Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issue
Issue No. 72/2007, 22-24 June, 2007
Editorial
STRANGE RATIFICATION OF BI LATERAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN GAMBIA AND VENEZUELA
SOS FOREIGN AFFAIRS SHOULD EXPLAIN!!
During the last session of the National Assembly, a document written in
Spanish, was introduced by the Speaker of the National Assembly as a Memorandum
of Understanding between Gambia and Venezuela. Sidia Jatta, the member for
Wuli West questioned the content of the document since there was no English
version. The speaker acknowledged that there was no English version but proceeded
to put the question for ratification and the rest of the National Assembly
members gave their support.
The Constitution of the Republic states clearly in section 101 that a Bill
or motion may be introduced in the National Assembly by a member of cabinet or
by a member of the National assembly.
According to Standing Order 29, the Speaker shall not propose a motion to
the assembly unless it is moved and seconded. Needless to say, Standing Order
31 makes it mandatory that “when a motion has been moved and seconded in the
Assembly, the Speaker shall propose the question to the Assembly, in the same
terms as the motion and debate may then take place upon that question and may
continue so long as any member wishes to speak who is entitled to do so.”
Such debates can only be relevant if documents are given to members to study
before the motions to adopt them are introduced. The majority and minority
leaders of the National Assembly should ensure that the Speaker does not
depart from the standard rules or procedures of parliament. Our major concern,
however, is the absence of the English version of the Memorandum of
Understanding.
The standard procedure in signing international agreements is to have the
documents written in the official languages of the signatories.
Are we being told that when the Gambia government representatives were
signing the document they were not given an English version?
The SoS for Foreign Affairs should explain what gave rise to the existence
of the Spanish version of the memorandum and the absence of an English version.
Bilateral agreements should be jointly prepared and ratified in the
languages of the countries involved. Any failure to do this does not manifest the
sovereign equality of states.
We also hope that the MOU concerned will be translated and introduced in the
National Assembly as required by the Constitution and the Standing Orders of
parliament.
DOCK WORKERS SET DATE FOR STRIKE ACTION
By Fabakary B. Ceesay and Yaya Dampha
Members of The Gambia Dock Workers Union have vowed to embark on a strike if
the notice of termination issued to them by the management of the Gambia
Ports Authority is not cancelled.
Speaking at a press conference held in their office, on 21 June 2007, the
secretary general of the union, Landing Sanyang, told journalists that they
have received a notice of termination from the management of the ports who
informed them that the new structure in place for the employment of dock workers
under the service of the GPA will come into effect on the 1 of August 2007.
The letter further states that the severance package is being worked out and
that payments shall be made to all dock workers at the end of the notice, that
is 31 July 2007.
The notice has provoked the dock workers who took the bull by the horns by
writing a letter to the GPA management, urging them to cancel the move.
Sanyang said the dock workers are not employees of the GPA, so their services could
not be terminated by the ports. He referred to the letter as draconian and
unlawful. He said they have given the GPA a 28 day notice to desist from
interfering in their matters, failing which they will embark on a strike. Sanyang
said the theme of their strike is “No dock workers. No work at the ports.”
Mr. Amadou Touray, an executive member of the union, said the management of
the ports is relying on the (Amendment) Act, 2004. He said that Act was not
gazetted and that means it does not have the force of law.
Mr. Ndow, a dockworker said the GPA is trying to eschew the responsibility
of paying their arrears on overtime and bonus.
According to him, this problem had started since the time or Mr. Deen. He
said the management of the ports always makes unlawful moves whenever there is
an attempt by the dock workers to get their benefits from them.
Alhagie Kebba Kassama and Sarjo Trawally, advisers to the dock workers,
stressed that the government needs to take steps to resolve the matter. They said
the government keeps on changing managers, but the problem remains unsolved.
SEDAT DIBBA DETAINED AT POLICE HEADQUARTERS
By Fabakary B. Ceesay
Foroyaa Newspaper has been reliably informed that Mr. Sedat Mustapha Dibba,
who was arrested at his native village of Sailkanni in Central Baddibou three
weeks ago, is detained at the police headquarters in Banjul. Sources
confirmed that he is yet to be charged.
According to sources, Mr. Dibba was picked up by officers of the Police
Intervention Unit (PIU) stationed at Kerewan. He was said to be detained at
Kerewan for almost a week before being transferred to Police headquarters in
Banjul.
The police Spokesperson, Inspector Sulayman Secka, confirmed the detention
of Mr. Sedat Dibba, but did not comment on the reasons and conditions of his
arrest and detention. He told this reporter that the police are yet to
complete their investigation on the matter. Mr. Sedat Dibba was born in Baddibou
Salikenni. He was a teacher before leaving the country in the early 1980s and he
had spent two decades of his life in Nigeria, Cameroon, Liberia and Sierra
Leone. He returned home about five years ago. He is said to be in his early
50s.
GAMTEL’S FORMER DIRECTOR IN THE DOCK
By Abdou Jeli Keita
Mr. Omar Ndow, Former Managing Director of Gamtel, was on Wednesday June 20,
2007, brought before Magistrate B.Y Camara at the Banjul Magistrates’ Court.
Ndow is arraigned in court for alleged disobedience of statutory duty,
contrary to section 115 of the criminal code, cap 10, volume III, laws of the
Gambia 1990. He is also charged for alleged abuse of office, contrary to section
90 of the criminal code, cap 10, volume III, laws of the Gambia 1990.
Count one states that Omar Ndow on and about the year 2005 and 2006 at
Gamtel, house in the city of Banjul, being employed in the public service as the
managing director of Gamtel, is alleged to have willfully omitted to refer a
contract proposal to the G.P.P.A, as statutory required of him.
Count two states that the accused between 2005 and 2006 at Gamtel house in
the city of Banjul, being employed in the public service, as the managing
director of Gamtel, is alleged to have willfully failed to follow the required
procedure of the G.P.P.A regulation.
The accused, was granted bail on condition that he must provide a Gambian
surety who will sign a bail bond, and the surety should also provide title deed.
Inspector Bojang represented the Inspector General of Police while the
accused was represented by Sagarr Jahateh.
The case is adjourned to 18 June for hearing.
POVERTY CAN SEPARATE A CHILD FROM FAMILY -Halifa Sallah
By Abdou Jeli Keita
June 16 was set aside by the then OAU and now AU for all African countries
to commemorate as a reflection of the condition and plight of African
Children, in particular, the school children of Soweto in South Africa, “who were
massacred by the then barbaric, racist, and extremely cruel apartheid regime in
1976. This year’s theme is “Child Trafficking.” Halifa spoke on “The role
of families and communities in protecting children from trafficking”.
According to Halifa, “When the world was young and communities were
separated by forest and wild animals, human beings were confined in small communities
because of inability to cross rivers and forests, when there were no
televisions or radio stations, when people knew only what existed in their
communities, society was very small, peoples movement were very much restricted and
families were very close to each other.” He said that during such an era, “
Parents were responsible for the upbringing of the children,” noting that “
they transferred knowledge and skills and values to children.” He indicated that
mothers took charge of instilling in children respect for human life and
fowl play by making animals speak the language of justice. Mothers, he said,
made different stories to fight different forms of injustices. Since
step-mothers, step-fathers, used to maltreat orphans, they developed stories of children
who were orphans. Stories of somebody like, Samba and somebody like Kumba
would enable children to reflect on the suffering of these orphans from the
discrimination and injustice perpetrated by a family who gave regard to their
biological child at the expense of the orphan.” He said that these fables
always ended by depicting how the favoured child ended up in tragedy and the child
who is discriminated emerged successful and victorious. He emphasized that
these stories were meant to inculcate values. “This is what one calls
socialization, that is, inculcating values into the mind of the person so that one
knows the type of life one should live. Halifa added that as societies
developed, and the communities expanded, the frontiers were broken. That development
and change reached a point where communities could provide adequate food in
the past, could no longer provide what was needed, it could not even cloth the
children. Many families for one reason or another would send a small child
away in search of economic means to be able to address wants.” He gave as
example that in our sub-region families would ask their children to say go to a
particular area where they could work during holidays to earn what they needed
to go to school. “Others did so to prepare for marriage. This has happened
here and it is still happening,” he noted. “We are aware of cases where
children are transported outside of this country to another land. Yes, young girls
have been transported to other lands where they were treated like slaves,
without any rights. They have been subjected to exploitation and some of them
even came back home poor and wretched,” he added. He said that today these
people are adults, “Adults still living in poverty, adults still living shattered
lives. It is unfortunate that we are yet to document the experiences of
these people and I would strongly recommend that this is done. We should reach
them to learn from their experiences. We should get them to talk to the young
to help them to really understand what is child trafficking by explaining what
they went through. They are better teachers, because, they have experienced
what we are talking about.”
Halifa drew the lesson that it is these injustices against the child, the
vulnerability of the unprotected child, that led human society to put the
discussion on child rights on the historical agenda. The issue of child rights is
highly misunderstood by many people in the society today. Halifa indicated
that our experience teaches that poverty leads to the separation of a child
from the family that should be the major protector of the child. Greed can make
another person in the community take in that child and subject him/her
discrimination and exploitation. He said that there have been cases where people
are told that they can get “diamond by sacrificing a human being.”
Such people snatch children and offer them as human sacrifice. He argued
that we can see that when society breaks down and lacks the capacity to take
care of its young the young becomes vulnerable and can be the subject of the
trafficking of human beings; that Furthermore when people are not imbued with
human conscience, when they do not treat other human beings as worthy of living
the quality of life that their children are living, greed can lead them to
discriminate those children, to exploit and to even kill them just for their
own gain.
He said that the reason why we have these conventions is to help us to
understand what a human being is entitled to, to foster commitment to such
principles. Halifa emphasized that we cannot put an end to child trafficking until
we put every aspect of the Convention on the Rights of the Child into
practice. He said the Convention provides the guide on how to put an end to child
trafficking. He said Article 5 of the Convention states that, we must respect
the rights and responsibilities of parents to provide guidance on how children
should learn then rights according to their evolving capacities; that parents
have the responsibility to care for their children, children have a right to
care, parents must care for their children. He said a parent cannot guide a
child unless one is close to the person,’ you must be with your child, to be
able to help that child to grow and exercise his/her rights’. Such a child
cannot become the subject of child trafficking he intimated. He said that
Article 7 of the Convention entitles the child a right to a name. “We have
developed a system whereby we gather on the seventh day of existence of the child to
give the child a name. Adults assemble because of the importance of the
child. Most of us think of somebody we love and respect among our fathers,
mothers, relatives, friends to name after. In this way the child is seen to belong
to a community. This makes the community to recognise and respect the child.
Once this is done we should recognise that the members of the community have
equal responsibility to help that child to become the type of adult who will
be named after. He emphasised that, if we build that value system a child
cannot end up being missing. He said a child who is known and respected by the
community would not be a subject of trafficking, it will be impossible. Halifa
then observed that “we are talking about restoring real concern, the culture
of concern for children. Since it is indisputable we believe that the child
is a part of the community, then the community must also be a part of the
child,” It means that the society we have today which embodies a community of
people who are separated from each other, people who do not share the same
values, who do not even speak about child up-bringing, cannot protect the child
from trafficking. “If we want to build communities that can protect the child
we must do what you are doing now, the young people today are engaged in peer
group socialization, that is why you are here today. It is essential then
for us to realise that the reason why we have this Convention on the Rights of
the Child is to help provide us the guiding principles to help society to
develop socially, economically, culturally so that parents will be to able to
safeguard the rights of the child to protection and development.
“If we don’t develop they head towards self destruction, they also destroy
us along. So it is important for us to realise this. If we do not accept to
develop, circumstances will dictate what we do. The life we save is the very
life that will save us or the lives of our children. We should organise radio
programmes and educate the public on the dangers of child trafficking.
Parents may form community groups to discuss how to build families and
communities that can protect children. Children should also form peer groups
associations for their own self protection: The media should be utilized to
promote greater understanding of rights and duties. Young people must realise that
they must either take charge of their society or the adversities of life will
push them into the self destruction.”
Halifa added that the community must also accept its responsibility to
protect the child. That the life one protects is the life that will protect those
of others including oneself. That if we leave people to head towards self
destruction they will end up pulling the rest of the community down with them.
That each must be the other’s keeper. That is the only type of world fit for
us to live in.
TEACHERS SPEAK OUT
The Voluntary Services Overseas, (VSO) has carried out a brilliant and up to
date policy research on Teachers’ motivation and perceptions of their
profession. The result of the document is contained in a 45 page Pamphlet, covering
as many aspects of the profession s is practically possible.
The work had been pioneered by such personalities as David Clamp (Country
Director) and Nuha Jatta (Education Programme Manager) of VSO- The Gambia and
Lucy Jenks, Stephen Sara Cowan, Nock and others, of VSO International.
The research, however, maintains that the views expressed in the report are
representative of individuals who participated in the research and may not
necessarily reflect the views of VSO The Gambia or VSO International.
This study had given a summary of Recommendations on terms and conditions of
service of teachers in The Gambia such as;
· Improved salary conditions should be taken into account;
· Allowances and social assistance schemes to improve security for
teachers;
· Health insurance scheme for teachers;
· Payment of school fees of the children of teachers;
· Housing schemes to encourage teachers to stay in the profession
· Maternity leave conditions should be increased to a minimum of six
months and should include all female teachers;
· Late payment should no longer be an issue of concern for teachers.
Systems of payment should ensure timely and appropriate payment of all
teachers. Information on payment should be made clear and readily available to
teachers.
More recommendations were made on Training and Professional Development,
Teacher Distribution, Teachers’ Voice and Professional Relationships, School
facilities, as well as on status and value.
The reality of teachers was highlighted in the report. For example, teachers
feel that they are not appropriately remunerated for the civil service
salary scale at a higher grade than many other trained civil servants, in other
ways they feel they do not have access to the same benefits. They believe the
conditions of nurses were more favorable due to the provision of furnished
accommodation etc, levels of payment for nurses working double shifts or over
time.
The fact was highlighted that teachers educate other children but lamented
that they could not afford to educate their own children; that people see
teaching as a stepping stone that you can teach up to retirement but still not
have the finances to get a plot of land for a compound, etc, are all
contributing factors demotivating teachers, the report revealed.
The document would capture the interest of anyone interested in the
development or advancement of education in the Gambia. This is why all those who are
involved in one way or the other should not only read but study the document.
It is really a document/report meant to offer practical solutions to real
problems encountered by those who are entrusted to guide and educate the young
and tender members of our society. So it is a concern for all.
FOCUS ON POLITICS
1981 POLITICAL CRISIS
DIBBA AND CO. FREED, FOREVER!
With Suwaibou Touray
We have been focusing on politics in this column so that young people, in
particular, and Gambians, in general, can reflect on the history of our dear
mother land, appreciate the efforts of men and women who had made strenuous
efforts to bring our country to where it is today.
We have said in the past issues that politics is the steering wheel of a
Nation and it has been argued by others that because Gambians do not appreciate
or respect their citizenship, this is why the expected progress into our
Democratic experiment has not been realised. This is one of the reasons why it is
important to review the happenings of the past in order to focus our talents
into the future with renewed commitment to the political and economic
development of the country.
In issue No. 69/2007, we have concluded with the history of women in
politics which we said is a sad case study for the Country; that the Gambian women
participate fully in political campaigns but hardly participate as contestants
who want to serve the people; that they have always been used as clappers,
praise singers and dancers since independence to date. We attributed this
mainly to the low level of literacy among them. We also argued that it is due
also to the fact that not much encouragement was given to them. We cited the
first woman to enter parliament as St. Clair Joof, who was even nominated not
elected and the reason cited was a mere fact that she was committed to the
ruling PPP . Nyimasata Sanneh Bojang has been cited as the first woman to enter
parliament through the ballot box under the ruling PPP. Let us look forward to
the first woman to brave through the storms to penetrate to parliament
through the ballot under the banner of the opposition. From then on, we can say,
Gambian politics and democracy has moved two steps forward. In the last
article we asked how long Assan Musa Camara the former Vice President could remain
calm after he was marginalized. Let us continue from where we have stopped.
Now that Jawara had been firmly placed to run the country for the next five
years, the case of Sheriff Dibba could also move on to the finish in a swift
manner.
The case proceeded on Wednesday 26 May 1982. Throughout the trial, a total
of 50 (fifty) prosecution witnesses appeared and testified against Dibba and
seven others. The trial was considered as the most protracted high profiled
criminal trial since independence because of its political implication. The
trial also took more than two months to complete.
Among the fifty witnesses were the presidents’ wife, first Lady, Chilel
Jawara and a former minister of state, Mr. Kebba Nyama Leigh, and Mr. Mass Jarra
a former IGP.
The first witness that testified was one Kawsu Jammeh of Bakau. In his
testimony, he said he belonged to the PPP. He said he saw the 4th accused with a
white head band.
On 4th June 1982, Mr. Kebba Nyama Leigh, in essence, said in court that one
Bakary Saho, a Field Force man told him and the Inspector General of Police
that Sheriff Dibba contributed D500 to the plan to stage a coup d’etat. Lawyer
Darboe asked him during cross examination where Bakary lived, Mr. Leigh said
at Bakau New Town. He then asked him whether the president Alhagie Sir Dawda
was in town, he answered in the negative. When he attempted to ask another
question, Mr. Leigh complained to the prosecuting council that Darboe’s father
was his political opponent and that was why he was ‘hambugging me’
(bothering him). There was laughter.
After the prosecution closed their case, Dibba and others entered their
defence. In summary, Mr. Dibba denied ever knowing before hand an attempt to
overthrow the government; that he had not conspired with anyone to overthrow the
government; that he believes in the constitutional process and that was why
he and others formed their party since 1975.
Mr. Dibba however admitted that Kukoi came to his house between 1pm and 3pm
on the 1st of August 1981 but as he said there was no prior appointment made
with him for that day or any other day. He said Kukoi was in his house for
about ten minutes. He also said he was with one gentleman, Kebba Bayo; that
Kukoi requested for him to go with him to radio Gambia so that he could appeal
to the Gambian Nation and promised to appoint him as their Chairman but as he
said he turned down the offer and did not go.
Meanwhile, on 11th June 1982, The Gambia Court of Appeal delivered nine
judgments arising out of the July 30th events which involved some members of the
Supreme Council of the Revolution, such as Mr. Alieu Sallah and others. The
acting president of the court upheld the high court judgment and dismissed
their appeals, meaning that they were all sentenced to death and the method of
which rested on the Attorney General and Minister of justice who now happened
to be Fafa E. Mbai.
DIBBA AND CO. FREED
The most protracted treason trial had come to an end with much suffering for
the accused persons. Dibba and co. would be brought to court at about 7.30am
and remained there up to the end of each day’s proceedings which usually
lasted between 2.30pm and 4pm. Among the accused was one 83 year old man.
The court’s judgment was not officially made public. But all the same, the
private press simply mentioned that they were acquitted and discharged of the
charges levelled against them.
Despite the court order, Dibba and co. were sent back to detention to await
their fate. Many began to wonder why that was so. Some said it was
vindictiveness whilst others thought there may have been some legal loophole being used
against them.
But by 21st June 1982, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mr.
Fafa E. Mbai made an announcement over radio Gambia that Mr. Dibba would
continue to be in detention and the state of Emergency was cited as the reason for
his continued detention. It was amazing to hear from people who were expected
to know better justifying the keeping behind bars of Dibba and co.
Shortly after, other accused persons such as one Foday Touray, Sarjo Touray,
Abdou Sarr, Lang Bojang, Ousman Drammeh and Kebba Talibuya Bojang, accused
of conspiring with Kukoi to commit treason in their attempt to overthrow the
government, were all sentenced to death.
By about 24 June 1982 however, some good news was published by the official
Gambia News Bulletin that the Gambia Government has now authorised the
release of Messrs Sheriff Mustapha Dibba, Lamin Danso, Alhagi Jasseh and four
others from detention on the 24th June 1982.
The release went further to say that “In so doing, the government has
demonstrated once again its scrupulous attachment to the principle of the rule of
law.” Mbai said, now that the due process of law has taken its course, Dibba,
Danso and Jasseh are acquitted and discharged; that government had chosen not
to shun this decision after the usual administrative formalities were
completed. Imagine the jubilation and relief of NCP supporters and sympathisers
across the country. Many concluded that Dibba was infact framed up with
unnecessary charges just to deprive him from participating in the 1982 election
campaign.
The issue that now came to the fore was what would be the fate of all these
people sentenced to death. Would government carry out the verdict to send all
of them to the gallows or the firing squad or what? This was why letters
began to pour in asking for clemency on behalf of those sentenced to death in
connection to July 30 incident.
TREASON TRIAL ADJOURNED FOR RULING
By Bubacarr K. Sowe & Fabakary B. Ceesay
The treason trial involving four civilian suspects who are accused of taking
part in the March 2006 foiled coup d’etat could not proceed at the High
Court on Thursday, June 12, due to the fact that one of the defence lawyers
applied for an adjournment.
The court was expected to deliver a ruling on the trial within trial (Voir
dire) in order to test whether the statements of Tamsir Jasseh, Alieu Faal
(Keita) and Demba Dem were voluntarily obtained by the investigating officers.
Defence Lawyer Jobarteh told the court that he want an adjournment to enable
him to make his address on Monday.
The trial was later deferred to the 29 of June for the ruling.
DAY OF THE AFRICAN CHILD COMMEMORATED
By Abdou Jeli Keita
June 16 was set aside by the then O.A.U and now A.U for all African
countries to commemorate the day of the African Child by reflecting on the conditions
and plight of African Children, in particular, the school children of Soweto
in South Africa, who were massacred by the Apartheid regime in 1976. This
day raises awareness on the welfare of children. It is also used to advocate
for the improvement of the continent.
As the day is commemorated annually with various themes of interest to the
welfare of children, this years theme is “CHILD TRAFFICKING.” In recent years,
this has gained visibility as a major violation of children’s rights. Mr.
Salifu Jassy, a Child Protection Officer at (UNICEF), an agency of the United
Nation which advocates for the rights and welfare of all children, said child
protection is a serious concern to the United Nations Children’s Fund.
UNICEF, he said, regards the trafficking of children as a serious violation of
their rights. Child trafficking is an international problem which affects many
countries in West Africa, including The Gambia.
He said some of the reasons behind child trafficking; include exploitative
labor, military conscription, and acquisition of their organs and for sexual
purposes. He said the survival and development of children is threatened and
their rights to education, to good health, to grow up within a family and to
protection from abuse and exploitation are denied. He said “child bearing is a
choice, but child rearing is a responsibility.” Mr. Salifu Jassy, explained
that, UNICEF’s fight against child trafficking are three fold:
The first is, through advocacy with national governments, for states to take
all necessary legal and administrative measures to prevent child trafficking
and bring traffickers to justice;
The second is through a partnership with governments, NGO’s and Civil
Society Organisations, to protect the victims of child trafficking and help ensure
their recovery, rehabilitation and repatriation to their countries of origin;
The third is to undertake research and documentation of trafficking and use
the resource for mobilization at national and international levels.
Mr. Jassy urged people to create a protective environment for children,
built on the conviction that a world fit for children is one in which they have
the best possible start in life and ample opportunities to develop their
individual capacities in a safe and supportive environment. In seeking to ensure
all children grow up in such an environment, he said UNICEF, considers the
following actions as vital instruments to protect children from the dangers of
trafficking and sexual abuse:
“At the macro or policy level, there must be government’s commitment in
every country to universal primary education, as well as to secondary education.
Girl’s education, in particular, is recognised as one of the most effective
interventions against exploitation, abuse and discrimination. Young girls
ought to be in schools, not on the street or in servitude where they are
vulnerable to abuse and exploitation.
Legislation and law enforcement need to be strengthened to ensure
implementation and monitoring of international conventions, as well as bilateral
agreements for cross-border co-operation. At the service delivery level, the skills
and capacities need to be strengthened for those who come into contact with
children, including parents and caregivers. To promote the recovery of
children into their families and communities, Judges, Lawyers, Police, Social
Workers, Child Psychologists and Teachers need training to support and protect
trafficked children whose needs, and rights are often different from those of
adults. He said at the community level, concerted efforts are necessary to
improve knowledge, attitudes, practices and behaviours to counter discrimination
against girls and the tradition of sending children away to work as domestic
labour.” He said the media has a special role to play to foster open
discussion on child protection issues.
Deputizing for the speaker of the National Assembly, Honourable Seedy S.K.
Njie, nominated member, in his address, said the day is designed to be an
appropriate and effective means through which children can raise awareness on the
issues that affect them to policy makers, religious leaders, parents and
other fortunate children who are not facing such problems. The Gambia
Government, he said, has not only maintained her position on the Convention on the
Rights of the Child (CRC), but has taken positive steps to fulfill most of the
Articles that are in the C.R.C. Njie called on all Gambians, especially the
families and communities, to protect children from not only child trafficking
but all sorts of violence against children.
Mr. Fallou Sowe, who deputized for the Director of Social Welfare delivered
a paper on “Gambia’s Policy Framework on child trafficking.” In his
presentation, he dwelt on the role of the government in combating child trafficking.
He said The Gambia government has come up with legislations to combat child
trafficking. He said the penalty for anyone found guilty of child trafficking,
is a minimum of 10 years imprisonment an a maximum of life imprisonment that
the government did set up a child welfare unit at the police, which deals
with child related issues that the government organised media programs, noting
that the Government is trying to put in place laws that will protect
communities from child trafficking. He said the Government is trying to setup a hot
line to enable communities to report any child trafficking incident and that
government has also setup a task force which came up with a national plan of
action.
He concluded that we must give proper home and parental care to the children
and that communities must break the culture of silence and report matters of
child trafficking. The commemoration of the day began with a march pass from
Serrekunda police to St. Therese’s Upper Basic School along the Kairaba
Avenue.
Mr. Ousman Sarr Executive Director of NAYCO gave the closing statement.
GANYI TOURAY APPOINTED GOVERNOR OF CRR
By Yaya Dampha
Confirmed reports from the Department of State for Local Government and Land
told Foroyaa that Mr. Ganyi Touray, is now the governor of Central River
Region.
According to the information, Mr. Touray was appointed governor on Tuesday
19 June 2007. He succeeded Mr. Amulai Janneh, who is said to have retired.
When contacted, the retired governor, Janneh, confirmed his retirement and
said he was on the process of handing over duties to his successor who was
said to be with him at the time.
In a separate development, Mr. Lamin Darboe, who was the UDP campaign
manager in Jarra West and had recently cross carpeted to the ruling APRC, has been
appointed deputy governor of Lower River Region. He has replaced Mr. Saul
Njai, who according to governor Momodou Soma Jobe, is redeployed to the
Department of State for Tourism and Culture.
Mr. Darboe, was said to have received his appointment letter on Tuesday 19
June 2007.
Issue No.73/2007, 25-26 June, 2007
Editorial
THE GAMBIA STRUGGLING FOR DEBT RELIEF
The press release issued by the members of the IMF mission in connection
with their visit to the Gambia from 8 – 23 June 2007 is quite instructive. The
analysis which follows the publication of the statement will help the reader
to understand the true state of the Gambian economy.
First and foremost, the IMF mission stated that it did welcome the plans by
the Gambia government to “strictly limit new debt accumulation;” that “new
borrowing would be only on highly concessional terms,” that a new debt
strategy will ensure effective debt management.
Secondly, the mission encouraged the Gambia government to pursue policies
that will reduce “domestic debt and facilitate the gradual reduction of the
domestic interest rates.”
The Gambia had two development options in order to maintain satisfactory
economic performance which could have enhanced debt relief and movement away
from the poverty trap.
There was need for prudent fiscal policy and prudent public sector
investment. As it stands both have been lacking. What is our proof?
Public enterprises are only relevant to the public sector if they render
reliable and affordable services, as well as generate non tax revenue in the
form of payments of dividends to government.
The lack of prudent fiscal policy is manifested by the stifling of the
investment capacity of public enterprises by diverting their resources to finance
many social and APRC self perpetuating pursuits such as the commemoration of
July 22nd and other ceremonies to the point of rendering them incapable of
even meeting their debt obligations not to mention paying dividends to
government. For example, in 2005 the non tax revenue suffered short falls because of
the failure of some of the public enterprises to service their loan
obligations. Government paid D200 million from the budget to service the external
loans of public enterprises in 2005 while it could only recover D56 million from
them.
A prudent public enterprise management and investment policy and public
expenditure policy would have led to reduction of the budget deficit and increase
earnings revenue. This would lessen dependency on treasury bills or domestic
borrowing, reduce the public debt, enhance more investment by banks in the
private sector of the economy, productive public sector investment and thus
lower multiplying effect in generating sustainable economic growth and
development.
Another IMF mission has come and gone. The promise has been made to pursue
prudent fiscal and macro economic policies.
Foroyaa is waiting for the dividends from public enterprises, reduction of
domestic borrowing to finance deficits, prudent measures to ensure the
purchase of our groundnut and cotton crops, sustainable reduction in inflation and
reduction of poverty. This is the route to debt relief. We will keep the
readers informed of any development.
PA SALLAH JENG ENDS TESTIMONY
By Bubacarr K. Sowe
Pa Sallah Jeng, the suspended mayor of Banjul, on Friday, June 22, finished
his testimony on the four pending economic crime charges preferred against
him at the High Court.
Under cross examination with the Director of Public Prosecution, Emmanuel
Fagbenle, the suspended mayor said he was elected in 2002. When it was put to
him by the prosecutor as to who controls the Banjul City Council, he answered
that he is only the political head of the BCC and the Chief Executive Officer
has the executive powers. Asked whether he is above the CEO, Mr. Jeng said: “
I am either above or below.” He was quizzed as to what his mandate was
vis-à-vis the CEO, the accused person said according to the Local Government Act,
the mayor presides over council meetings and the CEO is designated as the
Chief Administrative Officer, responsible for all staff matters and operations
of the Council.
He added that this is in accordance with the Council chair of command and
the mayor does not have any authority over the CEO who is directly answerable
to the Council. He told the court that Council comprises councilors, the mayor
and the staff, and he presides over the meeting of Council.
Mr. Jeng pointed out that all other departmental heads operate under the CEO’
s office and that includes the director of finance and others. Asked if the
councilors are elected to run the BCC’s affairs, Mr. Jeng said they are
political members only who have no offices and hold meetings and formulate
policies while operational issues of Council are vested in the CEO.
Questioned by the prosecution if signing contracts is a Council policy, Mr.
Jeng said the Council enters into contracts and the mayor signs whatever is
approved by councilors. He agreed with the prosecution that he sometimes gives
directives to the CEO who would sometimes take it or turn it down. Mr. Jeng
also said that he is not really involved in the day to day administration of
the Council and got involved only to the point where he could.
Asked if he is bound by the Local Government Act, he replied “Yes” as it
applies to all Councils, likewise the BCC.
COUNT SIX
Testifying on count six, the suspended mayor said he is aware of the toilets
contract which he signed. He said that there was no tender for the contract,
noting that open space construction like the one at Primet Street does not
need tendering. Asked whether the CEO signed the contract, Mr. Jeng answered
in the negative, adding that the CEO did not also witness it, but a councilor
did.
Asked if the twenty years contract is against the law, he said that he is
not aware of that but it was based on the assessment value as certified by the
Director of Finance. He went on to say that the assessment value for
sub-leasing the Primet Street property was 700, 000 dalasis and was supposed to be
financed by the contracting individual. He was quizzed as to why the assessment
value of the contract is not stated on the terms of agreement, Mr. Jeng
responded that no other contract at the Council has the assessment value
indicated on them.
The accused person was given a diagram of the planned structure at the
Primet Street and asked how many offices are sketched on it. He said ten offices.
Asked how much does the council rent a shop, he replied, “It varies between
D150 dalasis to D60,000, dalasis depending on the size of the store.
He said the said complex was rented at D30, 000 dalasis, noting that a
sub-lease property is different from ordinary properties. He also said other
contracts of the council exceed seven and ten years. Mr. Jeng adduced that it has
been a tradition of the council that the mayor sign contracts, which he
opined should be in the Act, giving references to his predecessors’ signing
contracts. The suspended mayor also recalled that when the Jammeh Foundation wants
to build the Children’s play ground at the July 22 Square, he was called upon
to endorse the contract together with the Vice President. He said the
children’s play ground was not generating income likewise the toilets; that they
only wished to replace them with a better structure.
COUNT FIVE
On the purchasing of the 25KVA generator, he said he did not know if there
was a tender or a quotation, he did not instruct its buying and he did not
know if The Gambia Public Procurement Authority (GPPA) gave its approval. He
told the court that it was the CEO and the Director of Finance who requested if
his friend would sell his generator and the purchase was done in a
transaction involving the owner, the CEO and the Director of Finance at 50, 000 dalasi.
He said that there was no initial proposal to buy the generator stressing
that it was borrowed personally to him by a friend following the disconnection
of the BCC by NAWEC. Mr. Jeng agreed with the prosecution that there could be
shops in the country selling similar generators, adding that it is possible
T.K Motors sell them.
He testified that it was at a council meeting where councilors felt the need
for development partners to help Council in second hand equipment and
vehicles due to the financial handicap of the BCC. Mr. Jeng attested that the CEO
did not comply with the GPPA Act and he too never told him to compare prices
at T.K Motors, nor did he stop him from purchasing it since he did not have
the authority.
He disagreed with the prosecution that he removed the CEO from The Gambia
National Lottery (GNL) Board, arguing that the CEO wrote to him requesting for
his recommendation to the GNL Board. Mr. Jeng said at the time he joined the
Council, there were three Council members in the GNL Board, with the mayor,
making it four. He said when he received the CEO’s request, he wrote to the
Chairman of the GNL Board but the Council later decided that membership be
rotational among the Council members. He denied kicking the CEO out of the
Council and it is the CEO who should contract the Council lawyer if conflict with
the law arises.
COUNT FOUR
He told the court that he is aware of the 1.5 million dalasis contract for
the buying of the compactors, noting that he, as the mayor, complied with the
GPPA Act. He attested that he proposed the purchase, Council approved it, but
Council lacked funds to pay at once and so it was pre-financed.
Mr. Jeng also said it was the CEO who wrote to the GPPA for the approval of
the contract and he the mayor asked the CEO to effect payment to the
supplier, Alf Trading. The first installment was D300, 000 dalasis. He agreed with
the prosecution that ensuring transparency and accountability in contracts is a
way of complying with GPPA rules. He said that up to three months after the
buying agreement, the BCC did not pay the supplier and the GPPA approved it
just as the towing ambulance so that the council would avoid litigation. He
also agreed with the prosecution that some councilors wanted to impeach him and
they did not include the issues of the compactors since they, as the
councilors, approved it.
He said that his suspension by the Executive was declared illegal by the
High Court and the State’s application for a stay of execution was thrown out of
court. Mr. Jeng said he is not aware of any appeal against that ruling at
the court of Appeal, likewise his lawyer.
Asked if the compactors were budgeted by the Council, he said that the
Director of Finance is the best person to answer that question.
COUNT THREE
Mr. Jeng admitted facilitating the availability of the towing ambulance, but
said he was not aware of any open tender or a parallel tender. He said that
the CEO wrote to the GPPA for the approval of the purchase of the towing
ambulance and he too wrote a follow up letter. He denied having a vested personal
interest in the towing ambulance but agreed proposing that idea to buy it.
The towing ambulance purchasing, according to him, was signed and endorsed
by the CEO, witnessed by the Chief Mechanic and himself. The payment was made
after the GPPA approval, he said, noting that he expressed the need for the
towing ambulance to be purchased after it was shipped to Banjul.
Mr. Jeng also said the CEO has a parallel office, and they do not report to
each other. He also said he is a political head and when a policy clashes
with administrative matters he gets involved. He added that he does interact
with the CEO, but said he does not know who is the boss amongst them.
Mr. Jeng said the towing ambulance is a specialised vehicle, which was
approved by the GPPA, but could not say whether the Council’s funds were committed
before the GPPA’s approval. He told the court that the towing ambulance
supplier, Momodou Ndure, is not a friend and could not remember what time he came
to his office. There was no re-examination from the defence lawyers, Lamin
Camara and Neneh Cham-Chongan.
The case was adjourned to July 4th for the prosecution to file its address.
The defence will reply on July 11th and the prosecution will file its
rejoinder on July 13th from which the court will determine the date for judgment. It
could be recalled that Mr. Jeng was recently acquitted by Justice Monageng
on two charges, out of the six charges against him.
LACK OF FUNDS HAMPERS NYSS TRAINING
By Bubacarr K. Sowe
The Secretary of State for Youth, Sports and Religious Affairs, Sheikh Omar
Faye, recently told the National Assembly that the second batch of the
Nationals Youth Service Scheme (NYSS) Apprenticeship Training Programme (ATP) has
not started due to a budgetary constraint estimated at 1.4 million dalasi
annually.
Mr. Faye was answering a question raised by a nominated member, Seedy Njie,
on the current state of affairs of the NYSS; its operations and activities
countrywide, and possible plans to upgrade it. Mr. Faye said: “It could be
recalled that the funding of the ATP under the NYSS was through the HIPC fund
which no longer exists, as well as failure of some local government authorities
to contribute 10% to the NYSS ATP, as directed by cabinet conclusion No.3
(02) 2nd meeting of 7th February 2002.”
The Secretary of State revealed that a lapse in the policy objectives is the
failure to cater for those discontinuing students from grade six or those
who do not have the opportunity to go to school at all, as the emphasis is on
grade nine drop-out.
“To cater for all categories of youth in the country, government further
mandated the NYSS to introduce a second level of youth training called the
Apprenticeship Training Programme (ATP). This programme targets young people who
could not finish grade 8 and those who did not attend school at all,” said Mr.
Faye.
He added that the programme was launched in March 2002 and the first batch
of apprentice has spent forty-six months training in skills areas, such as,
plumbing, tailoring, welding and fabrication.
IMF Statement on The Gambian Economy
The following statement was issued in Banjul by Mr. Tsidi Tsikata, the
International Monetary Fund’s mission chief for The Gambia:
An IMF mission visited The Gambia during June 8-23, 2007, for discussions on
the first review under The Gambia’s Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility
(PRGF)’ arrangement (2007-2009), and completion point under the enhanced
Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative. The mission met with Secretary
of State for Finance and Economic Affairs Mousa Gibril Bala-Gaye, Governor of
the Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG) Famara Jatta, Chairman of the National
Planning Commission Alieu Ngum, other senior officials of the government and
the CBG, members of the national assembly, and representatives of the business
community, civil society, and The Gambia’s development partners.
The authorities’ success in sustaining macroeconomic stability over the last
few years has contributed to a substantial inflow of foreign direct
investment and vibrant economic activity. Growth is projected to reach 7 percent in
2007, led by strong performance in the construction, telecommunications and
tourism sectors. Fuelled mainly by sharp increases in the international prices
of some key imported commodities, consumer inflation has been on the rise
since January 2007, reaching an annual rate of 6.7 percent in May. However, a
strengthening of the dalasi against major currencies in recent months—
reflecting a surge in foreign exchange inflows—is expected to help lower inflation to
about 5 percent by December. The CBG informed the mission that it will
monitor inflation closely in the coming months and take appropriate action to
contain inflation at low single digit levels. The mission agrees with this
strategy.
Fiscal performance has been strong in the first half of the year, reflecting
higher-than- expected revenues and lower-than-programmed expenditures. The
introduction of the Integrated Financial Management Information System at the
beginning of 2007 has helped enforce budget discipline and strengthen overall
public financial management. The mission encouraged the authorities to
continue their prudent fiscal policies with a view to reducing domestic debt and
facilitating the gradual reduction in domestic interest rates.
The mission commended the authorities for making solid progress in
implementing structural reforms critical for progress toward achieving the Millennium
Development Goals. Reforms under the PRGF-supported program span the areas of
public finance management, central bank governance and operational
independence, and financial deepening. In addition, they include steps to improve
statistics in order to better inform economic policy making and the general
public.
“With respect to the completion point under the enhanced HIPC Initiative,
good progress has been made toward meeting almost all the conditions
established at the decision point. However, a condition related to privatizing public
assets in the groundnut sub sector has not been met. Discussions will continue
between the government and the staffs of the IMF and World Bank over the
coming weeks on reforms in the groundnut sector.
“The mission welcomed the authorities’ plans to strictly limit new debt
accumulation, including after the granting of debt relief under the enhanced
HIPC and Multilateral Debt Relief Initiatives. The authorities noted that new
borrowing would be only on highly concessional terms, and effective debt
management should benefit from the planned adoption of a new debt strategy.
“The mission thanks the authorities for their hospitality, close
collaboration, and the constructive spirit in which the discussions were held.”
EDITORS’ ANALYSIS
The IMF has developed a loan facility which takes five and a half years
grace period before the commencement of the payment of the principal of the loan.
The loan is repayable over a period of 10 years at an annual interest rate
of 0.5 percent. However, the loan is given on the basis of programmes
developed by low income countries aimed at reducing poverty. The facility provided by
the IMF is referred to as Poverty Reduction Growth Facility.
The loan facility is linked to the heavily Indebted Poor Countries
Initiative (HIPCI).
The Gambia was required under the HIPC initiative to implement the
programmes under the Poverty Reduction Strategy Facility satisfactorily to reach
completion point. Once this point is reached the country could benefit from
external debt relief or debt cancellation.
Unfortunately, for the Gambia, the failure to meet the agreed targets led to
the suspension of the PRGF program by the IMF in 2003 which also deprived
the Gambia of the 115 million dollars pledged by donors during the 2002 Geneva
Round Table Conference on the Gambia.
Consequently, by the end of the first poverty reduction strategy paper
implementation cycle in 2005, less than 40% of the programmes had been implemented.
In October 2005 the government had to negotiate a 6 months monitored
programme with the IMF so that a new Poverty Reduction Growth Facility will be
negotiated.
The IMF negotiated with the government and agreed in November 2006 to
finance the implementation of a new Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility programme
(PRGF) for the Gambia between 2007 – 2009.
THE PROMISE MADE BY THE GOVERNMENT IN 2000
According to the Gambia government “After a successful review of the first
six months’ programme of the PRGF, “The Gambia will reach HIPC completion
point and will qualify for Paris Club’ Debt Relief and the Multilateral Debt
Relief Initiative (MDRI)” which according to SoS for Finance “will unleash
substantial resources for the budget and thereby enlarge the fiscal space for
more growth and development.”
Conclusion
The IMF conducted its first review from 8 – 23 June 2007
However, completion point has not been reached as anticipated. According to
the IMF mission “with respect to the completion point under the enhanced HIPC
initiative, good progress has been made towards meeting almost all the
conditions established at the decision point. However, a condition related to
privatizing public assets in the groundnut sub sector has not been met.
Discussions will continue between the government and the staff of the IMF and World
Bank over the coming weeks on reforms in the groundnut sector”.
This is how matters stand.
For more information, book for a copy of the pamphlet entitled “IMF, WORLD
BANK AND BUDGETING IN THE GAMBIA” By Halifa Sallah to be published soon by the
People’s Centre for Social Science Research, Civic Awareness and Community
Initiative.
Three other books that are to be published in a series whose manuscripts are
ready are:
- 10 YEARS OF CONSTITUTIONAL RULE IN THE GAMBIA, HISTORY STILL IN
THE MAKING
- TREATISE ON THE FOUNDING OF THE FEDERATION OF AFRICAN REPUBLICS
(FAR) - A HANDBOOK FOR PAN AFRICANISTS
- THE ROLE OF KNOWLEDGE AND CULTURE IN DEVELOPMENT - A HANDBOOK
FOR DEVELOPMENT WORKERS AND CHANGE AGENTS
Book for copies through the Foroyaa vendors or through email.
[log in to unmask] The number of books and priority of publication will depend on demand.
JOURNALISTS PAY COURTESY CALL ON BRITISH HIGH COMMISSIONER
A seven member delegation from the Network of Human Rights Journalists
(NHRJ) on Thursday, June 21, paid a courtesy call on the British High Commissioner
to The Gambia, Phil Sinkinson.
The High Commissioner applauded the initiative the journalists have taken.
He advised them to be professional in their work as journalists.
“Be entirely and absolutely professional, Mr. Sinkinson told the journalists.
”
The Chairman of NHRJ, Madi Njie said the ultimate objective of the network
is to promote freedom of expression and the freedom of the press.
Mr. Njie added that one of the aims of the network is to expand it to other
African countries.
Musa Sheriff, Coordinator of the network underscored the need to strengthen
press freedom in Africa and the world over, stressing that it is a
cornerstone for any genuine democracy.
Fabakary B. Ceesay, NHRJ’s Public Relation Officer, thanked the British High
Commissioner for being the first to respond to a series of familiarisation
letters they sent to foreign missions, human rights bodies and other civil
society organisations.
The network’s Secretary General, Bubacarr K. Sowe said the body was
established six months ago, inorder to capacitize and improve the work of journalists
on human rights issues.
FOCUS ON POLITICS
1981 POLITICAL CRISIS
FAFA .E. MBAI - HIS APPOINTMENT MADE SOME BIG-WIGS TO TREMBLE
With Suwaibou Touray
We have been focusing on politics and this had motivated us to review
Gambian political history from the pre-colonial to post – independence epoch. We
have now analysed the independence era and had just completed the analysis of
the 1982 General Elections.
In the last issue we have dealt with the trial and subsequent freedom of
Hon. S. M. Dibba and co. from prison after they were acquitted and discharged on
all the numerous charges, despite the fact that 50 witnesses of the state
gave evidence at the said trial.
We have stopped where we asked, whether government would carry out the
verdict to send all those sentenced to death to the gallows or the firing squad.
Let us continue from where we have stopped.
It appeared that what occupied the president’s mind when he was forming his
cabinet after the 1982 elections was the criticism made by the media that,
for some reasons, in Gambian politics, some people of low educational
background found themselves voted into the house of parliament and as a result were,
as well, given ministerial positions. The BBC dubbed them ‘a group of bad
lieutenants’ and which makes it difficult to curb the activities of some
unchecked persons..
This was similar to the criticism or advice of M. B. Jones when he said ‘one
thing which the president failed to curb was to eradicate the archaic and
retrogressive criteria used for the selection of ministers with progressive,
efficient, knowledgeable, dynamic and committed ones who are conversant with the
ways of the civil service’. It is high time that, as he said ‘we stopped
appointing ministers of low academic standing thereby reducing them and the
Gambia to a laughing stock during debates, meetings and conferences’.
Hon B. B. Darboe and Mr. Fafa E. Mbai were seen, at the time, as such a
caliber of new blood who could serve to break that cycle.
Mr. Mbai was said to have ‘obtained four degrees in five years’. According
to the Gambia News Bulletin, Mr. Mbai was called to the bar on 25
November1975 as Barrister at law by the Middle Temple Inn of court in London.
Many people who were frequent at the courts were impressed with his style of
advocacy. Mr. Jones described it as looking like a concert theatre when, as
he observed, some barristers would be addressing the court with their minds
to the audience rather than the judge and their hands in their pockets walking
up and down.
Mr. Mbai also wrote a pamphlet ‘The peoples’ progressive party as an
instrument of social change in the Gambia.” This book’s publication coincided with
the seventeenth anniversary of independence in 1982.
The book also came out at a time when the P.P.P was hard pressed with
criticisms of corruption, to a point where the president had to express his
dissatisfaction with the press. So it was a time when the P.P.P required a morale
booster of some sort.
This was why many concurred with the president when he appointed Mr. Mbai to
the position of Attorney General and Minister of Justice at a time when he
facilitated the setting up of a commission of inquiry into the assets of civil
servants and ministers of state, which was also under his jurisdiction. So,
many saw him as a man of business who would not only be satisfied that
justice is done, but that justice is seen to be done and that only an
incorruptible Attorney General could push such an inquiry and a crusade to a successful
conclusion .
Mr. Bakary .B. Darboe was also seen by some in the same light, as a long
serving civil servants without any corrupt record, and that he would be able
to help direct the affairs of state in a judicious manner.
The president who was praised by praise-singers for braving all odds and
dared to return to the country despite the fact that even his family was held
hostage was now seen to be departing with tradition and proving that he was a
born again leader. He went ahead and replaced the then secretary general with
Mr. Jabez Ayo Langley. Mr. Langley (recently deceased) was also seen to be an
intellectual and a man of substance, an erudite scholar, for that matter.
Many thought he would be able to guide the civil service because of his
education and wealth of experience.
But Gambians in those days were not complacent; they do not take things for
granted. That was why many were saying ‘let us see what happens’ and that as
the saying goes ‘a spear no matter how sharp still needs to be sharpened’.
So the sharpening of the spear, no doubt, made many of those who were to be
probed to tremble.
The feared commission of inquiry started with the disbursement of foreign
aid on the 23rd of August 1982. The first witness to appear before it was one
Ebou Taal, the Commissioner of External Aid and Permanent Secretary at the
Ministry of External Affairs. The proceedings were initially delayed because the
Auditor General’s report was not available.
Mr. Semega Janneh, a former minister, who fell prey to the president’s new
mood, also appeared in court and charged for being in possession of what they
termed a negotiable instrument, cheque No.001565. The court restricted him
from operating his accounts with all the three banks in the country.
Apart from the inquiry, the economic situation did not augur well for the
ordinary people. It was this year 1982 that a prediction was made that the
trend the prices of commodities were mounting; that if that trend continued it
would never keep pace with individual earnings.
Not only were prices mounting but people began to experience shortage of
essential commodities such as rice. According to the Outlook newspaper, despite
the promises of government that there should not be any apprehension about
the shortage of rice, sporadic groups of people could be seen roaming about the
city of Banjul searching for the commodity.
With the economy not improving as expected, coupled with the rising cost of
living, the regime of Sir Dawda must race against time if it must fulfill the
election promises. The Senegambia confederation, which was used to drum up
hope, has not done much beyond the declaration of intent. The only significant
move made after the declaration was the establishment of a joint council of
ministers who were charged with the responsibility to deal with common
matters. One such common problem was the cross border smuggling that occurred from
the Gambian side. The other plans were to amalgamate the respective security
forces but as it was realised later the confederation was going to be a
gradual process that would take several years to complete.
The other matter on the agenda was to establish a confederal parliament and
a court of arbitration.
At this stage, over 15 accused persons have been found guilty of treason and
sentenced to death. Letters kept pouring in to plead on their behalf for
clemency. Meanwhile something out of the blue happened.
The person who was hailed as a hero during the rebellion, for holding on to
Banjul, and also compensated for his bravery and promoted from Inspector
General of police to the minister of the Interior, Mr. A. S. Mboob, had resigned
unceremoniously on 17 August 1982 without any explanation. But Gambians
always had their own explanation and if that is anything to go by, speculation had
it that it was in connection to Mr. Kebba Nyama Leigh’s revelation in court
that he and the former Inspector General were informed of the coup, as it
was at its planning stage.
So as you can see, cries of foul play by the then Attorney General that his
removal has something to do with the PPP sizzling with tribalism was contrary
to the realities at the time. For example, records indicated that the first
and second Attorney Generals were all expatriates but that the first Gambian
to man the post was Mr. M. L. Saho, who held it for fourteen (14) years.
So as far as records are concerned, Jawara was more interested in convincing
the people that he was being pragmatic and that he has indeed changed
colours than actually engaged in the old style ethnic balancing in politics.
1982 ended with one major concern for the ordinary person and that is, the
curfew and the state of Emergency that were still imposed on the people. Many
felt at the time that since Kukoi was exiled across the Sahara in the desert
country of Libya thousands of miles away; since the confederation has been
declared and Senegal was in total control of security and since the opposition
leader had also been not only cleared of all offences but freed as well,
there was no need to continue subduing Gambians under what many considered then
as Martial law, arresting, confining and mal- treating people for nothing
but to show authority and might.
See next issue as we explore issues that arose in 1983.
SHYBEN A. MADI AND SONS TO PAY D31, 608 TO EX-EMPLOYEE
By Bubacarr K. Sowe
The Banjul Industrial Tribunal has ordered Shyben A Madi and Sons to pay
D31, 608 to Ebrima Jallow, a former employee of the aforesaid company the court
said was unlawfully dismissed.
The evidence showed that the plaintiff was employed as a salesman, driver
and labourer. He worked for over five years and used to bring about D2,
000,000.00 on sales on a weekly basis. “This is why we are giving him a special
award,” the judgment reads.
The tribunal, presided over by Mr. B. Jallow, Chairman, Mr. L Bah and E.
Faal, both panelist, awarded the plaintiff two years salary at the sum of
D40,800 plus two months salary equivalent to D3,400, all amounting to D44,200, but
a sum of D12,592 was deducted from Mr. Jallow’s award following the
defendants counter claim.
Subsequently, the defendant was ordered to pay D31,608 to the plaintiff and
no award was given to either parties as interest and costs.
Mr. Jallow was claiming from his employer for declaration of constructive
and premeditated dismissal, damages for loss of earning, salary and breach of
contract and trust.
However, the defendant counter claimed a balance of the sum owed by the
plaintiff to the defendant, in interest and cost.
The tribunal said that since there is non compliance with section 114 of the
Labour Act, any dismissal of such is a wrongful one.
“The evidence disclosed the fact that the defendant was suspended. By virtue
of section 127, a suspension should not exceed two weeks. From the evidence,
it is clear that the plaintiff was suspended for more than two weeks which
is in contravention of the provision of sections 127(1) and (2),” The court
ruled.
It added that the evidence at hand does disclose the fact that the employee
was suspended and not dismissed, but the circumstances are such that the
tribunal believes he can claim payment of salary from the employer during the
period.
NEW POLICE PRO SPEAKS
By Fabakary B. Ceesay
The new police Public Relations Officer, (PRO) Inspector Sulayman Secka, has
appealed to the general public and the press to come forward with
information concerning criminal or any illegal activities within the society to help
the police to curb crime in our communities.
Inspector Secka said his office doors are open to the public and the media;
that we should see each other as partners in development. “Without their
assistance and cooperation the crime rate will always rise.” The police cannot be
everywhere every time, we cannot do everything alone,” said the new police
PRO. Inspector Secka said his office is open for the press about any
information they want to know from the police. As a new man to the post, PRO Secka
indicates that it is a challenge but added that life gets better sometimes when
one meets new challenges.
Inspector Sulayman Secka, was born at Hurst Street in Banjul in 1956. He
joined the police in 1976, became first class in 1980 and rose to the post of
Sergeant in 1995. Secka was promoted to the rank of Inspector in 2004. Secka,
was at the CID Unit at the Airport before he was moved to Basse as a general
duty officer, doing traffic and Immigration duties. Inspector Secka has served
in the Warforn, a region of Darfur, on a peace keeping mission in 2006. He
was also senior presenting traffic officer attached to the Mobile Traffic Unit
at Kanifing up to his recent appointment as Police Spokesperson. He has also
been a co-presenter of traffic talk show at both the West Coast and GRTS
radio.
DOCK WORKERS ARE UNDER COMMISSIONER OF LABOUR
By Fabakary B. Ceesay &Yaya Dampha
The Gambia Dock Workers Association had on Friday, 22 June written a stern
warning to the management of The Gambia Ports Authority to cancel their plans
to terminate their services by the end of July. The Dock and Maritime Workers
Union said they are under the Labour Commissioner and not directly employed
by the ports.
Speaking to reporters, Mr. Landing Sanyang, Secretary General, said the
management of ports should stop interfering in their matters since they are
recruited by the labour commission. He said they will embark on “no work” strike
if the ports management proceeds to terminate their services. He said they are
pushed to the corner and have no alternative but to go on the strike which
is fixed for the 20 July, 2007. The letter written by the Dock and Maritime
workers is copied to the following; Solicitor General, Secretary of State for
Trade Industry and Employment, Secretary of State for Works and Communication,
Commissioner of Labour, Secretary General, Office of the President and the
Interpol.
According to the Secretary General of the dock workers, the Interpol called
him to submit to them the letters written to them (the Interpol) by the
management of ports.
When this reporter contacted the Ports Management, he was referred to one
Mr. Ousman Jobarteh, the Operations manager, who is the mouth piece of the
ports. Mr. Jobarteh told these reporters to meet him in his office on Friday.
However upon arrival, Jobarteh told us the (reporters) that he was not going to
talk to us. He told us to tell the dock workers to write to the Ports
Authority.
Mr. Sanyang indicated that he had travelled to many African countries, such
as Ghana, Guinea and Senegal but had not seen anywhere, where dock workers
are employed under the Ports Authority. He said they will never accept to be
employed by the Ports, nor would the Ports terminate their services. Sanyang
maintained that they are under the Commission of Labour.
ALUMNI GAMBIA HOLDS FORUM
By Sarjo Camara-Singhateh
The United States International Visitor Leadership Programme -The Gambia
Alumni Association, on Thursday, 21 June 2007, held a forum at the Kairaba
Beach Hotel. The theme of the forum was “US-African Relations-Enhancing US-Gambia
bilateral relations.”
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the US Ambassador to The Gambia, Joseph D.
Stafford said the international visitors’ leadership programme is organised
by the United States Department of State through its Bureau for Educational
and Cultural Affairs. He said the programme which operates under the authority
of the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961, also referred
to as the Fulbright Hayes Act, is aimed at increasing understanding through
communication and information sharing. He said every year, current and
potential leaders across the world in both the public, and private sector and those
in politics, business, media, religion and others are brought together to
share experiences and exchange ideas on issues of mutual interest, as well as
analyze the challenges facing the world.
He said the Miss Black USA is similar to the Alumni, because it breeds
bilateral relationships. The President of Alumni Gambia, Mrs. Kinsa Jawara N’jai
stated that in The Gambia, over 150 professional in various disciplines have
since the early 1960s, gone through the renowned exchange programme. She said
in early 2006, a group of recent alumni generated interest to establish an
alumni association and consequently came together to put the necessary
modalities in place. She said the body which was formed in 2006, was subsequently
registered and launched in April 2007.
On his part, Mr. Bai Matar Drammeh, President of the Gambia Chamber of
Commerce and Industry, said the theme for the meeting is fitting,. He said the
Association Members should continue the good initiative and serve as “promoters”
of good services. He said the Association should consider including his
hotel Omakan and to include it in their partner hotels.
Presenting her paper on Africans and African American History, the Deputy
head of Mission, Patrice Ashlup, said that the story of African Immigration is
unique among immigrant groups, just as the African experience in America has
been uniquely central to the course of American life. She said unlike other
immigrants, most Africans came to North America against their will and were,
caught up in a brutal system of human exploitation.
She said it is estimated that during the 300 years of the transatlantic
slave trade, between 15 million and 20 million Africans were transported to the
Americas as slaves. She said more than 400, 000 were sent to 13 British
colonies and later the US. She said that now more than 35 million Americans claim
African ancestry and the number of African immigrants to the US increased
every year.
Mr. Ebou Momar Taal who spoke on African-American geopolitical similarities
said there are many linkages between the geopolitical similarities and the
decolonization periods.
He also spoke about the undiluted role played by Francis Small in the
support of pan-Africanism from 1920-25. He said the efforts of Francis Small is not
known by many people.
Mr. Abdoulie Touray spoke about Trade and the Private Sector development as
a prelude in the US/Gambia relation. He said in economist, one need to link
the three 3 E’s to the 3 A’s, that is Employment, Entrepreneurs and Exports
that lead to the Availability, Accessibility and Affordability. He said this
method is not functional in the Gambian economy and trade. He said the United
States has passed this stage, because they believe in excelling in every
sector. He said the Gambia-USA trade agreements are in place, but The Gambia
cannot enter into the US market as it is expected. He said countries talk of
container loads of goods while Gambians talk of suitcases. He further stated that
Gambia and Singapore had independence on the same year but today Gambia’s per
capita income is 365 dollars while Singapore’s is 29 thousand dollars.
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