Onjaarama!
Baba Galleh was my senior at Farafenni Primary School. I started school when he was in class two.We learned the holy verses from the same Qur'anic teacher( Cherno Alfa Sulaymana Jallow.The latter died last year).Sambujang Jagne(newly appointed chief)was at our Qur'anic graduation. Baba was like an elder brother to me, even though people would at times tease us for our names.He is Baba Galleh and I am Neneh Galleh. Infact, Baba Galleh's home is not so far from Matarr Njie's. Matarr is older than both of us.
Knowing Baba, he will survive this incident.
Good evening,
Sister Jay.
----- Original Message -----
From: Jeng, Beran <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, June 23, 2000 10:26 PM
Subject: FWD:Independent Editors'Nationality Questioned
> Independent Editors' nationality questioned
> The Independent <http://www.qanet.gm/Independent/independent.html> (Banjul)
> June 23, 2000
> Banjul - The nationality of Independent Editor-in-chief Baba Galleh Jallow and
> Managing Editor Alagi Yorro Jallow has been questioned by The Gambia's
> Immigration department.
> Two plainclothes Immigration officers walked into The Independent offices on No.
> 1 Kairaba Avenue Tuesday morning and asked to see the two editors. As Alagi
> Yorro was not in at the time, Baba Galleh invited them into his office.
> 'The two officers identified themselves and said Immigration director Sheriff
> Faburay sent them. They said they had been asked to check on our I.D cards and
> passports,' Mr. Jallow said.
> Mr. Jallow explained that since he did not have his passport on him at the time,
> he showed them his ID card and asked them to come later to see his passport.
> 'They asked if they could take my I.D card with them but I said no, they could
> only take a photocopy,' Mr. Jallow explained. 'I made a copy and gave it to
> them. I also asked them whether they wanted to deport us. At 2.00 PM the
> officers came back for the copy of my passport and also Alagi Yorro's
> documents.'
> Mr. Jallow said it was absolutely ridiculous for anyone in his right senses to
> question his nationality. Born in Farafenni in the North Bank Division, Baba
> Galleh attended Farafenni primary and secondary schools before proceeding to
> Armitage High School where he obtained his O' levels in 1985. That same year, he
> won a place and a government scholarship to the Gambia High School Sixth Form
> Arts stream. At Gambia High he was both Head Boy and President of the Islamic
> Cultural Club. Upon completion of Sixth Form, he taught History and English at
> St. Augustine's High School for one academic year before winning a government
> scholarship to pursue a Bachelor of Arts degree at Fourah Bay College,
> University of Sierra Leone where he served as Secretary General of the National
> Union of Gambian Students at the university. Upon graduation in 1991, Baba
> Galleh worked briefly as Cultural Officer (Research) for the National Council
> for Arts and Culture before taking up appointment as Assistant Registrar at the
> Banjul office of the West African Examinations Council in February 1992. In July
> 1994, Baba Galleh left WAEC and took up appointment as Assistant Editor of the
> Daily Observer. In July 1995, he was appointed Deputy Editor-in-chief, and
> eventually in October 1997, as Editor-in-chief of the Daily Observer. Following
> the sale of the Observer in May 1999, Baba Galleh resigned from the Observer and
> teamed up with Alagi Yorro to found The Independent newspaper.
> Back in 1994 Baba Galleh had served as a member of the historic National
> Consultative Committee set up by the defunct AFPRC government to sound the
> public's opinion nationwide on the length of the proposed transition period to
> civilian rule.
> Managing Editor Alagi Yorro Jallow was equally baffled at the news of the
> Immigration officers' visit.
> 'This is a joke,' he said. 'It's even Yabateh. How can they question our
> nationality? Let them go and question my dad at Sankwia.'
> Son of Alhagie Amadou Jallow, the Grand Marabout of Sankwia in the Lower River
> Division, Alagi Yorro attended Pakalinding Primary School, Pakalinding Secondary
> Technical School, and later proceeded to Saint Peters High School for his O'
> levels. From St. Peters, Alagi Yorro proceeded to Saint Augustine's High School
> where he obtained his A'levels in 1985. In 1998 he was elected vice chairman of
> the Gambia Press Union, a position he currently holds.
> 'I think if I'm deported, my brother who is serving the Gambia Police Force as a
> senior police officer serving with the U.N Peace Keeping Force in East Timor
> will also be deported,' Alagi Yorro said. 'The director of Immigration or the
> authorities I believe should first do their homework properly, they should have
> checked with the Health department to determine whether we are citizens or not.'
>
> A few days ago, reporter Alhagie Mbye was also threatened with deportation by an
> anonymous Immigration official.
> According to reliable sources close to the Immigration department, a top
> official at the department of state for Local Government had called the director
> of Immigration and told him that both Baba and Alagi Yorro are not citizens of
> this country. This followed the publication of a story on last Monday's edition
> of The Independent, which reported that the elected chief of Upper Baddibu
> district had been sacked and the APRC divisional chairman, appointed chief.
> Meanwhile on Wednesday morning, Baba Galleh's 80-year-old father Momodou Jallow
> called from Farafenni to say that Immigration officers there had just subjected
> him to a lengthy interrogation. As at the time of going to press, they still had
> the old man's ID card.
>
> C
>
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