none of the protesters were shot to death with a life bullet. But why on the Fonika’s? Also if protesters were armed with weapons as claimed by the then minister of Interior Mai Fatty. How came only civilians were injured and killed?

The question on  might be quick to ask shall be why should it took Barrow for one year to visit foni after all calamity that took place.  Barrow is the president which none of the Fonika’s denied. The Gambia belongs to The Gambian’s both those home and abroad. Therefore In rebuilding a new Gambia we all dream all regions need to be represented well and treated equally despite of political ideology. In a place where trust does not exist, love, respect and solidarity are also absent. The lack of trust destroys families, country, as well as social, cultural, and economic life.

The Faroto folks also demonstrated which ended to riot and resulted to the burning of cars owned by individuals. In Bakau the Police were also being attacked by the angry, irritated youth as a result of arresting the drug dealers. There was another bitter confrontation between the Police Intervention Unit Officers (PIU) and the people of Bakoteh which ended of dumping the collected waste at the Mayor’s office in Kanifing but to my surprise none were shot with a life bullet neither a tear gas was used unlike what was done to the people of Foni.

Barrow need to know that Foni is not the problem but the people who prevailed on Former President to subvert the will of the Gambian people are the problem. And those people should never be allowed at any cost to come near to the corridor of authority again.

One cannot use Foni to prevail with the excuse of cajoling for peace. We the sons and daughters of Foni can sort out any issue amongst ourselves in the spirits of one Gambia, one family and one people. In fact, there is no problem in Foni as most narrow minded think and want it to look like. Foni should not and cannot be a prolific ground for anyone to rejuvenate his or her political ambitions. We the Fonika’s are not sleeping and shall continue to rebrand the name of Foni for better. We will take the lead and government must recognize that. Strangers cannot be talking to our people as if we the Foninka’s do not have all what it takes to resolve whatever misconceptions or perceptions that exist.

The real trick to good governance is to place the needs of the masses above everything else, to lead not just with words but with action. Actions define priorities. It’s the only way the Barrow lead administration can successfully bring us the long sought dividend of democracy.

Saidina Alieu Jarjou

Political Activist

There is no doubt that language is not only the vehicle of culture, but of ideas as well. As we know that ideas rule the world in the ultimate analyses, it is important therefore to couch our language(s) whenever in a way that promotes cohesion, unity and reconciliation. The idea that languages play a fundamental part in shaping a society’s outlook towards a particular issue (or even people) is not farfetched. One has only to look at the recent history of the world to see that language plays a key role in either causing great harm; or, averting it.

Friedich Nietzsche, recognizing the power of language, once wrote: ‘Governments that seek absolute power over the groups they control use language as a principal support…’  In democratic societies, those in power maintain a duty of care towards the public, which amongst other things, include using language fairly and prodigiously, choosing words that unite and bridge communities rather than incite hatred and division. In the same vein, the use of vile language by a group of individuals – be they religiously inclined or otherwise – has the potential of causing a lot of harm to society. That is why the government of the Gambia, while protecting the rights to free speech, must seek to manage the way in which the media is used.

Political rhetoric like that of Marton Stride, member of the Swedish far right party forced to resign last month after referring to Muslims as not being ‘fully human’, is the antithesis of the principles of human dignity and civic virtue whereupon secular ideals have been constructed. We must be cautioned against the growing tide of hateful rhetoric lest semantic spur violence against vulnerable groups within society. We must also seek to manage the way our own ‘Marton Strides’ speak on our airwaves and prevent them from inciting violence.

Within this context, the news that your Cabinet in a meeting urged the minister of Information, Communication and Communication Infrastructure to engage the regulators and owners of radio and other media outlet to come up with mechanisms to ensure that no one uses their platform to incite hatred and violence is indeed commendable. Follow-ups should be made so that this does not only remain a rhetoric but is actually implemented. We must inculcate the culture of tolerance and reconciliation to move on. We must progress collectively.

Have a Good day Mr President…

Tha Scribbler Bah

A Concerned Citizen

By Sana Sarr

Thailand’s foreign ministry is reportedly upset with the Gambian government for offensive comments made by The Gambia’s Tourism Minister about Thailand. According to the “Bangkok Post”, Matichon Online reported that a Thai foreign ministry spokesperson has told them they have instructed Thailand’s embassies in Dakar, overseeing The Gambia and the Thai embassy in Malaysia, where the Gambian High Commission takes care of Thailand, to send letters of protest to their Gambian counterparts.

In a recent interview on Gambia’s national television, GRTS, our Minister of Tourism warned western tourists who are interested in sex tourism to stay away from The Gambia.

“We are not a sex destination. If you want a sex destination, you go to Thailand,”  Minister Hamat Bah, who is also the leader of the opposition party, NRP, is reported to have said on a televised weekly talk show.

To many Gambians, Minister Bah’s comments could not have come at a worse time. The country is trying to recover from the twenty-two-year dictatorship of Yahya Jammeh, a period that saw us isolated from the rest of the world due to our earned reputation for gross human rights violations and through unproductive unilateral decisions of our former president, including renaming the country an “Islamic State”, withdrawing it from the Commonwealth and his unsubstantiated claims to cure HIV/Aids using bananas.

After finally getting rid of the dictator through elections in December 2016, we have been trying to repair our image and regain respectability in the international scene. We celebrated readmission into the Commonwealth less than a month ago.

Economically, tourism is one of Gambia’s main foreign exchange earners and employs thousands of Gambians, so it only makes sense that the government has been looking to revive the sector. Gambians generally pride themselves on the peaceful and respectful nature of our people. Our nickname as The Smiling Coast of Africa, is partly due to the friendly and welcoming nature of our people, so to see our Minister of Tourism levelling such unwarranted insults at a foreign nation is highly embarrassing.

We urge Minister Bah to show humility with a sincere apology to the government and people of Thailand for his regretful comments. We also hope that all of our government officials realize the sacred duty they have to represent all Gambians in a positive light and to always endeavor to show our best qualities. Words, especially in international circles, can have far-reaching effects and our nation can ill-afford public officials making flippant comments. We ask our executive to remember this responsibility so they hire individuals based on qualifications and not only on political expediency.

Olof Njie neh, “lu waai di wuyoe, dakoi nuroo”.

“Honorable” is not just a title for our officials to answer to. It’s a quality that must be reflected in their actions and words.

The daily newspapers yesterday quoted you as saying that five years is not enough for you to complete your reform agenda. While this might be true as you put it due to the poor state of the economy you inherited, it is important to state that you and indeed all Gambians knew or should have known that the state of the economy is not good before you came into office. There is not even one Gambia who didn’t know that the former president Yahya Jammeh and his government were embezzling funds and carting away with our little resources.

During the campaign to get yourself into office, you made a lot of promises to put in place a comprehensive reform agenda which will put the country on a firm democratic footing. You promised to review the constitution and introduce term limits and so many other lofty promises. At one time, you promised to stick to the agreement with which you came into office. You said that even if it had to be the five years mandated by the constitution, you will go back to the people and consult them. Now, these statements coming from you that ‘it’s left to the people’, five years is not enough’ and so on have shaken the trust that many had in you.

Granted, everyone knows that five years is not enough for a president to do all that s/he wants to do; but the point is that no president can do it all. The work of government never ends. A president will do his/her part and go and another one will come and do his part. That is how it will continue till end of time. Presidents come and go but the nation remains.

In fact, my shallow understanding was that yours was to be a transitional government. It was not for you and your government to come and bring in any major developmental strides. What your role would have – should have – been was to come and level the playing field by reviewing the constitution, building the institutions and making it a nation based on institutions rather than on individual decisions. You were to bring in electoral reforms which will enable all Gambians to exercise their franchise without any difficulties. This would have been enough achievement for you.

If by these statements you want to hint that you want to stay for long, let me inform you that Gambians will really be disappointed if after twenty-two years of a dictatorship, our new president wants to cling onto power. So, the advice is that you should focus on the reforms and leave the rest to the next president to deal with.

So far, Mr President, you have conducted yourself honourably and have not shown any autocratic tendencies. We want you to remain so and ensure that when you leave office – be that after three or five years – your reputation and honour would still be intact.

Have a Good day Mr President…

Tha Scribbler Bah

A Concerned Citizen

To the casual observer, the recent contractual tussle involving the government of The Gambia, Semlex and Pristine Consulting, may seem just another spilled-over fiasco with origins from the ‘Jammeh years. To the serious analyst & those experts on Gambia affairs, however, there is more to the story than meet the eye. In this analysis, the idea is to unpack and debunk claims as to legal niceties, loopholes, and to lay the facts bare for the Gambian people to chew on.

Ladies and gentlemen – Welcome to the world of big government & the behind-the-scenes dealings by shady investors tricking clueless African executives into worthless business ties. Across the continent, it so often happens to be a case of ‘naivety’, ‘Belly-Politics’, lack of ‘Ethics’, but damn right ‘Greed’. In his article last week, Boor Sine, alluded to such ‘dodgy and worthless investors chasing quick profits would turn to foolish African leaders lacking business skills or the ability to distinguish between good or bad investment; thus exploit their ignorance and greed’.

The impending questions here begging for answers are:  Was ‘Due Diligence’ carried out on Semlex before handing them the multi-million dalasi contract; and if so, who or which government department conducted the checks? The Justice Minister went on air claiming that government has, in fact, contacted the Belgian authorities seeking clarify on its investigations into Semlex. Just a week later, he handed them the deal?! The so-called three-man ministerial task force set-up to assess & deliberate on the process was flawed on two counts. First, cabinet ministers have no constitutional ground to step on toes as such; a role and job strictly reserved for the procurement department (GPPA) to both assess and independently verify bids. Secondly, the Justice Minister decided to hand Semlex the contract, yet his own brother, Sheriff Tambadou, is the lawyer lobbying for that firm? If that is not conflict of interest, then what is? In the United Kingdom, he will have to resign or immediately face the sack.

The question even worrisome was who decided on the so-called task force when GPPA could have handled this squarely, but side-tracked? And comparatively, what was the contrasting offers as to price, job creation and trainings for young Gambian graduates? Which of the two bids offer value for money to the tax payer? And why decide to give Semlex the contract even though it had refused to submit any bid? What a scandalous mess, painted with untruths sold to the Gambian people. I demand a police inquiry, immediately, and to question Semlex officials, and all those involved. The problem of Gambia, today, faced with spineless lawyers devoid of moral fibre, only adds to its many problems dragging the country further back. Who is regulating this industry?

A warning to the Banjul cartel looking to sell off the country’s assets, we are watching ever closely, decoding on the basis of ‘national interest. A review spanning several countries in which Semlex operates found it has failed to live up to promise in regards to the size of intended investment, whilst committing fraud on diplomatic passports. Fellow Gambians, a deal still shrouded in mystery has thrown the country’s entire bio-metrics national security condition at risk to fraudulent abuse! A simple due diligence would have shown red-flag, yet the government decided to bypass a reputable Gambian company of Microsoft advances offering quality services ten times cheaper. I call for a parliamentary enquiry!

The issue here appears but for lack of proper comprehension as to what a national biometrics system truly entails. Cabinet, it appears, seem more concerned on the card than the system itself. The card is just an output of the system ladies and gentlemen: A research on Pristine Consulting reveal it had already conducted system evaluation on certain criterion, such as, Functionality, Scalability (how easily can the system be expanded), Ease of use, Interoperability (the ability of computer systems or software to exchange & make use of information), among others. It is also discovered that Pristine has already compiled biometric data of some eight-hundred thousand Gambians & aliens in the country – ready to partner with government transform the country’s entire information security apparatus.

Reaching out to a senior civil servant in the course of this piece, the official confirmed that Pristine Consulting had put in the best bid by a mile, even offering to train young Gambian I.T graduates into fully fledge Microsoft engineers among others. He expresses frustration at the manner …(). A telephone call to Pristine Consulting’s offices for details, a company employee did corroborate details, in fact, going on to say they were willing to train hundredths of young graduates, and to offer jobs and internships, as a Gambian company doing its fair share towards national development. When the writer placed a similar call to Semlex’s offices in Brussels asking questions, the only answer was ‘’no comment’’, before banging down the phone.

I will go on to add that, even had there not being a suitable Gambian firm to implement such an ambitious project, any wise government will invest in getting local I.T firms trained in implementing such solutions ensuring that national security details remain in safe hands. Take the case of ‘Morpho’, a French company that implemented biometrics projects in several francophone countries. The Paris government did invest in the company making sure the security needs of France are in safe hands. This is what I mean by foresight and vision – simply, looking ahead into the distant far ahead to the future. In a globalised world of technological advances, where conventional warfare has receded, information war has taken over posing major national security challenges to nation-states. Today, China, U.S, Senegal, Ghana and others dedicate large sums of their budget on cyber security.

In a recent interview, I was pleased to hear the president reaffirm that ‘government is about process’ in which every sector making up the ‘machinery’ has specific roles to play’. To that end, here is Boor Sine again, ’Consult [experienced] civil servants to research on projects before signing any deals. Otherwise the sweat & tears of the nation shall haunt your legacy’. And do let me interject in that another Commission of Inquiry is of vital necessity post-Barrow presidency. The leadership continues to preach that it cares, out to serve the national interest; yet time-after-time government is found wanting when it matters most. I urge him to challenge his ministers, governors and the entire civil service stream to level up & deliver as expected of each & everyone.

Why is the price of rice still constant, despite tax overtures from central government? And how many new jobs have been created since the coalition came to power? The minister for Trade, Industry and employment must shoulder the blame here. And the tourism minister is hereby reminded not to sell off all reserve lands to dodgy investors in his ear, rather, a credible & sustainable allocation policy for future generation of young entrepreneurs in the making. There is more to democracy than allowing free press. It is about observing ‘Shared Responsibilities’ and ‘Limits to Power’. But it is also about ‘Economic Justice’ where every citizen, from Kartong to Koina, feel a sense of belonging, to be given his/her fair share of the ‘National Cake’.

The new constitution under draft must reflect two very important elements. First, an independent ‘Nation Prosecution Service’, to scrutinise & assign criminal cases – away from the ‘partisan’ Justice ministry. Second, a permanent ‘Anti-Corruption Commission’ to keep oversight & watch on crooked officials, where citizens may report instances of corruption. With that, the office of the OMBUDSMAN is obsolete, a waste of tax payers millions, and should be abolished. I end to congratulate the presidency on the weekly cabinet meetings just announced; a welcome development indeed: But I still call on him to toughen up, and to be more vocal as to the direction of the country, if he truly wants to solidify & cement his status, and therefore, LEGACY.

Gibril Saine   Twitter: @gibbysaine

Mrs Ada Gaye, former Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture said she was scared to ask Kanilai Group International KGI to repay millions of dalasi taken from the Japanese grant. She made the disclosure at the commission of inquiry probing into the financial dealings of the former president and his close associates.

Mrs Gaye revealed that the Japanese government was providing food grant such as rice, flour and fertilizer to The Gambia Government for the needy farmers at affordable prices, saying the former president was the Agriculture Minister while his own business group, KGI was assigned to sell the consignment.

The former Agriculture PS said KGI was the sole contractor but could not tell how the contract was awarded to them. She mentioned 4 agreements made by the former president’s business group in respect to the sale of rice, flour and fertilizer consignments amounting to millions of dalasi.

She made mention of a D30 Million Dalasi default with a shortfall of D17 Million Dalasi plus an unauthorized expenditure of D92 Million for fertilizers.

“I was scared to ask KGI to further pay the millions taken from the Grant,” Mrs Ada Gaye said.

She was asked what scare her from requesting for the payment?

“I was told the former president was not happy when I asked for the payments,” she replied.

She added that the Japanese officials were not happy with the way the funds were managed but continued releasing grants.

Several correspondence from her office in respect to the Japanese grant were submitted and marked as exhibits.

Next to appear before the commission was Cherno Abdoulie Mballow, former head of Agriculture Business at the Department of Agriculture.

He was summoned in respect to the Japanese rice grant to the government of The Gambia. Mballow explained that his role was to coordinate all business activities of the Agriculture department which includes training of farmers and registration of cooperatives among others.

Mballow said the ministry was responsible for the Grant which was mainly in cash and there was an agreement that one of the Japanese agencies would handle the project, noting that they would do the clearance of the rice consignment at the ports while proceeds from the sale should be deposited at the Central Bank where monies were deposited by Kanilai Group International.

He confirmed that he was the focal person between the Ministry and Japan at the time, saying he witnessed only four consignments.

However, he said the terms and conditions on offers made to KGI was not cleared at the meeting, noting that any price proposals by the ministry at the time was forwarded to the Office of the President for approval.

Mr Mballow however disclosed that they did not make any follow up on KGI for the deposit of the proceeds but confirmed that KGI did not deposit all the proceeds at the Central Bank.

He added that whatever price was determined, there was always an approval by the former president as the Japanese government gave a time limit to every project but there was no audit report.

Meanwhile, the former focal person said the Japanese government claimed that KGI did not deposit all the monies from the consignments of the commodities.

Dear Mrs., Miss and Mr. at The Fatu Network,

I beg you to take note and publish the below statement. This letter is meant to be for the support of the Gambian people as it is of high importance that Gambia don’t sell out their values to foreign countries.

The Chinese fish factory at Gunjur and Kartong has been well described in numerous media, like Greenpeace, local newspapers, media within the EU etc.

The factory at Gunjur has been accused of and are responsible of pollution of the sea causing the death of thousands of fish which was washed ashore making the disaster visible.

There are more than 70 Chinese trawlers fishing in Gambian waters. Nobody is controlling them for license and/or what kind of catch they take on board. A short time ago Senegal control boats arrested 7 Chinese trawlers, who were fishing illegal in Senegal waters. It seems that Gambia do not have the means for controlling on high seas. Gambia’s territorial waters extends 200 nautical miles (about 370 kilometres) from the coast line and out into the sea.

But – sadly enough – the local Gambian and Senegalese fishermen are delivering fish to the Chinese factories. The Chinese pay better than the local consumers. Therefore the local fishermen is contributing to overfishing. For these boats it may happen that the fish is dead before reaching the factory and the fish will be thrown overboard. In other cases the factory may not be able to handle all the fish brought to them wherefore the fish is thrown away somewhere in the vicinity.

Gambia’s Fisheries Minister, James Gomez has now ordered that 10% of the catch must be for the local market. That means 90% still goes to the Chinese factories. This is just not good enough.

This is all very short sighted. After few years the fish will be gone and the Chinese will leave. Meanwhile the tourists have left long time earlier. Nobody can live in the odour of stinking fish. The tourist did not spend money only for sight-seeing etc., but coming to the Gambia many saw the difficulties of the people and started to collect money in their home countries in order to send the money to schools, hospitals or for education of single persons.

They even build hospitals and schools. Many containers of all kind of goods were shipped to Gambia and distributed by the same people to schools, hospitals etc. This was all done privately. This kind of a human helping hand will be gone.

President Adama Barrow has signed different agreements with China. Hopefully this will not end as for many other African nations, who was dealing with China – they were all raped.

Just at this moment an other Chinese fish factory is being build at the coast of Sanyang, just 10 kilometres north of Gunjur.

It can be expected that same things will happen on this place like the other places where the Chinese have build their factories. But this factory is not operational yet. There is time to stop this adverse development.

Here your newspaper come in. It must be anticipated that also politicians read newspapers.

Have enclosed a map positioning the new fishmeal factory at Sanyang and some pictures showing the beautiful beach which now probably soon will be destroyed.

With best regards Gunther Petersen, Denmark

By Essa Bah

Land reforms are an important element in the process of sustainable development. It allows policy makers to directly observe how land is utilised to determine priority development areas and to avoid future land conflicts. Each region must find what works best for them despite the diverse land tenure system around the world, including in West Africa. The current conflict between pastoralists and farmers in West Africa could be addressed through the demarcation of land to distinguish its use for settlements, forestry, agriculture, industry and so on. Pastoralists could be allocated land with ranches where boreholes are dug, and sprinklers purchased to provide continuous grazing. This would remove the motivation to move around and consequently avoid conflict with farmers. ECOWAS members could exploit diaspora remittances to raise funds for the demarcation process. A 0.25 cent levy per US$100 remitted could raise more than US$65 million per year to finance the land reform process. However, more collaboration with the diaspora would be needed to build confidence that the finances will be used transparently.

Land is a central element in the production process and a source of inputs in the production of goods and services. It has been a source of discussion in economics since the time of the early economists such as Malthus. The prerequisite to sustainable development is to organise society in a way that will enable policy makers to assess progress and drawbacks in the process. The lack of practical land reform policy in Africa suggests that the take-off to sustainable development would be difficult to achieve.

The conflict between pastoralists and farmers has been a source of conflict in many parts of West Africa and it continue to do so. It has unnecessarily led to the death of thousands of people in the region. As a result, proactive measures are required in order to find a sustainable solution. Moreover, the solutions could have economic benefits and contribute to fighting hunger and improve other development indicators such as tackling climate change and affordable housing. Pastoralists need land to graze and derive economic gain from grazing. Farmers also derive economic gain from their harvest. Therefore, it is a matter of economics that each player wants to protect theirs’s and this could naturally cause conflict and consequently death for some. The deaths could be avoided in a region where there are expanses of under-utilised land that could be exploited for grazing, farming, forestry and settlements.

Western African nations could use one of two approaches or a combination of the two to resolve land issues and pave the way for a sustainable path to development and to preserve lives and loss of property to society. The first approach involves a proper national recording and land management system. The second approach is a regional land management system. Both approaches require demarcation of land to distinguish its use for settlements, forestry, farming, grazing and so on at the national and regional level. Given that ECOWAS has shifted emphasis toward integration rather than cooperation, regional land management system should further strengthen the integration process. Governments, pastoralists and farmers could all derive economic gain from land reforms if farms and herds are turn into viable markets. Moreover, turning informal economic activities into formal markets could contribute to poverty and hunger reduction in West Africa.

Farmers may need herds to provide natural manure by rotating farming and grazing if mobility is feasible. Where mobility is not feasible, pastoralist could be provided with ranches where boreholes are dug, and water sprinklers purchase for continuous grazing. This will remove the motivation for pastoralist to move around in search of grass and avoid future conflicts.

The governments through the ECOWAS commission could find ways to finance the demarcation process and beyond without borrowing. Domestic taxation could be difficult given that many countries in West Africa rely on donors to finance a sizeable percentage of their budget. Nonetheless, the West African diaspora could contribute, perhaps on the condition of transparency. The West African Diaspora remitted an estimated US$26 billion in 2014. A 0.25 cent levy per US$100 remitted could raise about US$65 million per year. There is no reason why this is not feasible given that West Africa has the experience to raise funds through the community levy. Furthermore, domestic initiatives such as banquets and sports events involving the citizens, especially our celebrities could raise additional funds.

The demarcation process does not imply that current land owners will lose their properties. The demarcation process should ensure that future land use does not reallocate agricultural land for settlements without due legal process. If the demarcation process means that some land owners could lose part of their property, the governments could initiate a compensation process.

West Africa needs to overcome conflicts associated with land, farmland, grazing and settlements in order to pave a path to sustainable development. It will be impossible to improve the standard of living of ECOWAS citizens as envisaged in article 2 of the 1975 treaty without land reforms. The developed world today resolved land issues which provided the platform to a sustainable path to development.

The Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) estimated 1.5 billion cattle in the world in 2015 and 66.9 million (4.6%) of the total world cattle are in West Africa. If other regions of the World like Brazil, India, China and the USA which together account for 41% of world cattle have less of a problem between pastoralist and farmers, there is no reason why West Africa should have the problem given the vast expanses of unexploited land in the region.  “IT IS NEVER IMPOSSIBLE UNTIL IT IS DONE” (Mandela).

By Omar Wally

Lawyer Salieu Taal, one of the founders of#Gambia Has Decided, a civil society organization, has reacted to remarks made by President Adama Barrow in Turkey.

President Barrow made the remarks during a meeting with Gambians in Turkey where he said that it is very common now to find a whole space filled with ideas and criticisms.

He asked the whereabouts of some of those who are very vocal now adding that many of them were nowhere to be found when Jammeh refused to step down.

Reacting to President’s comments, Taal said he was surprised and disappointed listening to President Barrow speaking along those lines.

‘Even if a person or a group spoke lately, it is never too late to speak for what is right.’

As our leader and at this juncture in our nation’s democracy, the focus of the discussion should be on what we learned from the past, said Taal.

Taal: ‘We have to unlearn how we lived under Jammeh and learn how to live under a democracy. Gambia Has Decided played a pivotal role as a form of public defiance against Jammeh while he was in power.’

Taal said Gambians spoke very loud and that through the initiatives billboards were erected while Jammeh was in power; thousands of T-Shirts were printed and distributed mostly at their cost.

‘Because someone has been an activist for twenty years does not give them more rights and entitlements than the next person who started activism six months ago. Obama became President of US on the struggles of Martin Luther Kings, Malcolm X and many others. Rev Jackson has been in the struggle  longer but Obama was the one who enjoyed the fruits of the fight put up by African-Americans.’

When you fight for your country you fight for yourself, you don’t fight in expectation of any entitlement or benefits said Taal.

Taal added that what it takes to tackle dictatorship is different from what it takes to build a democracy. The Civil Society can only make Barrow a better president; it is in his interest to continue to engage the civil society.

‘Civil Society is not fighting with the president; civil society and the president have the same fight which is to develop the Gambia.’

We – as a people – must seek and find ways of reawakening the zeal to read in our youth. It is often said that the youth are the leaders of tomorrow; but, they need not wait for tomorrow. I say that the youth are the leaders of today! That should be the aim. The youth must take centre stage in the running of the nation.

The truth is that we need to create a ‘new Gambian’ in the New Gambia. The Gambian of yester years has woefully failed us. For, fifty-two years after independence, we have failed to create the Gambia we want. We have failed to create a national identity of which our young ones are proud. The Gambian of old has not been able to rise above self-love, above the benefit of the individual and embrace that of the society. He has not taken the chances that the new dawn has ushered into the world, or seized the freedom that is being offered by the proliferation of information.

The Internet and other technological advancements have made it easier to seek knowledge (developmental eduacation) and wisdom and create a platform for self-actualization. We need to create a New Gambian who knows his heritage, who knows his yesterday and knows his worth; a New Gambian who will not only think of his food for the day, but will work on planning for tomorrow and the decades ahead. We need a New Gambian who knows that failing to plan is planning to fail.

This ‘New Gambian’ will know that we cannot depend on foreign aid and handouts. We cannot depend on importation of basic commodities like food. He will know that for us to move towards our progress, we need innovation and creativeness and entrepreneurship. He will know that we need to invest in an education which will produce job creators and not job seekers. Thus, he will solve the unemployment problem and find ways of enabling us to feed ourselves.

We need to create a Gambian who is politically, morally, socially and spiritually aware. This New Gambian, though will not be irreligious, will not be a fanatic either. He will not see tribes and ethnic differences as divisions which can be harbingers of wars and genocides, ethnic cleansings and bigotry, but he will see them as a boon which can be exploited and used to develop our country in such a way that our future generations can be proud of; so that, in the future, they can stand tall among the comity of nations and raise their voices.

We need to create a New Gambian who is consciously aware of his duties and responsibilities to protect and defend human rights. He will be, as the common parlance goes, ‘his brother’s keeper.’ If we do this we will have a society which is developed, advanced, aware and just. After all these, we will have lasting peace and stability.

In this struggle, we need all hands on deck, so to speak. We need an inclusive outlook which embraces all and sundry. Every individual must be a defender of human rights and an advocate for the rule of law. We must seek genuine and sincere engagement with government and elected officials. We need to appreciate genuine efforts of our government when there ia any, but also hold them to account whenever and wherever they fail or falter.

Additionally, we need to inculcate a love of country which goes beyond personal desire or party afliation. We must make the nation a nation that we will be proud of; and our children will bask in the rays of progress and equality.

With Love

Tha Scribbler Bah