By: Dawda Baldeh
The National Assembly Member for Old Yundum Constituency, Honorable Abdoulie Ceesay, has blamed the former Chief Momodou Bojang and Wellingara Alkalo Saihou Ndure for failing to conduct a proper check before awarding land ownership to one Lamin Bojang, which has caused a dispute in the community.
Last Friday, a group of young people protested against the land allocation, leading to chaos.
Hon. Ceesay described the ongoing land dispute as a grave concern.
“Regrettably, the former Chief of Kombo North (Momodou Bojang) and the Alkalo of Wellingara (Saihou Ndure) failed to conduct a thorough background check before awarding the ownership of the said land to Lamin Bojang and his family,” he said.
Ceesay added: “This oversight has led to unnecessary tension and conflict within the community.
It is clear that if the Chief and the Alkalo had listened to the concerns of elders who were well-informed about the situation, this unfortunate incident could have been avoided.”
He expressed suspicion after reviewing the documents presented to him by Mr. Bojang, who was allocated the disputed land.
“When I first set my eyes on the documents presented to me, I remember telling Lamin Bojang that the documents you showed me are very recent, 2019, and this land has been here since I was a young boy.
I would have had a second thought if you presented a document dated back to the 1990s,” Ceesay noted.
The Old Yundum Lawmaker said the situation is tarnishing the government’s reputation due to the faults of the Alkalo and the former Chief.
He also urged the angry youths to remain calm as engagements are ongoing.
“I want to strongly urge the youths of the area to maintain calm and order. The violence that occurred last Friday was unacceptable and must not be repeated because that will never solve the problem,” he emphasized.
Ceesay also called on the Minister of Lands and Regional Governance to help address the situation.
He revealed that a meeting has been scheduled for Monday, 19th of August, to address this issue once and for all.
Hon. Ceesay expressed optimism that a fair and equitable solution will be reached.
