Your Excellency,
I am compelled to bring your attention the problems of land
mal-administration in this country and more particularly in Brufut
Yillage.
Last week the department of physical planning and housing
(DPP&H)announced over the radio and television that they (DPP&H)would
carryout a demolition exercise over an area in Brufut which is supposed
to be state land.
Our peolple in Brufut have lost part of our land to the Brusubi Housing
Development Project and this has not brought us any benefits
whatsoever.Brusubi Housing has brought us heither electricity nor water
not even to mention telephones.For the record we appreciate the Kombo
Coastal project.
This planned demolition exercise is merely an attempt to clear the
ground for the benefit and interest "TAF CONSTRUCTION".Our people have
rejected "TAF'S" proposal and offer of compensation.your secretary of
state for local government and lands has steadfastly refused to meet our
representatives from Brufut Village to discuss the issue.It seems that
Honourable Nai Ceesay would rather defend the corporate interest of TAF
Construction than care about the thousands of land less youths and the
poor in Brufut.

If this so-called state land was allocate to TAF,it was done without the
consent of the people of Brufut and without disclosing to you and your
Cabinet the true facts on the ground.The Secretary of state for Local
governmet and Lands ignored or pretended that there were no developments
on the ground affecting the area.Our "Kabilos" in Brufut  who owned the
land have for the past three years been sharing the land amongst
ourselves.

Why should our people in Brufut not be allowed to build and live on land
that our forefathers have ploughed and tenedered for centuries?.If this
land in Brufut is allocated to TAF ,our youths in Brufut will have no
land to build and live on.Our youth people in Brufut will have not be
able to afford this proposed"high class residential houses" by TAF.It
will lead to affluence in the midst of poverty in Brufut.

The policy of conceding our entire coastline to foreigners in the name
of Tourism Development Area(TDA) has lost all credibility.Are Gambians
not good enough tolive on the best parts of our own Country?Tourism is
good for development but tourists are notoriously :fair
Weather"friends.A "wrong travel advise"could turn all our tourist sights
into deserted areas.Ordinary Gambians should have the option of being
able to live near beach and so sholud the people of Brufut and Bijilo.

Your Excellency,land administration in the country is in disarray
because our officials are always self-serving.After the debacle of
"Sinchu Yahi", the department of stae for lands is still determine to
give more land to TAF CONSTRUCTION.TAF'S project in new Yundum is at the
expense of ordinary land owners some of whom remain uncompensated.The
proposal for a "high class" residential area at Brufut is not wanted by
the people of Brufut. We are happy with mud houses.

On purely economic point,why should the government subsidies a private
individual in the person of TAF  CONSTRUCTION for his so-called
development project? Should TAF not buy rather than be "allocated" the
land he wants for his project? No matter how TAF'S projects are dressed
up, it remains, purely money making enterprise from an enterpreneur  and
as such TAF should be buying  the lands he need at the market prices
either from individual  owners or from the state.

Yours Excellency,it seems rich and powerful people only have to piont
out the sites(land)they want and it is it allocated to them.The stink
corner junction is a prime example.Ordinary Gambians have to wait  for
years for state Layouts and even ten,only person with influential
friends are allocated plots.

Last year demolition exercise was carried out in Bijilo.That fiasco has
still not been solved.Carrying out a demolition exercise in Brufut at
this time under the pretext of "state land" or "TDA" would really
alienate the people of Brufut.Should the interest of one man in the
person of TAF override the interest of thousands of ordinary villagers
in Brufut?

Your Excellency, in the interest of social and political stability in
Brufut,i respectfully urge you to order a stop to the proposed
demolition exercise and the handling of the land issue in Brufut be
investigated.

Respectfully
Abdoukarim Sanneh
Brufut

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